Phrag kovachii imposter!

[dmcmkl]

I purchased a Phrag kovachii (Purple Mystery x Purple Cow) from Orchids Ltd a couple of years ago. It is blooming for the first time, however it appears to be an imposter! Tell me what you all think!



Looks to me more like a Fritz Schomburg! Normally I would be disappointed, but I'm not. I love the color, it is super saturated and I think it looks awesome. Here it is next to my just opened, first time blooming, Phrag kovachii 'Tesoro Morado' which I also purchased from Jason a few years ago.


The kovachii has a petal spread of 16cm while the kovachii imposter has a petal spread of 8cm.
What really intrigues me about the imposter is it's color. If it is indeed a Fritz Schomburg I can say I have never seen one before that was this color. Normally what I have seen are pink and peach toned. Has anyone ever seen one this color?

 

[CharlesD]

It almost looks too dark to be a primary? Otherwise my guess would be fischlimii would be the other parent

 

[gonewild]

Nice but definitely not kovachii. Not FS either.

 

[NYEric]

Purple mystery for sure.

 

[Linus_Cello]

The shape seems more Eumelia Arias to me. Maybe EA backcross to KV?

 

[mrhappyrotter]

Regardless of being mislabeled, it looks like something really nice. The color is fantastic and it's very shapely.

A handful of years back, Orchids Ltd was selling plants labeled as Phrag. Samuel Crothers (kovachii x fischeri), and given the small size of the plant compared to kovachii as well as the overall qualities of the flower, it wouldn't shock me if that's what you've got. If so, then I feel like it's a particularly nice example of this hybrid given how saturated the color is in combination with how flat and round the flower is. However, I wouldn't bet my life on this being the correct ID.

I bet if you message the vendor, they'll a) have an idea of what you ended up with and b) might offer some remedy. I haven't had any issues with them, personally, but in the few cases I've read about where someone's had an issue with an order, they seemed to be responsive.

I would be unhappy that I didn't get a true kovachii if that's what I paid for, but also ecstatic about getting such a nice quality hybrid (so long as I could get some confirmation from OL about the ID).

 

[dmcmkl]

I texted Jason today to ask what he thought it might be. I drove down pollen from the Tesoro Morado to him yesterday. Apparently he only has two divisions of that particular kovachii left in the nursery. One is quite small and the other is small and struggling. I'm going to try and self mine. If successful and I get a viable seed pod I plan on asking a princely sum for it!

mrhappyrotter you just might be right. I checked out the OL listing for Samuel Crothers and it looks a lot like this one with better shape and a darker more saturated color. Whatever it is I really like it and I am not disappointed at all that it is not a kovachii.

 

[mrhappyrotter]

I texted Jason today to ask what he thought it might be. I drove down pollen from the Tesoro Morado to him yesterday. Apparently he only has two divisions of that particular kovachii left in the nursery. One is quite small and the other is small and struggling. I'm going to try and self mine. If successful and I get a viable seed pod I plan on asking a princely sum for it!

mrhappyrotter you just might be right. I checked out the OL listing for Samuel Crothers and it looks a lot like this one with better shape and a darker more saturated color. Whatever it is I really like it and I am not disappointed at all that it is not a kovachii.

Awesome! I hope you find out what it is, and I really hope you report back to us and let us know. I'm very interested in the answer.

 

[PeteM]

The shape seems more Eumelia Arias to me. Maybe EA backcross to KV?

This has my vote

 

[gonewild]

If it's an Eumelia Arias it's the best one ever!