Phragmipedium klotzschianum

[Drorchid]

Hi Robert,

Very nice, but I'm surprised your Alien Syndrome didn't inherit any of the humboldtii 'briar pipe' pouch color! Did you back-cross Alien Syndrome with humboldtii? Seem like crossing Alien Syndrome with wallisii would further wash out the color.......

Actually Jason is the one that made the cross with wallisii, and yes the flowers are lighter in color. Actually I like how they turned out! There are almost some "Pink" tones in the flowers. But yes, I agree, backcrossing Alien Syndrome to humboldtii aka popowii would darken the flowers! And, no, whe haven't made that cross yet...

Robert

 

[Clark]

Thanks for the lesson.
If I seen this plant w/o flower, would never believe it was Phrag.
Looks a little frankensteinish.

 

[mrhappyrotter]

I'd definitely go for the klotz x popowii. Small growing, dark flowers, long petals? Sign me up.

 

[mrhappyrotter]

For the sake of posterity, I thought I'd post again with a bit of an update.

Since this is my first Phrag. klotzschianum, and the first time I have a plant in bloom, I can't confirm that this is typical, but I wanted to point out that this flower is still open after a month.

Considering that this is a first bloom seedling, that seems like a heck of a lifespan for a Phragmipedium flower, and more along the lines of what I'd normally get from my Phrag. caudatum hybrids.

// I'm probably jinxing it. I halfway expect to walk back to the plant stand to find the flower laying on the floor, simply because I posted this.

 

[Carkin]

Wow, a month! That sweet thing has so much going for it!

 

[SlipperFan]

That is impressive for a Phrag! Did we ask how many flowers to expect on this species?

 

[mrhappyrotter]

That is impressive for a Phrag! Did we ask how many flowers to expect on this species?

I've read or heard that 2 - 3 flowers per spike is typical. I suppose it depends on the size of the clone as well, the really small ones would tend to have fewer.

This little plant is a tiny, first bloom seedling, and it's pretty clear the flower in the photo is the one and only for this particular spike. I don't know how big it will ultimately get, but I suspect that future growths will be larger than this current one.

I haven't seen any info online regarding the flower longevity, which is why I assumed the lifespan of the flower would be shorter. For most of my phrags, other than the ones with long petals, 2 weeks per flower is about average, 3 weeks isn't unheard of, but a month almost never happens.

 

[Erythrone]

Cutie!

 

[SlipperFan]

I've read or heard that 2 - 3 flowers per spike is typical. I suppose it depends on the size of the clone as well, the really small ones would tend to have fewer.

This little plant is a tiny, first bloom seedling, and it's pretty clear the flower in the photo is the one and only for this particular spike. I don't know how big it will ultimately get, but I suspect that future growths will be larger than this current one.

I haven't seen any info online regarding the flower longevity, which is why I assumed the lifespan of the flower would be shorter. For most of my phrags, other than the ones with long petals, 2 weeks per flower is about average, 3 weeks isn't unheard of, but a month almost never happens.

Thanks. Good info.

 

[Phrag-Plus]

Very nice! Your plant is very small!

 

[SlipperKing]

Great color in your clone. Where did you buy your plant, from Tom? I'm also wondering how klotzschianum would do in S/H. Has anyone tried S/H?

 

[Linus_Cello]

It's a great, miniature species. It was originally found stream-side in Venezuela completely submerged during the rainy season, and collected for the aquarium trade as it was assumed to be an aquatic plant. Obviously, it did not survive long as an aquatic plant planted in aquarium gravel! The species has never realized it's full potential as a parent in hybridizing, although the hybrid Phrag. Amazon Pixie (x fischeri) IMHO may have good potential, and Will Chantry (x besseae) is a favorite of those with limited growing space.

As a emergent aquatic phrag, my guess is that this would be a great candidate for s/h.

 

[mrhappyrotter]

Great color in your clone. Where did you buy your plant, from Tom? I'm also wondering how klotzschianum would do in S/H. Has anyone tried S/H?

I bought a seedling from Tom, but the one I posted in this thread came from Seattle Orchids.

The bloom started looking a bit dull around 2 - 3 days ago, the hood began to droop, and the pouch deflated slightly. Then the flower dropped this morning. It was similar to the way a paph starts to look right before the blooms drop.

I guess time will tell if this was a fluke (longevity + degrading flower quality before dropping). Obviously, a month or more isn't super rare in phrags, but it's uncommon for this type. And, most other phrags' flowers pop off the spike in pristine or near pristine condition, rather than showing signs of aging.

If this is typical of the species, I think it's pretty cool. I've got a few klotz hybrids that could very well bloom this coming year, and it would be wonderful if the flowers on those lasted longer than average as well.

Then again, as I mentioned, it could be a fluke so I'll try not to get my hopes up too much.