Anyone know of an orchid to match this description?

[The Orchid Boy]

I have a relative who wants an orchid but they want it to be a "perfect" orchid.
These are the requirements...
-HAS to be quite large and bushy so that it looks like a regular foliage houseplant when out of bloom
-They would like it to be the color "orchid" or like a light purple or lavendar color but this is not absolutely necessary

This is the growing conditions in their house: They have a large east facing window that gets pretty sunny, they also have very few smaller windows.

Any recommendations??? I was thinking some kind of cymbidium...

[fishmommy]

Cymbidium might not get enough light in an East window. How about Miltoniopsis?

[camille1585]

Cyms are good, but that east window won't be enough light, and it's going to have to go outside late spring to early fall. So it won't really be a houseplant for half of the year.

I had ideas that fit the criteria mostly, but if you're looking for Cym sized plants, they're too small. Oncidium Twinkle 'Red Fantasy', or Onc ornithorhynchum were my original ideas. Mature plants are bushy, and make sprays of pinkish purple blooms. But only about 1 foot tall.

---------- Post added at 08:21 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:10 PM ----------

Or maybe an Epidendrum, some get quite large and bushy. I'm not very familiar with the genus so not sure if there's enough light though.

[Tsuchibuta]

Why not a Phaius tankervillaie or Phaicalanthe Kyrptonite. Both are low light, with large foliage and don't require much in terms of temperature fluctuations or light to bloom.

---------- Post added at 03:26 PM ---------- Previous post was at 03:24 PM ----------

If you want a plant with a bit smaller foliage/ plant growth, Spathaglottis plicata can be grown without a rest period and blooms in a color that would meet the recommendations.

[WhiteRabbit]

You will probably want a mature plant with a lot of growth to get the bushiness. Most Oncidium alliance are nice and leafy - and many get nice and bushy quickly.

Other windowsill growers I like the appearance of, even out of bloom - multi-growth Neofinetia falcata Amami Island (the largest of the Neo varieties), I like Dens from the Latouria section - Den Aussie Chip, while small in height, grows to be very bushy quite quickly. Even "large" (by large I mean lots of growth) mini and compact Catt alliance - I have one intergeneric with a ton of growth in a 4" pot, lots of big, thick waxy foliage - I think it looks fabulous!

Multi-growth Paphs are very nice too! Especially the mottled foliage ones.

Not all of these will have the "orchid color" of pinkish purple, but of course in Oncidium and Cattleya alliances there are many that will fit the bill color-wise.
Latouria Dens are generally white/cream, green, burgundy. Neos are white, tho may have a tinge of pink. There are smaller growing ones with different hues - usually pink, green, yellow. Lots of color variety in Paphs.

Neos do like to be a bit cool in winter, so I don't know if that would be a problem ? They don't need to be cold, but definitely not warm (not warmer than low-mid 60s daytime)

There may be some small growing Cym species that might bloom in a windowsill (I think there are some that are warmth tolerant, or warmer growing)- I'm not sure, but it may be worth looking into ?

[The Orchid Boy]

Ok I'll research some of these orchids. Thanks for the recomendations. If you have more then add them.

[orchidsarefun]

...for example Zygo Louisendorff

Zygolum Louisendorf: Orchids By Hausermann


Useful orchid culture link.....

http://www.cloudsorchids.com/culture...tm#Zygopetalum

Very easy to grow, like an overnight low of around 60f....so you need to find out growing temps in the new home, whatever you decide on.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

I second Spathoglottis plicata as a suggestion. They're pan-tropical weeds for a reason.

I've seen first-hand how they grow in the wild. The growing environment would suit them well in terms of lighting. In terms of temperature, intermediate - warm is good. Humidity not too big of an issue; the area where I was directed to where the clumps of Spathoglottis plicata grew, had moderate humidity that was very comfortable for people. They like a good amount of moisture though. They are terrestrial/lithophytes.

These guys are large. The plants get to be about 2 - 2 1/2 feet tall. The spikes are not terribly large. Flowers are only about 1" across. They have a nice magenta color to them, but there are other color morphs available too.


Zygopetalum spp. are great as well. The plants are not as large as the Spathoglottis though, but the flowers are larger and fragrant. Not quite as colorful, the flowers are. They don't exactly meet the coral colored flower requirement, but they're really good plants.


Could try some Paphinia spp. They are moderate in size. The flowers are large and showy. They also match your relative's color requirement. These grow in shady conditions and are intermediate - warm growing.


Coelia macrostachys could also work. They grow bright though, much like Cymbidiums.

[isurus79]

I think Spathoglottis plicata and Phaius tankervillae would be great for all the reasons mentioned. Both of these grow fast as weeds in Hawaii.

Some Sobralia species might work too.

[RJSquirrel]

they want a perfect orchid? get one made of silk