Quote:
Originally Posted by manoj
What is Oncidium equitans? Is it a
cultivar or is it a group? I have a plant labelled Onc. eqitans. Later found two more plants with different colored flowers labelled the same. Somebody please explain.
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As mentioned above, equitants were originally classified as a type of Oncidium, even though the fellow responsible for most of their earliest "domestication" (Gooddale Moir) argued for them to be in their own genus as early as the 1970's. They have since been so classified, and are now officially tolumnia. A lot of people still call them equitants, and some hybrids will also still list them and / or their parents as Oncidium. Welcome to the confusing world of orchid nomenclature.
In general, tolumnia are small (usually grown mounted, or in 2-4 inch pots), with very sturdy upright leaves. Some people compare their growth habit to irises, which isn't a bad comparison. They produce long flower spikes -- sometimes up to 2 feet! -- with multiple individual flowers along the last several inches. Part of their charm (in my opinion) is that they are WILDLY variable! Plants grown from the same seed pod can range so much in color, spike length, and flower size that it's hard to believe they're related. Even mericlones will show a certain amount of variability -- the temperature and light at which an individual plant is grown has a big impact on things like the flower color and shape.
I like that variability, though. Part of the fun is being able to have siblings that range in color from yellow to pink. They give such a great flower display in a small package, too. I have ~70 of them, and they all grow inside a single wardian case in the basement that's about the same size as a china cabinet. Beats having to heat a greenhouse!
L.P.
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Oncidium Nomenclature
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