I swear this will be my last orchid and it's a paph, any experts?

[Katsols]

Ok so my orchid collection has been growing faster than i hoped for! lol and on top of that i have other plants so i'm really short on space now but i do have room for one more.
For months now i've been admiring Paphiopedilums but i get mixed opinions and different care instructions on each kind.
It would be great if you could help me pick one (from my list of fav ones) which one would be easiest to grow and flower, i like a challenge but i don't want a paph that is too slow/difficult to grow.
So here is my list of the ones i like.
Paph Michael Koopowitz
Paph. lowii
Paph. philippinense
Paph.
(Sander's Pride x anitum)
Paph. Faire-Maud
(fairieanum x Maudiae)

Yes i love the paphs with multiple flowers and tendrils.
Any help would be greatly appreciated

[SlipperGirl]

I have heard that the paph. lowii is a easy paph.

here are some links for growing paphs

PAPHIOPEDILUM: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

and this is a link to aos culture sheets.
AOS Culture Sheets

[bethmarie]

Not an expert on paphs, but I consider myself an expert on people who swear this will be their last orchid. I'm not a betting kind of person, preferring instead a sure thing. But I'd surely like to get a wager in that this, assuredly, will not be your last.

[ronaldhanko]

Hilarious, Beth. May I get a bet in, too. This is as good as a sure thing.

[The Orchid Boy]

The Paph Michael Koopowitz, Paph. lowii , Paph. philippinense, and Paph. (Sander's Pride x anitum) wouldn't be hard to grow at all, but they would be a little to a lot slower growing. Paph. Faire-Maud would "probably" be the fastest growing onw of the above group. Check out these Paph data sheets for every paphiopedilum species.

If you like paphs with multiple flowers and tendrils, you'd love Paph. sanderianum which is my avatar and pictures here: Paph sanderianum 'Rapunzel' AM/AOS - Orchid Forum by The Orchid Source This species is not hard to grow, it is just slow. One more thing about multiflorals (which include the 4 orchids on the top of your list) they need at least 65% humidity.

[quiltergal]

I agree that the Faire-Maud would be the best beginner Paph. It also won't take up much room either. Be aware though that there is a lot of variability in flower color in this hybrid.

The others aren't difficult, they're just slow growers.

We might enable you to find more space if you tell us what you grow area is like.

[bellini girl]

Swear huh? So I guess when your growing space is burgeoning you will become belligerent like yours truly and say things like "Be grateful it's not drugs"

[Katsols]

hehe you guys =] i am actually going to a cocktail/orchid show here in nyc soon, very tempting...

hmm interesting i'll look more into Faire-Maud and lowii
Thanks for the data sheet! i needed something like that.
i just found paph philippinense x lowii it looks awesome!

---------- Post added at 05:49 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:29 PM ----------

Originally Posted by bellini girl

Swear huh? So I guess when your growing space is burgeoning you will become belligerent like yours truly and say things like "Be grateful it's not drugs"

my fiance started saying i better not turn our future place into a jungle haha!

[bethmarie]

Originally Posted by bellini girl

So I guess when your growing space is burgeoning you will become belligerent like yours truly and say things like "Be grateful it's not drugs"

I love it!

[Leafmite]

Yeah, I said the same thing. I had no more room so I couldn't fit in any more orchids. Then I discovered you can hang them. Yeah. Makes it easy to fit more! Except, now, i think I have finally reached my limit.
Lynnleigh Koopowitz does take forever and ever to grow. I have it.