To me, the decision would come down to (mostly) personal taste, budget, space, then a lot of minor factors like whether I could get mature sized plants, general health of the plants, etc.
Out of those choices, I'd personally go with Phrag. longifolium if space isn't much of an issue, or if you've got access to one of the compact varieties. Once it gets some growths on it, which it can do pretty quickly since it's usually vigorous, longifolium can be in bloom almost non-stop. Obviously if you're looking for colorful blooms (which I interpret as meaning red-orange-yellow-pink-purple), the earth tone flowers might not be that appealing to you. This is the only one from your list that I currently grow.
The next choice option in that list, and the one I think best suits your taste, would be Schroderae. These can also veer into the large growing category, but the flowers should be the largest and most colorful of the group you're considering -- so based on your follow-up, this probably is the one you should pick. That being said, compared with your other options, this one is going to be a little slower to mature, a bit more difficult to bloom regularly (in a home environment), and likely to bloom less often. Due to the caudatum influence, it's also possible that this one will need more careful watering, though most clones will be fine with wet conditions.
The Calurum is my least favorite of the bunch. Like longifolium, it should be really easy to grow and bloom, and once mature with multiple growths, the plant will be in bloom for many months at a time, possibly multiple times a year or even ever blooming. Depending on the varieties of longifolium used, I've seen this hybrid get very large. The flowers will obviously be chunkier than longifolium. While there's a lot of variation in flower shape/size/color/quality, on average I haven't been super impressed with Calurum. The really good ones are really good, but the average ones are really "meh", and unless you're getting a division of a known above average clone, you'll probably end up with something more lackluster in terms of quality.
---------- Post added at 10:42 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:30 AM ----------
Quote:
Originally Posted by Daethen
I just wish they weren't so darned expensive. I would love to try a couple but hate to spend that much just to possibly kill the plant.
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What do you consider to be expensive?
I almost always recommend starting with mature sized plants for new or inexperienced growers. Even though they're more expensive, they're usually healthy enough and have enough reserves to get them through a few initial rough patches while you're learning how to grow them.
BUT ... with something like Phrag. longifolium, as long as you've got a little bit of patience, I think the species is vigorous enough that you really would stand a good chance of success even if you bought a small seedling (maybe 8 - 10 inches or 20 - 25 cm leaf span). It might take a few years (and a lot of space) before you see blooms, but if you keep it warm, wet, and well lit you probably won't kill it.
And Phrag. longifolium is really one of the more affordable phrags as far as I've seen. If you shop around, wait for sales, or just happen to catch Ebay at the right time, I've seen them offered in the $15 - $20 range (shipping and taxes would be extra). I know that expensive is a relative term, but that's about the same price range that I see a lot of other things like phals and oncidiums online.
Once you have grown longifolium for a while, figure out how to care for it, and see that it's growing well, you can be pretty confident that many other (more expensive) phrags will do well in your conditions. Things like Hanne Popow, Eric Young, and some of the more modern complex phrags will enjoy similar care.
having a hard time deciding
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