Coryanthes bruchmuelleri in bud

[thespookyasparagus]

My Coryanthes bruchmuelleri is in my bud and should be open in the next couple of days. I'm super excited, as, out of the fifteen or so Cory species that I grow, this one has always eluded me in terms of getting it to bloom.

I grow all my Coryanthes at 78-85 during the day and 68-70 at night. They get fairly bright sun in the morning, and then bright shade for the rest of the day. Humidity never falls below 70, and is frequently closer to 80. Long term success with Coryanthes challenges the notion that all orchids are opposed to remaining wet. Every time I look at the Coryanthes, I give them a drink, replicating the bog like conditions they grow in. I also keep the 100% sphagnum they are in fresh, with annual repots and never tightly packed for aeration, and, thus, oxygenation to the roots. Coryanthes are also heavy feeders, and get MSU at half the dose a couple of times a week.

Coryanthes bruchmuelleri is known to be the largest single bloom in the genus and perhaps one of the largest/heaviest blooms in all of Orchidaceae.