Do you ever buy orchids for their foliage?

[stonedragonfarms]

Several of the Lepanthes species that I have come to mind...not only foliage alone, but structure/form of the plant's growth(s) as well...

[RosieC]

Originally Posted by stonedragonfarms

Several of the Lepanthes species that I have come to mind...not only foliage alone, but structure/form of the plant's growth(s) as well...

Actually that's a good point. I had a Lepanthes species at one time which was bought purely for the leaves.

[AnonYMouse]

Originally Posted by Paul

Nope. Vandas rarely impress me and Neos I kill just by looking at them. So I almost never bother with the Vanda/Neo section of the forum.

The Japanese seem to prize foliage as much as the flowers. If Neo's don't do it for you, there are the Den. moniliformes and the Sedirea japonicas with beautiful variegations. Some Cyms, too.

Others I acquired for their non-flower qualities are the Isabelia virginalis, Angraecum distichum and a couple of Leptotes.

[GardenTheater]

I mostly buy for the bloom with scent and nice plant form being a nice bonus. But I have spent time in the Neo section and have a couple of Neos. I like the leaves on those and find subtle differences like waves versus mountains interesting. If I grew up or lived in Japan, I'd be immersed in the culture and probably appreciate Neos a lot more. I tend to get excited about big, bold or more flowers and that seems to fit with the Western culture I'm swimming in and was born into.

[Paul]

Originally Posted by AnonYMouse

The Japanese seem to prize foliage as much as the flowers. If Neo's don't do it for you, there are the Den. moniliformes and the Sedirea japonicas with beautiful variegations.

It's not a matter of not liking Neos (though I think some folks are crazy for the prices they will pay for some of them), but rather the ease with which they expire in my care.

[tropterrarium]

Leaves are so mindnummingly boring in Laelia/Catleyas/Phals/Cymb: the bulbs and leaves. Nobody getting all excited about one or two leaves per PB, it's the friggin' same thing.

Got Ludisia discolor for the leaves. Then my favorite Oberonia is just so much fun contemplating diversity in vegetative morphology: fans, distichous, with runners, terete leaves, stiff, floppy, moss-like. Flowers are also seriously cool, as long as you have a microscope or two ...

Some pleuros are worth for the leaves, such as pectinata and strupifolia.

[NYCorchidman]

I have bought a few paphs for leaves, the mottled type.
I usually toss them if they don't have nice flowers, but I have kept two or three that I really really liked the leaves of although their flowers are not that pretty to me.

Other than that, I generally do not buy any orchids with ugly spotting or marks on the leaves no matter how pretty the flowers are. Usually disease signs to me and very very disturbing.

[tucker85]

I did buy one paph for the foliage. It's a beautiful mottled blue/green and gray. I haven't seen the flower yet but I love the foliage.

[NYCorchidman]

sounds like you got a paph in the parvi group.

[HighSeas]

I'm a bit weird about the foliage but even more obsessed with ROOTS. Gosh I LOVE roots! I like the flowers of course, but the roots really give me a charge!

When I buy a plant, I look at the foliage....I'm looking for disease and bugs and new growth. And ROOTS! Oh...that's right...the bloom too!