Phragmipedium pearcei
It decided to reward me with 2 spikes this year, and this is probably it in peak condition with 4 flowers open at once. The flower count of course is likely to plummet, literally and figuratively, in a day or two, as I suspect the first flower on each spike is about to detach.
Last spring it bloomed for me for the first time in a very long time after I intentionally set it directly under a spot light to give it very bright light all fall and winter. Based on that, I assumed I'd have to do that to get it to bloom again.
Since I wanted to give it a break this year and let it save some energy up, I figured I'd just leave it under the stand where it grew (but never bloomed) for many many years. And, despite that, it opted to bloom anyway.
Maybe they don't need as bright of light as I thought and it was something else that stimulated it to bloom the past 2 years?
Either way, it's a really wonderful miniature phrag species as many of you know. They stay short, and individual growths are nice and small. The plant itself really likes to ramble, and produces fairly long stolons, which is its only downside for those of us with limited space. But it does grow and bloom nicely under lights, and the spikes stay short enough that I don't have to move it off the shelf when it's in flower like I have to do with a lot of my other phrags.
I basically just make sure to always keep it wet, as it really hates going dry and I fertilize it a little less and take care to flush its pot a little more often as they seem a little finicky about poor quality water. I also minimize repotting because it does seem to resent that a little more than most of my other phrags.
The flowers are so darn adorable, you just want to pinch their cheeks if they had some.
Phragmipedium pearcei
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