den spectabile 'shorty'

[Jeff214]

Hello,

Does anyone know much about den spectabile 'shorty'? I purchased one last year. It's pushed up at least ten, 2 - 3 inch canes while older ones withered away. I thought the canes would get progressively taller but it hasn't (i read that the original specimens eventually grow 3 feet + ?)

I'm not sure if it's supposed to grow any taller, if its still well in its juvenile growth state, or if I'm doing something wrong.

[Orchid Whisperer]

Not sure. The D. spectabile that I have does not have a clonal name like 'Shorty', but did first bloom on canes 15 cm tall (leaves rising a little higher than that). Maybe that will help you predict the blooming height of yours.

[AJW]

This may help: Source Orchid Wiz
ORIGIN/HABITAT: New Guinea, Bougainville, the Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu. Plants grow on trees in swampy lowland forests, lower mountain forests, or in planted coconut or Casuarina trees from sea level to 3600 ft. (0-1100 m). On ridge tops, they grow on the surface of the ground in thick moss and peat. The plants survive exposure to high light and hot temperatures at lower elevations, but they are more abundant in cool, shady locations at higher elevations. -- Source: Charles Baker If you can get access to Orchid Wiz you can find out a lot more including Flowering and rest periods etc. In Flower it looks to be quite a no pun intended spectacle. 'Shorty' is a cultivar name for your plant