Phal Sogo Yukidian 'V3'

[JScott]

This is a fabulous white Phal. I've had it about three years, aso I guess this is it's third or fourth bloom, and it has put on quite a show this year. In the past, I've maybe gotten four or five blooms at a time from it. They're alway huge, over 5 inches, and I'm always pleased with it, but this year it really went all out. It has 12 huge blooms on a gracefully arcing spike, and they are all perfect. It is nothing compared to the pictures of this plant you can google and see spikes with 30 or more flowers in a single spike gracefully hanging down in two perfect rows, but I will never have the ideal conditions that it would require for it to bloom like that, so I am just thrilled with what what I've got this year. It is just breathtaking. I potted it out of bark a while back and planted it in some medium scoria about halfway to the top of the pot, and then I topped it off with some stalite, as I thought the roots might be better able to penetrate the stalite than the coarse scoria, and it seems to be enjoing it. It's a huge plant, probably 24 inches or from from leave to leaf tip, but it's worth the space.

[Dollythehun]

I have that plant and totally agree with your assessment!

[JScott]

Originally Posted by Dollythehun

I have that plant and totally agree with your assessment!

I didn't think I really liked plain white Phals that much, they just seem so common and vanilla, but my partner in Brazil ordered this from an American nursery and had it shipped to me for my birthday a few years ago, and I'm sure glad he did. It is an amazing plant, possibly the finest white Phal that exists. Like I said, it's huge and I have limited space, but it's so worth it. Not only is it just stunningly beautiful, but every time I get to missing my friend, wishing I was in Brazil with him or he was in Texas with me, I look at that plant, and Rafael doesn't seem quite so far away after all (I actually named the plant Little Rafael hehe), so it has a lot of sentimental value for me. He has an orchid too that I ordered for him in Brazil (Cattleya percivaliana 'Gabriela') for his birthday, and he says he feels the same way about that plant I sent him as I feel about the one he sent me. I've only ever seen that 'Gabriela' clone of percivaliana in Brazil. It's an amazing clone, and I wish I had one too, but I just can't seem to find it in the US.

[estación seca]

Flasks of orchid seedlings or mericlones can be transported into the US in your carry-on luggage without phytosanitary certificates. If the flask says it contains hybrids the plants are not subject to CITES and need no more paperwork.

[JScott]

Originally Posted by estación seca

Flasks of orchid seedlings or mericlones can be transported into the US in your carry-on luggage without phytosanitary certificates. If the flask says it contains hybrids the plants are not subject to CITES and need no more paperwork.

That is some good information! I had no idea about that. I didn't get to see Rafael this year like I usually do, because Brazil is such a disaster right now and it's not really safe for me to go there, and then our "president" decided he's not letting any Brazilians into the country, so Rafael couldn't come here, so we're shooting for maybe spending ten days or so in Cancun in December. I'll have him start checking around for a flask of that plant for me. Thanks for the tip, I appreciate it.

[estación seca]

Double check with USDA-APHIS before you go to be sure rules haven't changed. You could telephone the facility at DFW airport. My experience has been APHIS likes to answer questions.

[DrDawn]

What a beautiful plant! Thanks for sharing!

[Leafmite]

What a show! Very nice and hope you do have a nice visit together soon!

[JScott]

Originally Posted by Leafmite

What a show! Very nice and hope you do have a nice visit together soon!

Awe, thank you, that's very kind. I really hope it works out that we can spend Christmas together in Mexico. We've never been together at Christmas before. Right now, the problem is that his passport expires soon, and Brazil is not currently renewing passports. It's not an official policy apparently, it's at the discretion of individual passport officials, but Rafael went to every passport office in Belo Horizonte, and nobody would renew his passport. But I think surely by December things will settle down and life can go on with at least some semblance of normalcy. People need passports. I don't see how they could possibly still be refusing passports six months from now.