A lot of folks think that Phalaenopsis grow as we tend to grow them at home, with the crown pointed up. A common refrain related to this is that you should be careful to avoid getting water in the crown because it will lead to crown rot. Yet Phalaenopsis tends to grow in environments where they get totally soaked, so why don't they get crown rot in the wild? (No doubt occasionally they do, but if it happened often then they wouldn't survive as a species.)
The answer is that in the wild they grow sideways or hanging down. Water doesn't collect in the crown for long because it is not aimed at the sky like a cup, but rather pointed sideways or even downwards so that the water runs out naturally. You can see this in the below shot of a collection of Phal. Violacea growing from the side of a tree in the Singapore Botanical Gardens National Orchid Garden.
The bottom plant is a Phal. Vio Vio 'Cat Face', (Phal violacea x Phal. Jungo Viotris.)
Why Dont Wild Phals get Crown Rot? (Phal violacea in Natural Pose)
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