Vanda denisonia?

[Acharn]

IOSPE has a picture of Vanda denisonia that looks a lot like this. OTOH, Orchid Species Photographs by Eric Hut has a picture of something called Vanda denisoniana that looks different. Can anybody verify? The flowers are about 2 inches (5 cm) in diameter; there were nine buds on the spike, of which three have fallen/been torn off. Since I don't plan on breeding or selling, proper identification isn't that important, except for my own satisfaction. This one, with about six more that are in awful shape, were handed to me yesterday. Goodness knows when any of the others will bloom -- their roots have been badly abused.

[Roy]

I'm not sure what pic on IOSPE your looking at but I think your plant could be V. merrillii, more likely a hybrid from it. The reference to V. denisonia should be denisoniana which is yellow with or without some brown markings.

[Acharn]

Originally Posted by Roy

I'm not sure what pic on IOSPE your looking at but I think your plant could be V. merrillii, more likely a hybrid from it. The reference to V. denisonia should be denisoniana which is yellow with or without some brown markings.

OK, going back to IOSPE I see that he does spell it denisoniana -- can't think why I misread it yesterday. I don't think it's V. merrillii. The sepals and petals have a slightly yellow background with the brown markings. It doesn't show up well in my photo, I think, and it's not a bright yellow. The interior of the lip does have a lavender tint, like the merrillii picture in IOSPE, but there is no red or purple hue on the sepals and petals at all.

Also, I see merrillii is native to the Philippines. I tend to expect any orchid I get for free here is native to Thailand, although with the amount of commerce over the last fifty years there must have been a lot of species brought in -- I've gotten a couple of Cattleyas, and they're native to the Americas.

[Roy]

Thats why I believe yours to be a hybrid and not a species.

[Acharn]

Originally Posted by Roy

Thats why I believe yours to be a hybrid and not a species.

Ah, I see.

OK, can you offer me any advice about how I can learn to identify orchids? So far it looks to me like people just have to accumulate years of experience attending shows and exhibitions and visiting botanical gardens. Any alternative approaches you can think of?

[Acharn]

Oh, Roy, I forgot to say, thank you. I've been spending too much time on blogs replying to people I disagree with, I'm afraid. Forgetting my manners.

[Roy]

Happy to help. To answer your question, identifying species orchids is relatively easy these days with the amount of books and websites available BUT when it comes to hybrids, where we can all go wrong, it does take years of observation. It means knowing a parent or parents and what they have produced as parents, what characteristics they impart, color, shape, growth habit etc. This can't be done overnight. A lot of replies get posted for orchid ID's that are of good intent but are actually wild guesses and help know one, it just confuses the situation.

[Acharn]

Originally Posted by Roy

Happy to help. To answer your question, identifying species orchids is relatively easy these days with the amount of books and websites available ... <snip>

I'd like to hear about some, although it's true I'm finding more as I go along. I found IOSPE pretty early in the game, but I don't have such a good internet connection that trying to look at hundreds, or even dozens, of pictures is feasible. I'd love to find an on-line database where I could put in key words and get a couple of dozen possibles.

For example, right now I've got about a dozen monopodials. Three of them have bloomed, so I was able to pin them down definitely as Vandas, but I haven't pinned down the species yet. I thought all but one of the others were Vandas, but yesterday I happened across a photo of a Rhyncostilis that to my eyes looked just like a Vanda except for the inflorescence. The other one has leaves that are flatter and thicker than the Vandas, and I think it's a Rhyncostilis because that's the other common monopodial in Thailand, but now I'm not sure.

Well, I'm new at this. I've only been doing this since August, and I've already found a number of resources, so I guess it will all work out.

[Roy]

Acharn, if you look in the forum section that contains Vandas etc here, you will find lots of pics and descriptions that may help you. There is always the posting of a picture of the flower and in some cases the whole plant for ID. There are some knowledgable & wonderful growers of these plants in the forum.