Which species phal is which? ID help, please!

[Mira-Claude]

The smallest one should be the lobbii, the other the wilsonnii. lobbii is a miniature and therefore should always be less than 6'' foliage.
Both, however would do better mounted ratter than potted as they both have a tendencies toward rot.
Good luck.

[GirlGoneWild]

Originally Posted by Mira-Claude

The smallest one should be the lobbii, the other the wilsonnii. lobbii is a miniature and therefore should always be less than 6'' foliage.
Both, however would do better mounted ratter than potted as they both have a tendencies toward rot.
Good luck.

And I was actually leaning to it being the other way around...the Wilsonii was described as "extremely miniature" on the site I purchased it from, and it naturally defoliates if outside in a natural winter. The texture of the leaves on the smaller one seemed more like the deciduous type...the larger leaves were tougher and thicker and more like a regular phal, so I thought the smaller one was the Wilsonii!

Hmm...we'll have to see how others weigh in. The seller advised potting both of them in bark, so I have them in my "bark mix." Plants don't seem to like mounting in my environment...they dry out too much. I tried mounting vandas and they were miserable and shriveled up. I'm now raising them in vase culture, where they are extremely happy.

But I will keep a very vigilant eye on those roots to avoid the dreaded root rot! Thanks for the advice! Can't wait to see what others have to say, too!

[orchidsarefun]

I'm with you girls gone wild. Actually I like any girl gone wild
Seriously I have also ordered from China - one of the plants was the wilsonii. Leaves are narrow, never had more than 2 ( well now it has 2 going on 3 ). Very extensive roots when it came, almost all perished as a result of the long trip. I will post a photo.

[GirlGoneWild]

Originally Posted by orchidsarefun

I'm with you girls gone wild. Actually I like any girl gone wild
Seriously I have also ordered from China - one of the plants was the wilsonii. Leaves are narrow, never had more than 2 ( well now it has 2 going on 3 ). Very extensive roots when it came, almost all perished as a result of the long trip. I will post a photo.

Ah, yes...after looking at your photos I would say that the one I have on the left is the Wilsonii. It only has 2 little narrow leaves, and very extensive roots.

I'm sorry most of your roots perished from the trip...mine fared just fine and greened right up when they got in their "bath." In fact, these were two of the happiest bare-root plants I've ever received!

Unfortunately that means that if they die it's ENTIRELY my fault...

Oh, and you'll notice that my name is "Girl" gone wild...sorry to disappoint you, but I'm singular.


As for the name, all the good ones were already taken...I debated "Girl Gone Orchid Crazy," but that just didn't have the same ring to it...

I knew it was only a matter of time before someone made a comment about my name...hehee...

[orchidsarefun]

I looked up my purchase and it was 3/8/2012. Much of its long journey happened in colder weather and I also made a note that it arrived with 2 spikes, which subsequently shrivelled. I am hoping to get it to rebloom.....
I also have a phal taenalis ( nicknamed toenail ) and a phal parishii - you should look into these if you like the smaller species phals. Also a Fantasy Musick which is just as special.

[Mira-Claude]

The one on the cork mount is my lobbii. The leaves are 1 to 1 1/2'' long. The lobbii is also a deciduous orchids and even in a home culture will tend to lose it's leaves if the humidity is a bit low.

and here is a link to the wilsonnii: Phalaenopsis wilsonii anglais
the leaves on the wilsonnii are darker than those on the lobbii (I do not own one but I know many people that do) and tends to be longer, up to 3''.

Hope this helps.
And of course for a real identification flowers will be needed... Util then