Calanthe Brevicornu in flower

[RosieC]

Not sure quite where this one fits with other orchids. It's a hardy terrestrial that my Cyp vendor talked me into buying (he didn't have to try hard ) last year. I don't know much about it except the care tips I can remember from what he told me (keep damp and high fertiliser including over the winter), keep it in the cool greenhouse.

It has new growths each spring, but the previous years leaves don't fully die back until the new growths have got well established. This had 7 new growths this year, 2 of which flowered. The growths are a mass of leaves all coming up from the base and standing tall, to just below where the flowers start (or a little higher). The older leaves have all dropped lower and sag over the side of the pot.

It has 28 flowers on the two spikes. The first pictures were taken when just one flower had started to open. the later ones were taken when the spikes were fully open. The last picture shows the whole plant taken before the flowers had opened to give an idea how it looks. The leaves are bigger now though.

The flowers have been open a month now, not sure how long they last. They have got paler with age, but no sign of then dropping.

[WhiteRabbit]

Gorgeous!

[NYCorchidman]

How cold did you keep during the winter?

While different species might have different winter hardiness, but I am very familiar with two wild species that grow in the southern part of my home country.

Winter gets cold, snows and freezes slightly, but not severely so.
These (the wild ones I'm talking about) grow in the forest where deciduous trees grow, so these orchids shallow roots are protected with fallen leaves and snow cover during the winter.
Early spring, the leaves emerge and then flowers follow. Both are fragrant (one is bright golden yellow, very very pretty! and the other is chocolate like yours). Flowers are not long lasting. I'd say a couple of weeks.
Leaves wither away during the summer, or sometimes into the fall, but usually before the heat of the summer. So these have rather a long sleep.

Left undisturbed under good conditions, they spread and form a large colony, and yours looks like it is heading that way.

Filtered very bright light.

no need to fertilize too much. just once in the spring when the plant "wakes up" and then once more when the leaves have grown large. That's it.

[RosieC]

Thanks White Rabbit, and thanks for the info NYCOrchidman.

Yes the grower said the leaves wither in the heat of summer unless you keep it cool enough, which he had done the previous year (hence the old leaves still there all winter). He told me it doesn't matter if the leaves go in the summer, but also fine if they stay like they had for him. The older leaves are the ones lower down ones, this years are standing up straight so far.

I didn't keep this one that cold, I kept it frost free in the (cool) greenhouse all winter. I think that's what I was told to do, but I'm going to double check with the grower if he has kept these ones outside during the winter, if so I will do that next winter. It's going to move outside for the summer if I can find a spot with suitable lighting, otherwise it will stay in the greenhouse which is left open all summer so acts just as a shade porch.

Interesting about the fertiliser, he said to fertilise well over the winter, but now I wonder if that applies to summer as well. Not sure so again I'll probably check with him on that. Thanks again.

[silken]

That's beautiful!

[NYCorchidman]

Ok, your particular plant might differ or the owner treats differently, but I see that the general growth pattern and habit is the same as the ones I was talking about.

I just looked up what the Korean natives are in English and both color forms are Calanthe discolor.
I love the yellow ones so much.
This picture I found online is taken from the Island in the south sea in South Korea.
The island has mild winter that snows a lot but hardly freezes. Camellia, crinum lilies, neofinetia, a few cymbidium varieties also live in this area.
I think this particular orchids are found on the mountain (old volcanic mountain heavily forested with short trees and many other plants) in the bright shade.

[Reifuan]

Rosie, your plant isn't actually Calanthe brevicornu, but rather one of its hybrids, presumable with C. discolor

[RosieC]

Thanks Reifuan,

Doesn't really suprise me in some ways, the seller in the UK has indicated before that he doesn't fully trust the tagging of some of the European distributers of hardy orchids. It was tagged as brevicorunu by them

I love it anyway and it's STILL in flower. The flowers get paler as they age, and the plant is now in the garden, but the flowers still keep going!

[Reifuan]

Wow that is quite long.. Calanthe flowers usually last about 3 weeks for me, weather and slugs permitting

[No-Pro-mwa]

Just lovely.