Chysis bractescens

[smweaver]

Blooming a little early this year, but considering how cold and dreary it is here, I'm glad to have the flowers around. Very waxy and wonderfully fragrant during the day when the sun is shining. Easy grower and bloomer (if it gets a moderately dry and cool winter rest).

[WhiteRabbit]

Lovely!

[estación seca]

Beautiful! Would you mind elaborating on what you mean by cool rest?

[smweaver]

A cool rest for this species (at least from what I've read) is around 60 degrees. That being said, it's tolerant of average winter night temperatures (in my experience) of anywhere between 50 and 55, which is the average night temperature range in my growing area. As long as it's kept on the dry side (and by that I mean that it gets watered once every couple of weeks instead of the every couple of day waterings it gets during the summer growing season), it will go into a dormant period from around November to March, with flowering occurring in the spring to early summer months when the new growths emerge. Again, however, this plant is being a little optimistic by assuming that we must have entered spring. It usually doesn't flower for me until April through late May.

[DeaC]

Gorgeous! Would like to see the entire plant.Keels remind me of teeth and open mouth announcing spring!

[No-Pro-mwa]

Cute bloom.

[Leafmite]

What a beautiful flower!

[estación seca]

Thanks!

[RosieC]

Beautiful!

[smweaver]

DeaC, here's a picture of the entire plant. It's not a great pic, but it should give you an idea of how the plant grows--pendulous pseudobulbs, with the blooms coinciding with the new growth (see second pic, which shows the leaves of the new growth beginning to unfurl). Usually this species loses its leaves during dormancy (and consequently doesn't look like quite the mess it does here), but for some reason this year it didn't.

Steve