Laelia gouldiana - happy time!
 

This plant has been very reliable for me in the two years I've had it. Got it at the Pacific Orchid Expo in Feb 2008 from Andy's. Love it!

This year it got a little beat up in a hail storm, but it seems to be hanging in there.

That's a beautiful plant, Ray. Are the blooms fragrant? Do you give the plant a cool and dry winter rest, or does it continue to grow throughout the winter?

Steve

Nice growing! I too have this one from Andy's but I live in Maine and it struggles to bloom.....but it does, just not so often. :) Thanks for sharing!

I can't really detect a fragrance. As far as winter rest goes, I haven't really been giving it one. The spikes start growing in the fall and here it is, January and the flowers have just opened. Maybe when they're done - they don't seem to last long - I'll rest it some. Basically, it gets whatever Mother Nature throws at it and we've been getting alot of rain in CA this year.

It's gorgeous. Looking good hailstorm or not.

What a great color!
how large is this plant and the blooms?

Thanks Rosie

Thanks. Yeah, I love the color too. I would guess the stick that the plant is mounted on is about a foot and a half tall. That should give you some idea. The first year I had it, it produced at least 6 or seven new growths. And just about that many this past year. The flowers are maybe 3 inches across at the most.

I have one of these too - also from Andy's. Mine bloomed earlier this year than last. I did find that it had a green bean smell, fairly strong at times.

Mine is not grown nearly as well as this one, though. Way to go Ray! :bowing

Thanks Royal! :)
And to WhiteRabbit, I did a little checking and it looks like the plant is about 1' by 1' and the flowers measure about 2 inches across.
This is a great hardy grower for my area of the country. I've only brought her inside a couple of nights when I knew the temps were going to get below freezing. Other than that, she lives outside all the time. She's hanging from the eave of my front porch which faces WNW. I'm in the Monterey Bay area. I highly recommend this one!