Typical size for Kara Nishiki?
 

I at first didn't recognize SE's ebay listing for a Kara Nishiki as variety I already have.

The beautifully tiger variegated Kara Nishiki up for auction Friday is 2" in leafspan at widest point, really it looks like bean leaf proportions.

Neofinetiafalcata Beautiful Tiger Stripe Japaneseorchid

On the other hand, mine from Orchids Ltd is 5" across. I don't have a pic of mine, but here's OL's pic from their online store:

https://www.orchidweb.com/products/n...hiki~2008.html

Note that the latter doesn't show size, but definitely bigger than SE's.

So which is more typical size for Kara Nishiki?

Looks like leaf length is variable, doro-jiku (brown stem), crescent tsuke.
http://fuukiran.up.seesaa.net/image/...thumbnail2.jpg

Original Japanese link here

Not sure what the typical length is, but the smaller one reminds me almost of a bean leaf and it's really cute! Could it be because the one ebay listing from Seed-Engei is listed as a seedling? Maybe it just hasn't reached maturity yet so the leaves are stopping shorter, maybe with time the new leaves will be bigger?

I'm hoping it stays small. The SE description says the leaves "stay in short."

To me, at 2" leaf span it essentially is a bean leaf. Gotta love a well-variegated bean leaf that doesn't require a mortgage to buy.

When (NOT IF) I get this plant, I'll have to post side-by-side pics of it with my big Kara Nishiki, which also has really excellent variegation (seems to have improved substantially since I bought it last summer).

I saw that one Jay. Its one of the better variegated ones I've seen in a while. I think in time, the leaves will lengthen. I'll have to post a picture of mine for comparison. Good luck!

This isn't my Kara, but mine is pretty close. This is a Karanishiki Satomi had during the very first show in the CA she went to back in 2008, I believe. I was a poor college student then and couldn't afford it. I am still on the hunt for one just like it.

Thanks, that's helpful. The main growth there is fairly close to the size of the main growth on mine from Orchids Ltd. Is that a 250 price tag I see? I'm guessing the price may have dropped somewhat in the years since. The one from OL was 75, but was one good size growth and a couple much smaller ones. The variegation was disappointing when I got it las May, but has improved substantially in the time I've had it.

Below left is the Kara Nishiki as it appeared last June. I'll post a pic side-by-side with my new mini Kara Nishiki when I get it next week.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3694/9...ece5bf4d_o.jpg
Neo bloom and buds-20130613 by Jayfar, on Flickr

I as talking to Satomi via emailed the other day and out of curiosity I asked her about the particular one you got on ebay and she said that it is small because it is young and it will grow to full size as it ages.

Aw darn, I was really hoping to keep it small. Interesting, because even the smallest young growth on my full-sized Kara Nishiki is bigger in leaf span than that one. Thanks for checking.

Then again, since these are seedlings, maybe I'll get lucky and it will turn out to be a runt that stays small. Or I'll figure out how to keep it small, without killing it, through appropriate culture controls. :scratchhead:

If I were evil, I'd try to resell it on ebay, as a variegated bean leaf, for many dollah.
:evil: :muahaha: :rofl:

Speaking of re-selling, we had a special guest @ my orchid society yesterday. He brought many Dedrobiums and Phaps/Phrags with him for the sale table. Very lovely plants. After talking to him about the Dedros and asking him if he ever came across any Neofinetia, he looked at me and said, "I sold a bunch of Neos on eBay last summer." I remember talking to someone in Fort Wayne, via eBay about the Neos. I had for sale." He asked my name again, I told him and then he said, I was selling off Neos because the original owner wanted to get out of orchids and he had many Neos. So YOU'RE the one who won some of those orchids!!! Re-selling orchids is a good thing--your cast offs are someone else's treasure.

Isn't the world of orchids small?;)