Opinions- what is the best pink paphiopedilum? Please share pictures!
 

Hey everyone!

I am considering a paphiopedilum as I've learned they don't require too difficult of care, so I am investigating different types available.
Edit: A lot of you are recommending phrags, too! I welcome that– bring on the phrags!!

I thought, of course, why not ask the paph (edit: or phrag) lovers here?

I really love soft pink, baby pink, pastel pink colors. They're so nice, but many paphs are either super white, or have so many black stripes, or green, or dark wine colors.

I also love ones with spiraling petals that hang down, or at least have a little twist to them.

The other consideration is cost; I've seen certain special paphs selling for $400 (for example one recently got specially c.i.t.e.s. certified and is very specially obtained by a nursery I like), and that's too much for my poor little wallet.

Do you guys know of pretty ones with interesting shape that are somewhere around $20-40 USD?
Thanks very much!

A lot of the baby pinks come from crossing delenati or niveum with a dark red. However, many of those flowers are sort of atypical in shape.

The socalled pink complex flowers are an offshoot of complex white breeding, but they are not baby pink.

If you look for Paph Angela (= fairrieanum x niveum), or any other fairrieanum x Brachypetalum cross, I think you will find those attractive.

I don't think you're going to get a pink paph with the ribbony, pendant petals.

But as for the color pink itself, definitely do a bit of research into the Parvisepalums. Most any crosses with Paph. delenatii or Paph. vietnamense will give pink results, obvious exception being something like Paph. Armeni White.

Paph. LynLeigh Koopowitz - Lots of soft pink/white backgrounds, with darker raspberry stripes and staminode. Plus, they are fragrant. This is one of the faster growing parvi hybrids, one of the easiest to grow, one of the easiest to find, one of the least expensive, and also one of the most rewarding paphs there is. It shouldn't be too hard to find a fair sized one of these for $30 - $40, even if you have to do some diggging.

Paph. Magic Lantern - Very stunning flowers, undoubtedly pink. A little harder to find and likely more expensive than LynLeigh. In your price range, you might not find a blooming sized plant, so you'll likely end up with something that's a couple years away from blooming.

There are also quite a few nice pink hybrids involving delenatii and multiflorals, things like Paph. Delophyllum. These usually give soft pinks (again avoid Deperle, which is usually white). They're nice crosses for paph beginners, since they are pretty forgiving growers. They have an added bonus of being multifloral, so they'll produce 2 - 4+ smaller flowers, sequentially over time. It's also very possible to pick up a mature, flowering size or in bloom plant from this group within your budget.

If you're willing to consider trying phragmipediums, there are lots of pinks available there, as well. The pros are, many of them are easy and fast growing if you put them in bright light and keep them sitting in water. Because they grow faster than paphs, they tend to bloom more often. The cons are that individual flowers don't last very long, and the flowers are typically smaller than those of a paph. Plus, phrags are a tad more expensive, though I suspect a Hanne Popow or a Phrag. Haroldeen Quintal might be in your budget.

And don't fret, once you get some growing experience with paphs and phrags, there are lots more pinks you could consider. Things like Paph. Delrosi or Gloria Naugle are pretty stunning. They aren't something I'd recommend for beginners, as beautiful as they are, they can be tricky to grow and particularly to bloom.

I like Phrag Schroderae ( I know its not a paph ).
Just about impossible to overwater and grows fast and freely.......

I couldn't find my link, but here's another :

http://www.orchidboard.com/community...ay-am-aos.html

Paph. Dr. Toot would possibly fill the color requirement, but I'm not so sure about the ease of culture and price requirement.

Haha! I might have to get a "Dr. Toot" someday solely based on the name!!

In Phragmipedium there are more choices that fit the bill. I can get you a BS division of Phrag Albopurpureum 'Sir Arthur' for $40 + $12.50 shipping (excl HI & AK).

Oh that's beautiful!!
I am going away on vacation for a few weeks in December, so maybe I'll contact you after that and see if I haven't used up all my spending money in New Zealand! :)

My favorite paphs are micranthum , vietnamense and delenatii! they are also all pink! vienamense blooms only last for around a week or 2 so thats a downside, but they are so pretty that i dont mind the short lived blossoms. also you can find most of them for around 30$!

http://rkidkelly.smugmug.com/Flowers...2%5B1%5D-L.jpg

purplish pink?

http://rkidkelly.smugmug.com/Flowers...3%5B1%5D-L.jpg

white with pink blush n spots?

I cant think of one thats actually just pink..