Phal World Class
 

Peter Lin started a thread about a month or so ago showing his "Big Foot" Phals, which have extensive lips. I immediately searched one out. The plant arrived in bud. I expected to lose at least a couple of the buds due to travel trauma but the worst effect I've seen so far is that the first flower opened very slowly and never completely. The second flower, as you can see, opened well. The lip alone makes this flower worth looking at, I think:

Nice big foot

Interesting and neat. Is it bred that way or just a variation that can happen with any phal?

This is a unique mutation that has been line bred. Just as how harlequins arose from a chance mutation while mass cloning Phal. Golden Peoker, a chance mutation while cloning Phal. World Class lead to what is called "big foot" Phalaenopsis hybrids. There is now a few generations of line breeding and outcrossing done, so the mutation is getting a little more stable and predictable, but crosses made with a big foot hybrid do not guarantee progeny with the mutation. It's kinda funny and neat because there's some hybrids out there that combine both the harlequin and big foot mutations. They're quite stunning, to be honest.

Ha Ha! Reminds me of filler-injection lips!