April 2025

From Scott McGregor:

All orchids grown outdoors, coastal southern California

Dendrochilum tenellum

Dendrochilum wenzelii

Dendrochilums have a profusion of very tiny flowers, so are perfect to turn into giant overgrown specimen plants!  Here’s D. tenellum (2’ diameter) with some of the smallest flowers of the genus, and D. wenzelii (3’ diameter) with bright red flowers.  Both are easy outdoor growers.  Good thing I don’t take these in for judging or they’d have to count the flowers!

Satyrium carneum (left)
Satryrium Johanna Augustyn (carneum x coriifolium) (center)
Satyrium coriifolium (right)

Satyrium Johanna Augustyn (S. carneum x coriifolium)

Satyrium is a genus of Mediterranean climate (mild wet winter and hot dry summer) terrestrials from the southwestern tip of South Africa.  I’ve found them easy to grow outdoors and reasonably showy and so have become favorites.  I’ve had good success with S. coriifolium (on the right of the group photo, bright yellow-orange but past its prime), S. Johanna Augustyn (S. coriifolium X S. carneum) in center, S. carneum on the left of the group photo. S. carneum seems to bloom later and so I’m hoping for April flowers from that one.  The S. coriifolium and its hybrid were grown from tubers imported from German, and the S. carneum was grown from flask three years ago and will (hopefully) bloom for the first time this year.

Serapias cordigera

Serapias lingua

While more curious than beautiful, Serapias species are among the easiest and most prolific of the Mediterranean terrestrials.  These are my two favorite species-- S. cordigera with its hairy blood-red lip, and S. lingua with the red tongue sticking out.

From Roberta Fox:

Coastal southern California

Outside in the Back Yard:

Bletilla striata

This terrestrial orchid blooms in the spring, is green all summer, leaves die back in the fall. This clump is in the ground, the only thing stopping its expansion is a cement walkway. It's OK in a pot, but in my dense adobe clay soil it grows even better.

Campanulorchis globifera

The backs of the sepals are wooly on these weird little flowers. It tends to climb out of pots with long rhizomes bettween growths, seems to do better mounted given its rambling habit. Native to Vietnam around Dalat, elevation around 1000 m.

Dendrobium kingianum

Two cultivars of this reliable Australian Dendrobium, colors range from dark pink to white.

Dendrobium tetragonum

Another Australian Dendrobium. Spidery flowers are produced sequentially at the tips of the growths which can rebloom over multiple years. The pseudobulbs are flattened on the sides, so they are distinctly four-sided.

Dendrobium papilio

This is the large-flowered form, which sometimes is less floriforous than the one with smaller flowers. However, this plant more than matches the smaller form. Note that it can bloom on canes that still have leaves, though most are on older leafless ones, which can bloom multiple times. Envision these flowers floating like their namsake butterflies, on almost invisibly-thin "wires". Native to the Philippines, elevation 1400-2200 m.

Dendrobium nobile

Native to a wide area of southeast Asia, at elevations from 200-2000 m. It's the foundation species for dozens of "nobile-type" hybrids. The conventional wisdom is that these need to dry out in winter to bloom. However, this plant was watered along with the general population all winter, and clearly didn't get the memo. As with the other Dendrobiums that also have this reputation, I am convinced that the winter chill is the trigger for blooming. In nature, even if there is little rain there is plenty of dew, so they don't get severely dry.

Dendrochilum coccineum

Native to the Philippines, around 1000 m. Flowers are relatively large for the genus. Only a few infloresecences open at any one time, but new ones open as the old ones fade over 2-3 months.

Dendrochilum pulcherrimum

From the Philipines, around 1200 m. This is a floriferous miniature plant in a 4 inch basket.

Dendrochilum wenzelii

It has some way to go to match Scott's magnificent specimen. It didn't do much for several years, until it filled the pot, and now is improving substantially year over year.

Dendrochilum tenellum

My plant is still pretty small, Scott's specimen shows what this species can become. This photo shows the 1-2 mm flowers up close.

Cattleya (Sophronitis) coccinea

Flowers continue to increase in size over a week or two after opening. The intense color is so saturated that it is tricky to photograph. This is fairly true to what the eye sees, ring flash does better than daylight to capture it. Native to southern and southeastern Brazil, around 1000 m. This is a tetraploid flower, large and round, with heavy substance.

Dryadella zebrina

The plant is almost a ball of 3 inch leaves, and the flowers are tucked in throughout the plant so it's impossible to see the full floriforousness of it without holding it in your hand. Found in Peru, Bolivia, and southern Brazil, 1500-3400 m.

Epidendrum difforme

Clusters of weird flowers emeging from succulent leaves. Grows over a wide range of the American tropics from Florida to Caribbean islands, Central America and South America to Peru, at a range of elevations.

Eria amica

A miniature with half-inch flowers. Northwest Himalaya, northern India, southern Yunnan in China, and much of southeast Asia. Elevation 900-2200 m.

Sudamerlycaste (Ida) ciliata

Flowers are fragrant, especially at night. Of course, that implies a night-flying pollinator. Native to Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia, elevation 1000-2500 m.

Maxillaria chrysantha (serotina)

Brazil south and southeast and northern Argentina, elevation around 1400 m.

Trisetella hoeijeri

After blooming a couple of months ago, this one produced a much better flush bloom. Flowers float ot hairlike spikes, like little birds.

Maxillaria coccinea

Small flowers emerge from base of pseudobulbs. West Indies, possibly Colombia and Venezuela. In Puerto Rico, found extensively at a range of elevations from 250 to 1250 m. With this wide range of elevations, it clearly is adaptable to a variety of climates.

Ophrys speculum

One of my Mediterranean-climate terrestrials from Europe. If you were a bee, wouldn't you think "she" was gorgeous?

Ophrys mammosa

The name is pretty descriptive.

Thelymitra megcalyptra

One of the early-blooming Australian Mediterranean-climate terrestrials. Last month you saw a red one, now blue. This one has a blush of violet, others are even bluer. Like the rest of the genus, the flowers only open in bright sunshine.

Thelymitra vulgaris (pauciflora)

Where most of my Thelys are about 3/4 inch across, this one is barely 1/2 inch. It tends to self-pollinate, so flowers are fairly short-lived, but charming.

Pleurothallis alvaroi

Like little birds on a wire... It will bloom several times during the spring. Native to Colombia, elevation around 2000 m.

Polystachya ottoniana

Native to Mozambique, Swaziland and South Africa, elevation 800-1600 m. Flowers are around 1 cm (3/8 inch)

Rhyncholaelia glauca

Different cultivars have varying amounts of pink on the segments, this one is one of the darker ones. Fragrant at night. Native to Mexico, and south into Central America, elevation 1200-1500 m.

Sarcochilus falcatus

This is the earliest of my Sarochilus to bloom. Where most of the others are happy in pots, this one grows well mounted. Native to Australia.

Schoenorchis juncifolia

The mount serves mostly to hold the plant for hanging, but the roots ramble where they want to. Tiny flowers are reminiscent of wisteria. Leaves would ber greener with less light, it blooms well with filtered sun or bright shade. Native to Java, Sumatra, and Borneo, elevation around 1500 m.

Specklinia endotrachys

Flowers are barely an inch, but brilliant. This little Pleurothallid blooms sequentially for as much as a year on a given inflorescence. Native to Costa Rica, elevation 700-2500 m.

In the greenhouse...

Maxillaria friedrichsthalii

A low-elevation plant that grows from tropical areas of southern Mexico through Central America to Ecuador and Peru. Green flowers on a green plant require that one pay attention. But the plant stays in bloom for several months.

Maxillaria egertoniana
(Trigonidium egertonianum)

Not a miniature, though footprint isn't large. Spikes are about 12 inches. It will continue to produce new ones over about 6 weeks or more. Native to southern Mexico through Central America at lower elevations.

Zelenkoa onusta (Oncidium onustum)

Native to humid coastal lowlands of Ecuador and Peru, from areas with scant rainfall. They have even been observed growing on cactus. While they mostly grow around sea level, they have been observed as high as 1200 m. Whlle it will survive outside, it grow better with a bit of greenhouse protection especially in winter. I'd consider it more "intermediate" than the species that I grow outside. Flowers are quite long lasting, it may bloom 2-3 times per year. This is one of the best bloomings that I have had.

From Chris Ehrler:

California Central Coast

Cool greenhouse unless otherwise noted.

Bulbophyllum triarsetella (intersitum)

Cool to warm growing epiphyte found in New Guinea at elevations around 1300 meters. Plant acquired from Dan Newman (Hanging Gardens) from a plant he had gotten from Gerardus Staal. Growing mounted on a piece of cork oak.

Masdevallia dimorphotricha

A cold growing epiphyte growing only in Ecuador at elevations of 2,000 to 2,700 meters. This orchid is growing in a clay pot filled with a bark and lava rock mixture

Masdevallia prodigiosa

A cool to cold epiphyte growing in cloud forests in Peru at elevations of 2,000 meters. This orchid is growing in a clay pot filled with a bark and lava rock mixture. 

Masdevallia sanctae-inesae

A cool to cold growing epiphyte found in southern Ecuador in cloud forests at an elevation of 1,900 to 2,500 meters. Growing in a cool greenhouse both mounted on a piece of cork oak and in a clay pot with sphagnum moss on the roots.

Rhynchostele rossii

Found in Nicaragua, Honduras, Salvadorean, Guatemala and Mexico growing as a cold to cool growing epiphytic at elevations of 2000-3000 meters. Clay pot filled with sphagnum moss.

Maxillaria minuta

Orchids.org states that the currently accepted name is M. pumila. M. pumila is described in orchidspecies.com as a hot growing epiphyte occurring in Brazil and Guianas. But the orchid in the photo is growing and flowering well in a cool greenhouse. Mounted on a piece of cork oak with some moss on the roots.

Porroglossum schramii

A cool growing lithophyte found in cloud forests in Ecuador at elevations around 1,600 to 1,800 meters. This species has a movable lip. This orchid is growing in a mesh pot filled with sphagnum moss.

Platystele consobrina

 A cool to cold growing epiphyte native to Colombia at elevations of 1,600 to 2,500 meters. This flower is just over 1/4 inch from top to bottom and side to side. This is a sequential bloomer so although the flowers are small each spike puts out several flowers.

From Ted Mumm:

Grown outdoors, coastal southern California

Dryadella liliputiana

This little guy is a gem - almost never out of bloom. I've had it for about two years now, very hardy. It can grow nicely outdoors all year long, but is usually on display in my kitchen because of the constant blooms.

From Arnold Markman:

Coastal San Diego area

Intermediate Greenhouse, 60% shade cloth, daily watering unless otherwise noted.

Cattleya intermedia

From lower altitudes in Brazil. I grow it in the most eastern part of my greenhouse where it gets full early morning, sun and then shaded for the rest of the day.The plant itself doesn’t appear to be doing too well over the years, barely putting on a leaf, but it finally flowered this year.

Telipogon williamsii

This miniature orchid grows in Colombia at 2300 m. Plant has 3 inflorescences.

Dendrobium cuthbertsonii

This Orchid, reportedly hard to grow is from New Guinea where it grows at 10,000 feet. I have it growing near the apex of my greenhouse right in the path of my fan.

Dendrobium kingianum

An Australian native. I grow it underneath the shade of an avocado tree where it is mounted on a fallen log of the tree. It gets watered every fourth day year-round.

Dendrobium kingianum alba

(Ed: Maybe Den. x delicatum /Specio-kingianum ?? Note lip shape)

This orchid is from southeast  Australia. I grow it outside in my garden where it gets nearly full sun, and gets watered every fourth day year-round. Instead of repotting this orchid, I followed the suggestions from the Santa Barbara Orchid estate, and just put the pot containing the orchid in a much larger pot with nothing else inside. It seems to really have liked this.

Dendrobium speciosum

Another Australian native. I grow it in full sun. It gets watered every fourth day.

Pleurothallis tuerckheimii

This orchid grows at 2300 m in Costa Rica.

Vanda cristata

This high elevation Orchid from India, grows in my greenhouse as close to the roof as I can get it