One other hobby I would like to share is Orchid keeping. I would say Orchids is the ultimate plant hobby. Orchid family is the largest family of the flowering plants. There are over 20,000 accepted species and over 100,000 hybrids available subdivided into varieties such as Epidendrum, Dendrobium and many many more. My favourite variety is Paphiopedilum – commonly referred to as Lady Slipper Orchids or just Slipper Orchids. I also keep a good selection of Phragmipedium (similar to Slipper Orchids), some rare Chinese cymbidiums and some interesting Phalaenopsis.
In general, orchid names started with a lower case is a species and upper case is a hybrid.
The name Paphiopedilum is derived from two Greek words: Paphos and pedilon. Pedilon means slipper while Paphos is the name of a city on Cyprus. The Greek word for slipper in the genus name alludes to the pouch (labellum) of these orchids which is shaped a bit like the toe of a slipper.
The Slipper Orchids is one of the most interesting and unusual flowers in the world. There are roughly 60 species and 13,000 hybrids in this variety. Some of the hybrids often have appealing colors or patterns of color that are rare and often look almost unreal due to the lacquered or waxy surface of the flowers and their shapes.
Phragmipedium found in South America have a similar look and shape to Slipper Orchids. Many novices like me tend to torture our plants with a slow death of either over or under watering. But this is not that easy to do with Phragmipedium since they love lots of water. Best of all, many of these can bloom for months, bearing eight or more flowers one after the other. I have one plant that continuously blooming for 18 months. The only downside to growing Phragmipedium is that many of them can get fairly large.
Phalaenopsis Orchids, sometimes referred to as Butterfly Orchids are among the most popular orchids world wide. These orchids are native to Asia and northern Australia. Phalaenopsis orchid grow upward from a single point with many flowers on one branch. The plant consists of an erect rhizome that will produce one or two leaves from the top each year. Phalaenopsis leaves are thick and fleshy. As new leaves are produced, old leaves will fall off. Therefore, Phalaenopsis orchid normally has 4 – 5 leaves at all times.
Healthy orchids start with healthy roots. Healthy leaves produce more and bigger flowers. If you haven’t grown orchids, you are missing one of nature’s finest offerings.
