Paphiopedilum sukhakulii

Paphiopedilum sukhakulii is a species from Thailand.  It is a small plant but has large and dramatic flowers. My plant almost always blooms with two flowers per stem, rather than just one.  The flowers are 10-13 cm across.  Not only are the flowers beautiful, however, but the plant is too, with beautifully patterned fans of leaves as can be seen in some of the photos.

Paphiopedilum venustum

Sometimes referred to as the "Brain Pouch Paphiopedilum" for obvious reasons, the Slipper Orchid is from Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India and Nepal.  It is also desirable for its beautiful foliage, a rather uncommon feature in orchids.  The flowers are not large but it is easy to grow and blooms faithfully on every new growth.  My plant is grown on a windowsill in moderate light and in a bark mix.

Paphiopedilum venustum and venustum album

I recently posted photos of Paphiopedilum venustum var. album and have posted before photos of the normal variety.  Here are the two of them together for comparison.  It is obvious that the album lacks any of the red or purple coloring of the normal variety.  The plants and flowers are very similar in size, but the leaves of the album variety also lack any red or purple coloring.  The species if from Bangladesh, India and Nepal.

Paphiopedilum venustum album

I don't have many Paphiopedilums, but they are all in bloom or coming into bloom including this first bloom seedling of Paphiopedilum venustum var. album.  I've included a picture of the normal variety for comparison, and it is obvious that this variety has not of the purple and red coloration of the other variety.  It is a small plant with beautifully mottled foliage, though the foliage has none of the purple coloration either, and it is from Bangladesh, India and Nepal.

Paphiopedilum venustum

Paphiopedilum sukhakulii

Paphiopedilum sukhakulii is a species from Thailand.  It is a small plant but has large and dramatic flowers. My plant has always had two flowers per stem, rather than just one, but this time it bloomed with only one much larger flower, 13 cm across.  Not only are the flowers beautiful, however, but the plant is too, with beautifully patterned fans of leaves as can be seen from one of the photos.

Paphiopedilum helenae

This species is one of the smallest of the Paphiopedilums and a fairly recent discovery (1996).  Paphiopedilum helenae is from Vietnam and the plant is only 12 cm across with 5 cm flowers.  I've seen different examples of the species and there is considerable variation in flower color and shape, but I have not seen any that were not charming.  Interestingly, this species does best for me when grown with my Masdevallias and New Guinea Dendrobiums in cooler conditions.  Perhaps that is just due to the fact that it gets higher humidity and better light when grown with them, but it thrives and blooms under those conditions.

Paphiopedilum sukhakulii

This is the same plant and the same blooming that I posted a couple of weeks ago, but this time photographed on black or dark blue.  As I mentioned in the previous post, this plant always produces two flowers for me.  The species is from Thailand, is one of the smaller Paphiopedilums and has beautifully patterned leaves.

Paphiopedilum helenae

This is a Paphiopedilum I would not be without.  It is one of the smallest of the Paphiopedilums and a very recent discovery (1996).  Paphiopedilum helenae is from Vietnam and the plant is only 12 cm across with 5 cm flowers.  I've seen different examples of the species and there is considerable variation in flower color and shape, but I have not seen any that were not charming.  Interestingly, this species does best for me when grown with my Masdevallias and New Guinea Dendrobiums in cooler conditions.  Perhaps that is just due to the fact that it gets higher humidity and better light when grown with them, but it thrives and blooms under those conditions.

Paphiopedilum China Dragon

Paphiopedilum China Dragon is a hybrid of Paphiopedilum Nisqually and Paphiopedilum China Song, and has four species in its background, Paphiopedilums acmodontum, appletonianum, bullenianum, and a double dose of sukhakulii.  It has variegated foliage and blooms faithfully for me every spring.