Dryadella pusiola 'Erin' CHM/AOS

Dryadella pusiola is a tiny orchid species from Colombia.  The plant is about 5 cm tall and the tiny flowers are less than .5 cm.  The Dryadellas were at one time classified with Masdevallias but the genus was separated from Masdevallia and now contains a small number of miniatures species with flowers that are similar in shape to this, though they vary in size and coloration.  The genus is named rather aptly for the Dryads, the nymphs of the trees in Greek mythology.

This plant now has a clonal name and a provisional award from the American Orchid Society.  I brought it in for judging on February 18th to the Northwest Regional Judging Center in Seattle and it was given a Certificate of Horticultural Merit.  There was some question about its identity and so it has to be confirmed before the award is final.  I had kind of hoped that it would be given a cultural award but they wanted to know its identity first so that they could compare it to other plants of the same species.