Buccella molossoides 'Owen' CHM/AOS

Buccella molossoides, or Masdevallia molossoides is a tiny plant with 3 cm leaves and flowers that are a little over 1 cm long.  It must be reasonably attractive, however, since my plant was awarded a Certificate of Horticultural Merit of 83 points by the American Orchid Society at the recent Northwest OS Show in Shoreline, Washington.  The species is from Costa Rica and Panama and is considered to be one of the more temperature-tolerant Masdevallias.  As can be seen from the pictures, the flowers' color and shape are rather hard to describe.  The plant blooms profusely for me, but was rather difficult to establish.  I grow it in live sphagnum in a small net pot, but perhaps it would do better mounted.

Saltatrices Masdevallias

The Saltatrices group of Masdevallias are especially desirable and attractive, at least to me.  They are small plants, the flowers are almost all brightly colored, and most of them are easy to grow and profuse bloomers, if given the right conditions, cool temperatures and good humidity.

They are distinguished to the casual eye by their more or less tubular shape, by a kind of "belly" or bulge at the base of the sepaline tube, and by the glandular hairs that line the inside of the flower.  Their bright colors, reds, oranges and yellows are also often an indication of their relation to this group.

Masdevallia hirtzii

Masdevallia ampullacea

Masdevallia eurynogaster

Masdevallia strobelii

Masdevallia constricta

Masdevallia fuchsii

Masdevallia filaria

Masdevallia mendozae

Masdevallia sotoana

Masdevallia filaria (pale form)

Masdevallia angulifera flava

Masdevallia limax

Barbosella cucullata

Barbosella cucullata is another species from Ecuador, but also from Venezuela, Colombia, Peru and Bolivia.  It is also another Pleurothallid, related to Masdevallia. Many of the species in this genus are very small, but this one is a bit larger with thick, channeled leaves about 5 cm tall, long, erect flower spikes (15 cm), and single flowers 4 cm in size.  In nature it is a lithophyte, growing on moss-covered rocks, and in cultivation seems to like a thick pad of moss as well.  I grow it in a small pot in which the live moss has formed a thick pad well above the top of the pot and there it thrives, partly buried in the moss.

Porroglossum meridionale

Porroglossum meridionale is a miniature species from Peru that belongs to the Pleurothallids, looks like a tiny Masdevallia, and was, in fact, once classified as a Masdevallia.  The Porroglossums are distinct, however, in having a hinged and moveable lip that swings up against the column when the flower is visited by a pollinating insect or bumped by a curious onlooker.  The plant is 6 cm tall, the flower spikes 10 cm in length and the flowers 1.5 cm.  The flowers are nearly translucent.

 flower with the lip flipped up against the column

Angraecum urschianum

Angraecum urschianum is a micro-miniature species in a genus that includes some massive plants and flowers.  It is also in the same genus as the plant whose flowers when seen by Darwin were the basis for his prediction, later proved true, that a moth would be found with a twelve inch tongue (the flowers have nectaries that are a foot long).  This plant is a bit less than 3 cm across and the flowers are 2.5 cm with a 10 cm spur or nectary.  It is hard to realize from the photos how tiny this plant is, but an American quarter would easily cover the whole plant.  I have not detected any fragrance but have not checked the plant at night and suspect that it is fragrant then.  The plant is from Madagascar.

First a couple of pictures of the flower bud with the spur still coiled:

Then some of the opened flower with the spur uncoiled:

Mount Baker Orchid Society Show 2012

Saturday, March 10th was out annual orchid show at the Skagit Valley Garden Center in Mount Vernon, Washington.  We are a small society and our show is also quite small, with only six exhibitors and three or four vendors.  The quality and diversity of orchids in the show, however, made up for the its smallness.  I've been to many orchid shows, and for its size this is one of the best, though perhaps I am a bit prejudiced.

I put in the same showcase as last year, but with a new background for the orchids, a cliff and waterfall.  I had wanted to put in a real waterfall, but my engineering skills were not up to the task, so I used fake water, though it looked real enough that several people asked if I had to change the water often.  My display won several ribbons and a trophy for the best species.  Had a fun and relaxing time putting in the exhibit.

My Exhibit

(some of these pictures were taken after the show during take-down)

Other Exhibits

(the second is our society's exhibit)

AOS Awards
(these two plants received AOS awards - the second one is mine)

Coelogyne Bird in Flight 'Judy Skinner' HCC/AOS

Masdevallia ampullacea 'Connor' CHM/AOS


Orchids

Encyclia cordigera and Laeliocattleya Drumbeat 'Heritage'

Cattleya Hailstorm 'Nilene'

Laelia anceps

Epidendrum radicans

(Laelia briegeri x Laelia lucasiana) x Schomburkia tibicinis

Phalaenopsis Small Sensation 'Maria Teresa'

Phragmipedium Schroederae 'Roseum'

Phragmipedium hybrid (forgot to get the name)

Paphiopedilum hybrid (didn't get the name)

Paphiopedilum villosum and Phragmipedium besseae

 

Paphiopedilum noid

Paphiopedilum venustum and Paphiopedilum John Sadler

Paphiopedilum Myra

Paphiopedilum Henrietta Fujiwara x kolopkingii

Dendrobium lindenii

Miltonia Pearl Ono x Dream Girl

Miltonia hybrid (didn't get the name)

 

Beallara Tahoma Glacier

Cirrhopetalum makoyanum

Bulbophyllum vitiense

Bulbophyllum picturatum

Dendrochilum convallariiforme (two color forms)

Lycaste Absolutely Stunning 'Grantham's Glory'

Stenorhynchos speciosus

Stenorhynchos glicensteinii

Stanhopea species (unidentified)

Phaius falvus

Phaius flavus

Coelogyne Birds in Flight 'Judy Skinner'