Mediocalcar decoratum

Mediocalcar decoratum is an unusual miniature, mat-forming species from the highlands of New Guinea.  It is cool growing and does well either on a mount or in a pot, but needs room to ramble.  The individual growths are about 1 cm, have a thick fleshy stem and a fan of four tiny fleshy leaves at the top.  Each new growth begins near the top of the previous growth, forming an ever-lengthening chain.  The flowers, 0.5 cm in size, come from the base of the growths and look like tiny candy-corns.  Though cool-growing the plant is very easy to grow and is very tolerant of different conditions.

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

Trisetella gemmata

Nearly all my Trisetellas are in bloom at present and this is one of them, Trisetella gemmata from Colombia.  It is fairly typical of the genus, both in the color and size of the flowers and in plant size.  The plant is a cluster of narrow channeled leaves about 4 cm tall, and the rather strange flowers are about 3 cm in size. It produces its flowers during the winter and each flower spike produces a succession of 4-6 flowers.  The plant is from high altitudes and does best in cool to cold temperatures with high humidity.  I grow it mounted on a piece of bark and water it nearly every day.  Its name, gemmata, refers to the sparkling texture of the flowers which is very hard to capture in a photograph, and Trisetella, the genus name, refers to the three thread-like tails of the flower.

Masdevallia Maui Lollipop 'Hannah'

This is for quite a while now the only Masdevallia hybrid I grow, and I've kept this only because I had it awarded by the American Orchid Society several years ago.  I don't find it unattractive, but just don't grow many hybrids.  This is a hybrid of Masdevallia mendozae and Madevallia Angel Frost, both of which have the hair-lined flowers of the Saltatrices section of Masdevallia.  This plant blooms in the winter and spring with an occasional flower the rest of the year.  The plant is 15 cm tall and the flowers are just over 3 cm long.  The plant is grown, like many others, in a plastic net pot and in sphagnum moss.

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.

Masdevallia strobelii

Masdevallia strobelii is small species from Ecuador in the section Saltatrices, with the typical hair-lined tubular flowers of that section.  It is intensely fragrant, blooms prolifically, has brightly colored flowers and is easy to grow, everything that could be asked.  Mine is grown in a plastic net pot in live sphagnum.