The Tiny Flowered Paphiopedilum is native to China, in the southeastern province of Yunnan and in north-eastern Vietnam. These plants meet in mixed mountain forests at heights of 1000-1500 m and at an altitude of 600-900 m on the slopes with an eastern exhibition, on each side of the pass between sharp slopes of mountains with gentle peaks. It grows in soil formed from clay and weathered limestone accumulating in cracks and rock cracks. In Vietnam, plants meet in the north-eastern province of Cao Bang.
Paphiopedilum micranthum orchid, also called as The Tiny Flowered Paphiopedilum, Paphiopedilum globulosum, Paphiopedilum micranthum f. alboflavum, Paphiopedilum micranthum f. glanzeanum, Paphiopedilum micranthum subsp. eburneum, Paphiopedilum micranthum var. alboflavum, Paphiopedilum micranthum var. glanzeanum, Paphiopedilum micranthum var. oblatum, is a spcies of the genus Paphiopedilum. This species was described by Tang & Wang in 1951.
IDENTIFY PAPHIOPEDILUM MICRANTHUM ORCHID
The Tiny Flowered Paphiopedilum is native to China, in the southeastern province of Yunnan and in north-eastern Vietnam. These plants meet in mixed mountain forests at heights of 1000-1500 m and at an altitude of 600-900 m on the slopes with an eastern exhibition, on each side of the pass between sharp slopes of mountains with gentle peaks. It grows in soil formed from clay and weathered limestone accumulating in cracks and rock cracks. In Vietnam, plants meet in the north-eastern province of Cao Bang.
Paphiopedilum micranthum orchid is a smaller sized, warm to cool growing, single flowered, terrestrial and lithophytic species with 3 to 5, distichous, oblong-elliptic, obtuse to subacute, mottled dark and paler green, purple spotted beneath leaves. The leaves are 14 cm long and 2.5 cm wide.
It blooms in the spring and summer on an erect, 3 3/4" to 10" (9 to 25 cm) long, terminal, green spotted with purple inflorescence which has lanceolate-narrowly elliptic bracts. The flower is large in relation to the size of the whole plant, mainly due to the inflated, pink to whitish lip. The petals of both whorls are white, slightly greenish at the base, covered with more or less intense pink discolorations and marked with longitudinal lines in a dark red-purple color. The pollen chamber cover is white to pale pink with auburn spots at the front and a clear triangular yellow field at the top of the upper part.
GROW AND CARE PAPHIOPEDILUM MICRANTHUM ORCHID
Cultural information should only be used as a guide, and should be to be adapted to suit you. Your physical location; where you grow your plants, how much time you have to devote to their care, and many other factors, will need to be taken into account. Only then can you decide on the cultural methods that best suit you and your plants.
Light:
This orchid need light level of 12000-20000 lux. Plants that grow on the northern slopes are exposed to early morning light, and in the remainder of the day grow in shade. Strong air movement should be ensured all the time.
Temperature:
It is a thermophilic plant, but requiring a cooler resting period. The average temperature of the summer day is 29 ° C, night 21-22 ° C, which gives a daily difference of 7-8 ° C. In winter, the average day temperature is 15-16 ° C, at night 8-10 ° C, with a daily amplitude of 6-8 ° C. Quite a large range of natural habitat heights mean that plants can adapt to temperatures lower by 3-4 ° C than indicated.
Humidity:
The humidity is around 70-75% for most of the year, and at the end of summer and early autumn it rises to almost 80%.
Substrate and growing media:
The substrate must always be loose, permeable, one that maintains moisture, but does not absorb. Adding to the ground of chopped sphagnum moss helps to keep the moisture that these plants need, especially if they are grown in dry areas with low humidity. Although plants are often found near limestone rocks, it is not advisable to add limestone pieces to the ground. In cold water, limestone dissolves quite quickly and can easily lead to harmful excess calcium compounds in the substrate.
Some breeders suggest using these hanging orchids in growing. Baskets are usually made of wire mesh or wooden slats and lined with moss. If we need to use a pot, it is recommended to use wide, flat, such as for bulb flowers, with a diameter twice the depth. A simple flower pot, even if it is large enough to contain long rhizomes, will be so deep that the substrate will stay moist for a long time, increasing the risk of root rot.
This plant is not particularly sensitive to the salt content of the substrate, but the substrate should be washed regularly to prevent accumulation. If the water used is highly mineralized, rinsing is particularly important.
Watering:
Plants in cultivation should be abundantly watered during active growth (from late spring to autumn), with slight drying between waterings. The substrate can never be stale or soggy. In late autumn, watering should be gradually reduced. Cultivated plants in the winter have lower requirements for the amount of water, but they should not completely dry out.
Fertilizer:
During the active growth of the plants should be fertilized every week 1/10-1/4 of the recommended dose of fertilizer for orchids. At the beginning of the growing season, high nitrogen fertilizer is often used, and in the late summer and autumn high phosphorus fertilizer is used. Higher phosphorus content stimulates better flowering in the next season and promotes hardening of new growth before winter.
Rest period and repotting:
In winter, the plant need cooler temperature, less water and fertilization should be limited or should be completely abandoned until spring, when stronger watering resumes.
This orchid is quite tolerant of the decomposing substrate, but the plant will be healthier if it is transplanted every 2-3 years. Transplanting is carried out in spring immediately after flowering.
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