Prosthechea vitellina is native to Mexico, Guatemala and El Salvador. In Mexico, they are found on mountain slopes directed to the Gulf of Mexico, in the states of Veracruz, Puebla, Oaxaca and Chiapas...
Prosthechea vitellina also called as The Yolk-Yellow Prosthechea, Encyclia vitellina, Epidendrum vitellinum, Epidendrum vitellinum var autumnale, Epidendrum vitellinum var giganteum, Epidendrum vitellinum var majus, Hormidium vitellina, Pseudencyclia vitellina, is a species of the genus Prosthechea. This species was described by Wesley Ervin Higgins in 1997.
IDENTIFY PROSTHECHEA VITELLINA
Prosthechea vitellina is native to Mexico, Guatemala and El Salvador. In Mexico, they are found on mountain slopes directed to the Gulf of Mexico, in the states of Veracruz, Puebla, Oaxaca and Chiapas. They usually grow epiphytically in damp pine and oak forests, in rain forests and on bushes in areas of dwarf vegetation in areas covered with lava, at altitudes of 1400-2600 m.
It is a medium sized, cool to cold growing epiphyte, which reaching 20-28 cm tall, with conical-ovoid, slightly compressed, 2.5-6.4 cm tall pseudobulb with two, apical, subcoriaceous, narrowly elliptic, obtuse, 15-23 cm long and about 5 cm wide leaves.
The Yolk-Yellow Prosthechea blooms in the spring through fall on a apical, 30 to 45cm long, simple to few branched inflorescence that has a basal sheath and arises on a mature pseudobulb, that carrying 4 to 12, long-lived, orange to deep scarlet, showy, resupinate, wide open flowers. The flowers are up to 6.4 cm in diameter, are flat and rarely distributed on the upper half of the flowering shoot. The wide, spread petals of both whorls are sharp and can be orange, cinnamon-red, dark-red or cinnabar. The narrow, dagger-shaped dander is shorter than the petals, it may be yellow or orange-yellow and may have orange-red dots.
PROSTHECHEA VITELLINA CARE AND CULTURE
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:
Temperature:
The average summer temperature is 21 ° C at night, 10-11 ° C at night, with a daily amplitude of 11 ° C. In late spring, the average day temperature reaches 22-23 ° C, the night 9-10 ° C, and the daily difference is 13 ° C. The average winter temperature is between 16-17 ° C and at night 5-6 ° C, giving a diurnal difference of 11-12 ° C.
Humidity:
The Yolk-Yellow Prosthechea needs the humidity of 75-80% for most of the year, which drops to almost 65% in the dry season at the end of winter and early spring.
Substrate, growing media and repotting:
Prosthechea vitellina can be attached to cork flakes or tree ferns, as long as we can provide them with high humidity and watering at least once a day during the summer. If grown in pots, it is recommended to use a very loose, permeable substrate, such as medium to large pieces of fir bark, cork pieces, or tree fern fiber. Pots of as small size as possible should be used, only for maintaining the roots, and repotting should take place when the growth of new roots begins.
Watering:
Precipitation is from moderate to heavy from late spring to early autumn, with a 5-6 month relatively dry period from late autumn to early spring. During active growth, the substrate of cultivated plants should be wet, but in autumn watering should be gradually reduced.
Fertilizer:
During the active growth, the plants should be fertilized every week 1/4-1/2 of the recommended dose of fertilizer for orchids. You can use a fertilizer with low nitrogen content in the autumn and a high content of phosphorus. It improves flowering in the next season and strengthens new growth before winter. Every few weeks, the substrate should be rinsed to avoid the formation of mineral deposits, especially when using high doses of fertilizers. Flushing throughout the whole year is especially important where the water is highly mineralized.
Rest period:
In winter, you need to let Prosthechea vitellina dry slightly before the next watering, but do not let the plant dry for a long period of time. In most cases, light watering is sufficient every 2-3 weeks and occasional morning fogging between watering. Fertilization should be limited or should be completely abandoned until spring, when stronger watering resumes.
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