Bulbophyllum frostii comes from Vietnam, more rarely it is also found in Thailand. Its natural habitat is the evergreen forests, where the orchid grows as epiphytes at elevations around 1450 to 1500 meters...
Bulbophyllum frostii also called as Frost's Bulbophyllum, Bulbophyllum bootanoides, Cirrhopetalum bootanoides, Cirrhopetalum frostii, is a species of the genus Bulbophyllum. This species was described by Victor Samuel Summerhayes in 1928.
IDENTIFY BULBOPHYLLUM FROSTII
Bulbophyllum frostii comes from Vietnam, more rarely it is also found in Thailand. Its natural habitat is the evergreen forests, where the orchid grows as epiphytes at elevations around 1450 to 1500 meters.
It is a mini-miniature sized, cool growing epiphyte with 3 cm between each, ovoid, multi-angled, olive-green, compressed, clustered, 1 - 1.5 cm long pseudobulbs carrying a single, apical, broadly oblong-elliptic to ovate, fleshy, sessile to shortly petiolate base leaf.
Frost's Bulbophyllum blooms in the spring on a basal, horizontal, short 2 cm long, few flowered inflorescence with an apical umbel of a few fragrant flowers. The flowers are 2.5 cm in diameter and are a glossy dark red with a rocking red lip and resemble a Dutch wooden shoe.
BULBOPHYLLUM FROSTII 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:
Bulbophyllum frostii needs a light level of 14000-16000 lux. It does not tolerate direct sunlight.
Temperature:
It is an intermediate-hot / warm greenhouse species. They grow well 22-25 ° C during the day and 18-20 ° C at night; while in winter temperatures can be a couple of degrees less.
Humidity:
If mounted on a raft, the air humidity must be around 75%. If it is kept in pots, it can easily be with the classic 50-60%.
Substrate, growing media and repotting:
Bulbophyllum frostii can be mounted on a raft. In this case, however, we will have to keep the humidity high, so if we do not have the means to do it, it is better to grow this species in pot. The sphagnum works well (never put it too thick, because in this way it will not allow the air to reach the roots and will cause the root rot to which the plant is very predisposed), or the medium-small bark (1.5 -2 cm).
Watering:
This species does not have a distinct winter rest period, so it gets wet in the regular way all year long as the substrate has dried out well but has not yet become completely dry. However, if in the winter months, the plant has slowed down the growth, it is better to reduce even a little wetting, especially if the temperatures are cooler than the summer ones. However, you should never allow the plant to remain completely dry for more than a day.
Fertilizer:
Because the roots of this orchid are very sensitive, we fertilize it with caution, approximately once a month, with 1/6 of the dose indicated on the fertilizer bottle. As a fertilizer you must always take the appropriate one for orchids, liquid, with the values of balanced NPK (20-20-20, 5-5-5, etc.).
Rest period:
The Bulbophyllum frostii blooms from the base of the new pseudobulbs when these have matured. It does not need a rest period to stimulate flowering. In winter, when reduced watering, fertilization should be also reduced or completely eliminated until strong watering resumes.
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