Phalaenopsis chibae TW-2020

[naoki]

I purchased this Phalaenopsis chibae (TW-2020) from Louisiana Orchid Connection in May 2014. This is the 2nd blooming at my place.

I'm probably growing it at a lower temp than their natural environment: 80/65F in summer and 65/50F in the coldest time of winter, right next to P. wilsonii (which I'll post soon). But it seems to do ok. The part of the reasons why it has such purple leaves may be from this low temp, but I think it was pretty red when it arrived from Louisiana.

I didn't put a scale to the photos, but the flowers are tiny (about 7mm diameter?). Not showy at all, but very cute species.

A bit of background info about this species.
This species was originally discovered by Masaaki Chiba from Dalat, Vietnam (400-600m elev.) in May 1994.

Dr. Chiba was a Phalaenopsis enthusiast from Japan and his profession was a dermatologist. He unfortunately passed away in 1994 (age of 64) when he was working on a Phalaenopsis monograph. The unfinished manuscript was edited by others including his wife, and the book ("Phalaenopsis Species") came out in 2002.
Small portion of this book is only in Japanese, but most of the sections (brief comments about each species) contain both English and Japanese. Lots of nice photos from his collection.


Phalaenopsis chibae TW-2020 on Flickr


Phalaenopsis chibae TW-2020 on Flickr


Phalaenopsis chibae TW-2020 inflorescence on Flickr


Phalaenopsis chibae TW-2020 plant on Flickr

 

[SlipperFan]

Cute flowers. Are the leaves normally that color? Are you growing it bright?

 

[Migrant13]

That's an attractive species. Thanks for the interesting info.

 

[abax]

The tiny Phals. are sooo pretty when one takes the time
to REALLY look at them closely. I love this one.

 

[Stone]

nice little one

 

[cnycharles]

Nice. Yes. Fairly normal color

 

[JeanLux]

Lovely close-ups!!!! Jean

 

[naoki]

Dot, I think that it is growing at the higher end of Phal light range.

Thanks for the color info Charles. From a few photos which I've seen, I had an impression that mine is a bit more purple than typical, but it is difficult to tell from photos.

 

[Ozpaph]

a cutie, indeed.

 

[SlipperFan]

Thanks, naoki.

 

[goods]

I'm not sure which greenhouse this one was grown in over at LOC, but the original Phal. area is fairly shady. That half of the GH is west facing but a large building blocks the afternoon sun from reaching that end for the most part. The newer greenhouses likely get a bit more sun, but I'd say they're all decently shaded.

If you're ever in the area, it's a really neat place to check out. I can guarantee you won't notice every species that's there on your first trip.

By the way, that's a nicely grown Phal. chibae

 

[MaryPientka]

Beautiful!

 

[naoki]

Thank you for the info, goods. You are lucky that LOC is close to you! They have so many interesting species. Are you getting Madagascar preorder with LOC? I'm assuming that they are getting these from Malala. Do you happen to know if they are dealing with Malala or some other nursery? I'm pretty tempted, but Malala plants are a bit scary.

 

[goods]

Hi Naoki! Tin and John (the owners) are friends of mine, so I am lucky to have them so close by. I go and get the grand tour every few months because what's new changes that often. I like to call them the "mini Andy's" because they're collection is so diverse.

I don't currently grow in a greenhouse (I'm a college student), so I don't feel comfortable reviving Malagasy plants without a stable ecosystem just yet. I'll enjoy them at LOC for now

I do know that they took a trip to Madagascar earlier this year and made contact with a number of nurseries their (including Malala), but I'm not sure where this import is coming from. If you're afraid of fresh Malala imports, you may want to wait a bit and buy them once they acclimate them. I saw they had an Erasanthe henrici for sale in bloom the other day. I saw that plant when it was a fresh import (earlier this year), and they did a great job of getting it back into active growth once arriving here. A large portion of my collection is made up of plants from there, and you won't go wrong with their quality.