P. Leeanum

[Guldal]

I won this classic, primary hybrid (P. insigne x P. spicerianum, 1884), as my henryanum came in as best in the category 'grown on windowsill':

 

[GuRu]

Jens, this is an 'all time classic' hybrid and a good prize. Unfortunately it's been forgotten wrongly by a lot of Paph. growers due to its parentage which aren't that spectaculare and like cooler growing conditions.

 

[Guldal]

Unfortunately it's been forgotten wrongly by a lot of Paph. growers due to its parentage which aren't that spectaculare and like cooler growing conditions.

Rudolf, I think, the reason, it fell in ill repute among collectors, was that at some point in time, it was one of the very few Paphs, that was bred on mass scale and sometimes sold in supermarkets... this doesn't detract from its somewhat chaste beauty in my eyes, though!

 

[Happypaphy7]

Congrats!!

 

[Ozpaph]

a lovely classic that looks great with a few flowers

 

[spujr]

The University of Hawaii used to (maybe still does) have a 100+ collection of Leeanums all clones. The plants completely filled the 1 gallon pots. I believe they were all grown in standard peat moss mix but can't remember for sure. One of my experiments was to determine if cooler temperatures would induce flower and if so, the duration of the cooling needed. I spent several weeks hulling the plants in and out of a cold chamber and ultimately saw no difference between the control and treatments. Not suggesting temps had no effect, just that my specific treatment didn't work.

Anyways, thanks for sharing the photo, it brought back fond memories.

 

[Guldal]

..... The plants completely filled the 1 gallon pots ..... I spent several weeks hulling the plants in and out of a cold chamber and ultimately saw no difference between the control and treatments.

What a wonderful reminiscence spujr - I can most vividly in my minds eye imagine you "schlepping" those heavy pots, back and forth, and forth and back....and to no avail!

I'm sure, that the outcome of your study was perfectly valid - and, actually, was what I would have expected! Rudolf (GuRu) is of course right in proposing, that a marked drop in temperature is needed iin the culture of one of the parents, namely insigne, to enhance flowering (except for polyploids of this species, that flowers unashamedly at room temperature!). The other parent, spicerianum, though, has a vast habitat, and can be grown and flowered under hot to cooler conditions. When taking this into consideration and accounting for hybrid vigour and the adaptability of many a hybrid, the result - the lack of differences between control and treatments - may not come as a startling chock. Except, maybe, for the poor student/researcher, who expected another outcome - and Rudolf, of course!

(PS. Your study, by the way, is a fine, demonstration example of Popper's falsification theory! )

 

[spujr]

Did a little digging and found a photo of the plants. This was just one of three benches filled with these plants, the flags were used to ID the treatments.

Thanks for the info on the parents, I forgotten about their differences. Yeah, there are a lot of variables to consider, not only the temperatures but the duration of the temps. Its a shame at the time there was no good way to publish the negative results so another poor sap wouldn't have to repeat .

 

[JayeL]

What a wonderful reminiscence spujr - I can most vividly in my minds eye imagine you "schlepping" those heavy pots, back and forth, and forth and back....and to no avail!

I still have a soft spot for P. Leeanum and P. insigne.

They were my first orchids 40 years ago. My grandmother gave me some from her garden in Mauritius where she grew them as a bedding plant (she had named them white slipper and green slipper). They were amazing when they all flowered at the same time. Mauritius is tropical and they also do well in Durban, which is sub-tropical. These and P. spicerianum all seem to benefit by the addition of potting soil in the orchid mix, and have often seen them in nurseries being grown in pure potting soil.

They always look better as specimen plants and saw an amazing posting of P. insigne being grown in a garden on FB a week ago.


All the best over the festive season

JL

 

[Guldal]

I still have a soft spot for P. Leeanum and P. insigne.

They were my first orchids 40 years ago. My grandmother gave me some from her garden in Mauritius where she grew them as a bedding plant (she had named them white slipper and green slipper). They were amazing when they all flowered at the same time. Mauritius is tropical and they also do well in Durban, which is sub-tropical. These and P. spicerianum all seem to benefit by the addition of potting soil in the orchid mix, and have often seen them in nurseries being grown in pure potting soil.

They always look better as specimen plants and saw an amazing posting of P. insigne being grown in a garden on FB a week ago.
View attachment 37429

All the best over the festive season
JL

All the best to you, too, JL! And what a wondrous sight is the photo from FB!

 

[Ozpaph]

when they're happy they grow like weeds.............................wish all paphs were like that (or I was good enough to grow them so well!)

 

[GuRu]

............... and saw an amazing posting of P. insigne being grown in a garden on FB a week ago.
View attachment 37429
....

WOW, holy smoke and more.....what an impressive place showing in this photo on FB. Do you know the place/region/country where it was taken ?

 

[tomp]

Paph Leeanum rocks! Always a reliable classic! Here are a couple more just for fun:

 

[tomp]

Paph Leeanum rocks! Always a reliable classic! Here are a couple more just for fun:

 

[GuRu]

Tom, the first one is great ... but both very nice and with a very intense colouration.