Paph. liemianum 3D

[gore42]

This is actually another one of those plants that I imported last Autumn and am not 100% sure of the classification. I think that I can say with a high degree of certainty that this one is liemianum, though.

Anyway, this one turned out pretty smooth, but the lighting didn't cooperate very well. I photographed this one under natural light from the window, but didn't realize how much glare it would create until I rotated the bloom and it started catching the light differently... and by then it was too late to stop and start over again. Still, I like how the light plays on the lightly cupped dorsal sepal.

http://www.goreorchids.com/SpecPgs/3d-liemianum/liemianum-spin.html

Hope you enjoy it

As Ever,
Matthew Gore

 

[IdahoOrchid]

Shoot, with beautiful flowers like that, who needs hibreds anyway!!!! (that one is on my list by the way hehe)

 

[SlipperFan]

You are getting pretty good at this, Matt!!!:smitten:

 

[gore42]

Thanks I can't decide whether I should use this for breeding or not. I'd like to cross it with one of the other members of the group that it came with, but there is so much variation, I don't want to just make the gene pool muddy...

- Matt

 

[Leo Schordje]

Matt, very nice. One diagnostic for P. liemianum is the cillia on the edge of the leaves, most noticable at the base of the leaves in the central area of new growths. Also diagnostic is the red spotting on the underside of the leaves, in the basal part of the new growth. This is completely lacking in the other cochlopetalums.
The flower has too wide an area of brown in the dorsal to say without a doubt that it is pure liemianum. Any chance your supplier sent the hybrid (liemianum x victoria-regina)? Well developed cillia on the leaf edges would point more toward species.

 

[TADD]

Wow very cool!

 

[gore42]

Leo,

Here are a few pictures of the leaves. I've added in some arrows for no particular reason They do have patterning on the undersides, they do usually have ciliate margins, and I haven't done a chromosome count yet The leaves lead me to believe that they are liemianum, mostly.

Unfortunately, I've read accounts of spotting under the leaves and ciliate margins on chamberlainianum as well (Birk 2004, Cribb 1987). What's more troubleing is that on this batch of 6 plants, half of the flowers so far have looked very much like liemianum, but the other half are really the wrong shape... they look more like chamberlainianum, but without the bold markings on the dorsal sepals.

Now, on the history of these plants: the mother plants were originally collected in Sumatra (I don't know where or when, exactly) and these are divisions of those plants (division counts as a method of artificial propagation, and I do have CITES paperwork, in case any of you are worried ). The damage on the leaves of the oldest growths of these plants make it pretty clear that at least some of this plant was living in the jungle at one time.

However, the ranges of liemianum and chamberlainianum are not too far away from each other, and it seems very possible that there was some natural gene flow between the populations.

It may also be possible that these plants are chamberlainianum, but as a result of division, shipping (4 months ago), dramatic changes is growing conditions, etc, they are not blooming true to form.


Whatever the case may be, the mother plants of all six of my plants were supposedly collected in the same population in Sumatra. If this is the case, then I feel as though it's justifiable to self them or breed them together to preserve this particular combination of genes. Maybe I should exercise my horticultural (Ray-Rands) license and give them a varietal name. Henceforth, these plants will be known as Paph. liemianum var. goreii

As Ever,
Matthew Gore

 

[Leo Schordje]

Hey Matt,
The leaf pictures, especially #3 are a good match for the real deal. Who knows what they really are? I guess I would call them liemianum. Time may tell. Take more photos on subsequent bloomings.
Leo

 

[NYEric]

I could play with these all day, it's almost as much fun as linerider. Please do some besseae hybrids.

 

[Leo Schordje]

I took a look at my victoria-reginae (chamberlainianum for us old timers) it too has fine hairs along leaf edges, but not as long or as dense or as heavily colored, actually nearly colorless. My liemianum has distinctly red-purple hairs along leaf edges. Given all this, I would call Matts plants liemianum.
Leo

 

[Helen]

Does anyone know about the Paph. liemianum '#2', is this a variation of the liemianum? Thanks, Helen

 

[IdahoOrchid]

The #2 is just some growers way of keeping track of his stock. You can call it anything you want to as long as no one else has used the name.

liemianum 'Helen' for example. I did NOT check to see if Helen is a previously used cultivar name for paph liemianum though.