Paph. Vietnamese Empress

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Joined
Nov 29, 2008
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Location
Bloomington, MN
This is Orchids Limited’s cross (Bel Royal ‘Royal Ladder’ x vietnamense), registered 2014. Paph Bel Royal is (rothschildianum x kolopakingii), registered by E. Young O.F. in 1996. The NS of the drooping petals is about 15 cm. There will be 4 flowers in bloom simultaneously (the last bud is just opening).

https://www.flickr.com/photos/45750268@N03/shares/s17592

I think the only other published picture of this cross is from Orchids Limited’s website (now an out of stock plant).

https://www.orchidweb.com/products/paph-vietnamese-empress~2147.html

To me, the website picture looks more like Delrosi or Pink Sky, while my plant looks a little more like I would have expected from the cross. Depending on your tastes, this particular flower can be described as “unusual”, “interesting”, or even “attractive”, but my wife likes it well enough for me to keep. Maybe my Pink Sky flower is prettier, but this Vietnamese Empress is overall larger and the four blooms is better than the two I get with Pink Sky.

I think this is the third time I have bloomed this plant, but the previous 2 flowerings had only 1 or 2 flowers that I wasn’t happy with. I have had a little mealy bug problem with this plant, that seems to be ended. There are two “newer” growths, but overall, this hasn’t been a fast growing plant.
 
It's interesting. Of course the photos on Orchidweb are mostly going to be the outstanding and exceptional clones and not always representative of what a more typical clone would look like.

I do think the staminode on your plant is prettier than the OL plant photo, and as you stated, at least your plant shows traits more indicative of its parentage.
 
I don't think many of this cross have bloomed. There may not have been a large number of seedlings from the cross in the first place. It would be nice is someone else on the forum has bloomed this cross.


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