Phragmipedium pearcei (and an ecuadorense)

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smartie2000

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Here is this year's blooming of my Phrag.pearcei. The plant didn't hold two blooms because of the sudden low humidity, so the first bloom dried up...

and a link to a older blooming when my photography was poorer:
http://www.slippertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10216

Here is my Phrag.ecuadorense 'Mon Petit' for comparison, bloomed this spring. (or more correctly Phrag pearcei var. ecuadorense)


I am unsure if my pearcei is actually a Phrag var. ecuadorense. What constitutes a ecuadorense is unclear. But at least this thread shows the variations of pearcei flowers of two different plants.

The two plants are the same size approximately. I think the colours of the blooms are similar, the lighting might, or the discrepancies of the camera might be the reason for the differences. Or lighting/temperature/seasonal differences. I wish I had them blooming at the same time.

What is noticeable to me is the slight differences of the two plants staminodes. P. ecuadorense 'Mon Petit' has a more twisted staminode on the hairy black part. As well the spike arrangement is different. This ecuadorense has more zigzag between each flower (this photo does not show this well. Two flowers can be shown right next to each other because of the zigzag stem) And my supposedly pearcei has a straight stem between the flowers. Other differences include the spotting.

It would be nice to know which location these plants were from in S america, the two came from different locations probably. They are not considered two different species.

This species might be green/non-colourful, but their pouches are like art. That is why they are worth growing!
 
Do you have any cultural advice for pearcei. Mine isn't doing as well as my hybrids.
 
Do you have any cultural advice for pearcei. Mine isn't doing as well as my hybrids.

I'm using sphagnum moss. And some is already rotted- like dirt. I like Phrags because most phrags don't care about timely repotting :D
I think I will try a terrestrial mix when I find time to repot things. It should work with this species.

I think the key is water! Don't let this one dry out...it grows along rivers in the rainforests. The roots especially love to grow into the water with this species I find, I bet it could be planted into straight water culture no problem. I have dried it out before by accident and it looked crappy after.
I've read they do have more salt sensitivity, and drying out the water makes this worse.

I've also read on this forum that they like higher sunlight. Makes sense to me, the narrow leaves are suggestive of this. narrow leaves = high light on most orchids.

Perfect looking leaf tips are almost impossible with this one. It seems inevitable, since I use tap water. Perhaps with R/O water it will look better.

The first pearcei plant I have in a glass vase, so it doesn't drain. And I can see all the root growth. It will also probably bloom on its second mature growth after this first one, if not at the same time. I expect it to stay in bloom into the next year. I know what you mean by more difficult, I've had growths just die on me...
 
A couple of beauties!

Hi Fren.
How many growths before they started to bloom for you?
Thank you.
 
I think that the first time the pearcei bloomed it took 3 growths. It definitely did not bloom on the single growth plant which I got. I think they require multiple growths to bloom
 
I have both as well Fren and the pearcei is almost twice the size of the ecuadorense. Plant structure I'm referring to.
 
THanks for the advice. I think I let it get too dry between waterings based on what you've said. It dosen't get dried completely, but probably drier than it should.
 
Dear Fren,
there is no taxonomical difference between Phrag. pearcei and Phrag. ecuadorense. The description of Phrag. ecuadorense shows no difference to the well known Phrag. pearcei.
But different regional forms of Phrag. pearcei exist, with longer and shorter rhizoms, with more hairy stamindodes, bigger and smaller flowers.
These differences are in variability of a normal species.
Somtimes the name ecuadorense was used for special clones which are looking a little bit different to the typical pearcei. But this happened not on the base of the original description.
But in some collections you can find also plants labeled as ecuadorense which are in truth Phrag. richteri.

Best greetings from the snowy Bavaria

Olaf
 
THanks for the advice. I think I let it get too dry between waterings based on what you've said. It dosen't get dried completely, but probably drier than it should.

I keep mine in shallow pans of water that rarely go empty.

This species is a great candidate for semi hydro growing, along with longifolium, richteri, and caricinum. I have two big pots of this species. One I think was originally in moss or bark (long gone) and the other is in hydroton balls (completely covered with moss).

Periodically I remove excess growth and cut out old bloomed growths, and add a handful of peat moss in the open space.
 
I have both as well Fren and the pearcei is almost twice the size of the ecuadorense. Plant structure I'm referring to.

Same thing for me! My ecuadorense is smaller and it's petals are shorter and does't twist as much as my pearcei did.
I do have a real miniature clone too, the growth is 3 inches high and the leaves span is about 4 inches...
 
Same thing for me! My ecuadorense is smaller and it's petals are shorter and does't twist as much as my pearcei did.
I do have a real miniature clone too, the growth is 3 inches high and the leaves span is about 4 inches...

Interesting, I always though "ecuadorense" was the larger one, I guess I mixed up. Makes sense now! "Mon Petit" is this clone's its name

...wow! Do you have a photo of this minature JP?
 
Thanks Rick,

I have had phrags in s/h but not for awhile. I have a question about keeping a pan of shallow water under the pot. I was doing this with two seedlings from Woodstream, but the medium began to smell and I didn't like that. I haven't kept them that way for awhile and their growth has slowed. How important is it for the medium to be fresh and not sour for phrags? ALso, if I don't keep them in a pan of water, can I water them several times a week without rotting the roots? I always felt that phals are so easy, because you can see exactly what the roots are doing and if your culture is good the roots reflect that quickly. With paphs and phrags I have a harder time figuring out how often to water and fertilize. I switched them over to clear pots and finer medium than they were in, and now I can see the roots well. The question is, do I keep the medium constantly damp so that I see a fog on the inside of the pot? Do I let it dry slightly between? ANd the ones that like to be constantly wet, is it ok for the medium to smell less than sweet? Is there a medium that stands up to this better than others?
 

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