Buncha WEIRD NOIDS and other stuff...

[TwoTon]

Well, another Saturday came, another visit to the flower market was in order, and yet again I brought home some purdy thangs.

For appetizers, here's the complete orchid haul:
http://www.albumtown.com/showalbum.p...d=35854&page=3
(starting at "bulbophyllum dearei", as well as the following page)

...but _these_ are where it gets interesting for all y'all Orchid Sherlocks out there:

1. This http://www.albumtown.com/showpic.php...643&pid=495436
is supposed to be this:
http://orchid.honngi.com/map-sall200...B5%A3-1-10.jpg
Is this a an intergenerate hybrid or a cym hybrid? I'm asking because the vendor told me it's a cym/oncidium cross. (Is there such a beast?)

2. The old guy who sold me this
http://www.albumtown.com/showpic.php...643&pid=495439
http://www.albumtown.com/showpic.php...438&uuid=25643
was so nice as to write down its name, but when I checked said name later on the Internet, I couldn't find anything even remotely resembling at all. Here's what he wrote:

"P. LUEEMUNINA"

Obviously a major spelling screw-up, but what is it supposed to mean?
Can anyone make heads or tails of this???

3. My wife dragged this one home:
http://www.albumtown.com/showpic.php...442&uuid=25643
A very stately and showy plant, not exactly my taste, but anyhoo - what could it be?? I don't even know the genus...

Thanks loads again in advance to everyone, enjoy, and happy guessing :-)

cheers

Hans

[Diane]

The one your wife dragged home looks a lot like Onc. Butterfly x Papilio . Google it.

[Diane]

The cymbidium looks a lot like the native cymbidiums found in se asia... but it could be a cross.... I'm no genetics expert.

[uncasteeb]

"P. LUEEMUNINA"

Is probably Phal Leuddemanniana.

[TwoTon]

You guys are fantabulous!

Diane: Yes, my wife's plant most definitely looks like onc. butterfly x papilio.

One question: Googling for this, I repeatedly came across the genus "Psychopsis", which was described as "epiphytic orchids of Central and South America formerly included in genus Oncidium". So, should I file this butterfly x papilio under Oncidium or Psychopsis?

uncasteeb: You're right, it's p. lueddemanniana var. pulchra.

Thank you all SO much!!

Hans

[mde]

The orchid your wife chose originally was classified as an Oncidium but it goes by Psychopsis now.

There are only four species in the genus (krameriana, papilio, sanderea, and versteegiana. Go here to look at the subtle differences between them: www.orchidspecies.com/indexpl-pz.htm

The previously mentioned hybrid Psychopsis "Butterfly" is a cross between papilio x sanderea.

The most common cross being sought after right now because of its awards, is Psychopsis "Mendenhall", which is Pyschopsis "Butterfly" x Psychopsis papilio.

My possible opinion, in looking in my reference books, is that yours is a species Psychopsis krameriana, due to the shorter length of the lateral sepals and the degree of border ruffling. But if not labeled, they can be quite hard to distinguish. (see below for one distinguishing feature of the krameriana you can look for)

Here is some interesting information for you from The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Orchids by Alec Pridgeon:

"Etymology: Gr. psyche, butterfly; opsis, like; in reference to the resemblance of the flower to a tropical butterfly."

"Psychopsis is a genus of four species distributed from Costa Rica to Peru. The genus is characterized by the presence of unifoliate pseudobulbs of a single internode subtended by distichous non-leaf-bearing sheaths; the leaves red-brown with irregular spots and blotches of green; the inflorescence produced from the axils of the sheaths, erect; the flowers produced singly in succession at the apex; the dorsal sepal and petals similar, narrow; the lateral speals expanded, petaloid; the lip without a spur; the column without a foot; and the two hard pollinia attached to a stipe connected to a viscidium.

The plants occur as epiphytes in the canopy of wet or moist forest at elevations from sea level to 800 meters. Cultivation of the species is relatively easy under intermediate to warm conditions on plaques or in pots. The medium should not be allowed to become sour. Without fresh medium the plants die suddenly."

And, it says that the best distinguishing feature for the krameriana is by "round internodes at the apical portion of the inflorescence." Look for this to see if it might be this species or not.

Matt

[TwoTon]

Hi Matt,

thank you very, very much for your comprehensive answer!! Another day, another learing experience. I'll save this in my MISCORCHIDINFO file...

Speaking of orchid encyclopedias - after getting various advice about general orchid books in a few English as well as German forums (before I came here, that is), I decided to buy the Rittershausens' Practical Encyclopedia of Orchids. I'm very happy with this book, but since I'm rather insatiable when it comes to reference material, I'm wondering which of the following two tomes (or maybe even others?) the distinguished members of this forum could recommend as the next step in building up a solid beginner's orchid library.

1. The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Orchids, Alex Pridgeon

2. Botanica's Orchids: Over 1200 Species (Botanica's Gardening Series)


Cheers and thanks again!

Hans

[mde]

Between the two, I personally prefer Alec Pridgeons text. I'm interested to hear which one the other forum members prefer...

Matt

[Gin]

Ditto to Matts post , I have that book and use it a lot . Gin

[Jmoney]

there's been a substantial amount of breeding with the psychopsis genus. hard to say if it's even a species, as I think the hybrids have become somewhat more common. I'd check with the vendor.