Bloom Event - Paphiopedilum (macabre x grandmaster) x charlesworthii

I'm going to have to stop saying that I don't grow many Paphiopedilum as it's clearly a lie. Today I show you another one. I got this as a bit of a punt really because it was not in bloom when I got it but it is a cross of P. charlesworthii so it ought to be interesting, oughtn't it? Also, it wasn't expensive either (a tenner from Burnham Nurseries) and seemed a nice quality, blooming size plant. This was only at Christmas so I'm very pleased to see it bloom so soon. No sign of new growth yet, but I expect it'll get its act together once it's done blooming.

I absolutely love the spotting on the petals, and the markings on the dorsal sepal. Just goes to show sometimes a punt can pay off, doesn't it? A very nicely proportioned flower indeed. Here's a full frontal.

I'm not sure what my problem with Paphiopedilum is, really. They just don't excite me, you know? I have heard of a horticultural affliction that some gardeners of tropical plants suffer from (me included) called "Cactus Blindness" whereby you can appreciate a nice specimen but, fundamentally, they all look the bloody same. Perhaps I suffer from "Slipper Orchid Blindness". Now that's a rather specialist form of horticultural hypochondria. I have been mooting the idea recently that I should grow less Paphiopedilum than I do and instead focus more on Coelogyne and Dendrochilum that I like more. I can't say that I can't grow Paphiopedilum (at least not the hybrids I have) because they grow well for me. I can only hope that I'm not hurtling down the slippery slope that a lot of orchid growers do. I have noticed many times with orchid growers that the older they get, the more they like to grow the orchids with the tiniest possible flowers, finally ending up growing Pleurothallis and its allies. I mean, why bother growing a plant that bears flowers that are too small to see? I don't mean to disparage the people who grow Pleurothallids at all, of course, and I am aware that there are plenty of them that produce large and attractive flowers, but they are in the minority.

Anyway, went rather off topic there, didn't I? This particular plant is nicely proportioned as well as having a handsome flower with quite dark foliage with some purple speckling towards the outside of the centre of the crown. Some Paphiopedilum have handsome flowers and enormous floppy foliage, or teeny weeny fans of foliage and huge flowers (not a problem for some, but I think the plants look out of proportion). I have said all along with orchids that the are truly knockout flowers on quite scruffy looking plants and this is often true, but Paphiopedilum quite often have nice foliage so they look good even when they aren't blooming.

Having said I am considering growing less of these, I think this one is a keeper. There are a couple like that. I don't think there'll ever be none at all but I can tweak the collection to just keep the ones that I particularly like. I'm only trying to please myself, after all.