Bloom Event - Phalaenopsis Kuntrarti rarashati

What a mouthful ! I actually picked up this Phalaenopsis from a local garden centre (back before they stopped stocking anything interesting). Took some digging to find a name and I don't usually bother with Phalaenopsis as there are so many unnamed hybrids out there that there is almost no chance of finding a correct match. This one is quite distinctive, however.

I know. You've seen the picture and still think its not very interesting. Brown flowers.....great. This is actually a primary hybrid between Phalaenopsis equestris and P. venosa. The brown comes from P. venosa. Flowers are smallish, but are freely produced and this plant seems rarely out of bloom, often with two branched spikes blooming at a time. It is actually more attractive than the photo suggests, with the pink being rather understated and the brown actually being a richer more orange shade. What I really like about this hybrid, however, is the scent. Most Phalaenopsis hybrids found in shops and garden centres are not scented, the emphasis being very much on big flowers. I have a natural liking for fragrant flowers, and this one is lovely. I can only describe the smell as 'nutmeg'. A fully open spike of flowers on a warm day will fill a room with scent. I'm guessing the scent comes from P. venosa, as P. equestris is not scented to my knowledge.

A very vigorous plant which I'm going to have to repot soon as it is getting rather large and is still in its original pot from two or three years ago. It always carries around ten leaves which is a lot for most Phalaenopsis, and the leaves are slightly more narrow than most hybrids. So far, it has bloomed from every leaf axil without fail and the flowers are very long lasting.

The Phalaenopsis season has started in earnest now, so expect more posts on these ubiquitous but nevertheless lovely genus of Orchids.