Paphiopedilum mastersianum

Paphiopedilum mastersianum is known to occur in Ambon Island and Buru Island, a part of the Maluk Islands in Indonesia (Cribb 1988). The Maluk Islands are located between Sulawesi and New Guinea. It grows at elevations between 900-2000m in they shady montane forest (Cribb 1988).  The lime green dorsal sepal with the white margin beatutifully contrasts with the deep maroon of the petals.

I have been growing them from the flask for 6 years, and this is the first blooming among the siblings.  Frequently, we don't know the lineages of orchids, but here I want to write down what is know about the history of this plant.  I got the flask (TN8004) from Troy Meyers Conservatory in May 2016.  Seeds were sown in January 2015 (link to photos of seeds).  This flask was derived from SlipperTalk collaboration (link). Actually, my plants are the second generation from the collaboration. My friend, Rick Lockwood, got pollen from Uri Baruk's plant ('Uri' = 'MC3991'), and pollinated his plant which he imported from Indonesia ('MC4990') in March 2008.  Here is a link to his post about the collaboration. Rick managed to bloom the seedlings quickly, and one of these offspring ('MC6970') set the seeds spontaneously (presumably via self-fertilization), and my plants are derived from this fruit.

I have been growing at a cooler-end of intermediate temperature; the max/min daily temperature is 29/18C (84/65F) in the summer and 21/13C (70/55F) in the winter,  As mentioned, they don't grow fast at this temperature, but I haven't lost many plants and they grow steadily.  The leaves of all siblings become pretty pale.  I'm growing them at the light level similar to typical Paphiopedilum, but they might prefer shadier condition.

 

 

 

 Literature Cited:

• Cribb, P. 1988. The Genus Paphiopedilum, 2nd Edition. Natural History Publications (Borneo) Sdn. Bhd. p.300-303