Iris- I have a paph Olivia, I bought it many years ago from Santa Barbara orchid Estate. I believe it came from the original clone, since apparently that was the best one, and survived all these years. I have found it very, very difficult to bloom. In the 10 years or so that I have had it...them I should say, as I now have 3 divisions of it.....only one division has ever bloomed- last year. That particular plant was grown under fluoresent lights in the winter, outdoors in the summer. No other division has even gone so far as to produce a bud, let alone blast. However.......that one bloom was worth it! The flower was much larger than would be expected from the pictures, and it lasted a very long time...easily 3 months..no mean feat during the summer! I do find that summer is the worst time for paph blasting....at least in NYC, which can be very warm. Most buds produced in the summer, and fall, unfortunately as it tends to be pretty warm through mid October here, blast. I used to move budded paphs indoors. However, I have found that, despite the risk of slugs, buds produced outdoors in the summer are more likely to survive if left in place rather than brought indoors...one hot day when I am away and the AC isn't on is a sure bet for blasting. Take care, Eric Muehlbauer in so far moderate Queens, NY....mostly phrags blooming now..... _______________________________________________ the OrchidGuide Digest (OGD) [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://lists.orchidguide.com/mailman/listinfo/orchids
