but the fact is that most Phragmipedium species are
dreadful houseplants. You've seen the photos so you know what I mean
... fans of large, ungainly leathery leaves sprouting from a
fly-infested pot of sodden peaty compost. The flower spikes are large
and ungainly, and flop all over the place unless staked. Flower
colours are boring (unless you like muddy greens, browns and yellows)
and the best adjective that can be applied to the flower shape is
"bizarre". The principle exceptions are P. schlimii (white, dirty pink
and yellow) and P. besseae, which can be a beautiful clear bright
cinnabar red, but has the uncooperative habit of rapidly crawling out
of it's container.
The real question is why anyone bothers growing them .... the answer
can only be for reasons of status. They're ***SLIPPER ORCHIDS***,
which means high scores on the brownie-point scale, plus the knowledge
that you've got something that most other orchid freaks don't have.
They're CITES Appendix-A plants, so by buying them you're striking a
blow for individual personal freedom against the dictatorship of
tyrannical commie-pinko bureaucracy. Then there is the added
attraction that if you buy and kill enough of them, you'll help
eradicate all the wild populations, which means that your surviving
plants will the only ones left, so you can proudly boast about how
you're assisting orchid-conservation.
Really, the same could be said of Bulbophyllums, at least in terms of flower size and coloration. The current interest in Phrags is based on the hybrids that have been produced using Phrag besseae. They are relatively large flowered, brightly colored, and vigorous. Properly grown, their foliage is no less attractive than any number of houseplants, and the pots are not fly infested. I successfully grew and bloomed P. besseae, P. Sedenii, and P. pearcei as houseplants for a number of years until they became too large for my windowsills (actually, with the besseae I got tired of dealing with the climbing habit). In proper light they do not need to be staked.
While some people may purchase them because of their protected status, and out of a misguided desire to have jungle collected plants, they are certainly the minority, and Peter's assumption that it is a major driving force for slipper lovers is rather bizarre. Most slipper growers love them for their appearance, and often for their unique differences from the rest of the family (why I also grow Pterostylis). Most of us are happy to wait for legal seedlings with the proper papers. The use of such broad generalizations to characterize a varied group of people, no matter who that group is, is rather unseemly and reflects poorly on the person making the generalization. Were such generalizations made about particular races or religions, they would not be tolerated.
Just because the charm of particular plants is not apparent to you is no reason to entertain paranoid fantasies about all those see that charm. People who bring plants in for AOS judging without the proper papers will hopefully see them refused or confiscated, though some judges will undoubtedly turn a blind eye.
Dennis
_______________________________________________ the OrchidGuide Digest (OGD) orchids@orchidguide.com http://orchidguide.com/mailman/listinfo/orchids_orchidguide.com
