Phaius tankervilleae (Banks) Blume 1856, an old heirloom clone vs a plant for sale in a recent orchid show.

The top photo is of an old heirloom plant that seems to have been in cultivation in Puerto Rico for decades.  The bottom photo is of a plant in an orchid show, last January.  The heirloom clone has flowers that hold their floral segments parallel to the ground so normally one only see the white backing of the floral segments and the lip.  As you can see in the lower photo the flowers of the plant at the show hold their flowers in a way that you can really appreciate their rich coloring, also the flowers are much larger, as is the plant.  A few years ago I brought one of this large and beautiful plants, it thrived as long as I gave it devoted care, the moment my attention flagged the plant produced significantly smaller growths.    Th heirloom plant survives and blooms with a bare minimum of care, such was not my experience with the newer richer, larger colored clones.  The newer clones can produce amazing bloomings, but to perform at that level they need devoted care during their growth phase.

Phaiocalanthe Kryptonite 'Chariot of Fire'

This orchid is easy to grow as well as floriferous.  Sadly, I neglected it.  What was my error?  I failed to repot it onto fresh media.  This has to be done to these plants where I live or they will deteriorate and stop blooming.  I replanted this orchid this year but its recuperation has been slow.  I expect it to start blooming again next year.

Phaiocalanthe Kryptonite, a white clone

When the first Phaiocalanthe Kryptonite plans came into the market, almost all of them produced white flowers when they bloomed.  Finding a red one was almost impossible.  Then the red clones became all the rage.  Nowadays clones with interesting patterns in the flowers are the ones that seem to be most popular.  Unfortunately I lost this one when weeds invaded the pot and killed the plant.

Phaiocalanthe Charlie Khlem, a cream-yellow clone, sadly lost

This one was a vigorous plant and easy to grow, sadly it was lost to rot during a spell of extremely wet weather.

Phaiocalanthe Charlie Khlem, an unnamed clone

I got this plant as a seedling many years ago.  It is quite different from the Phaiocal. Charlie Khlem clones that were available for sale years ago.  It has the virture that it is almost indestructible and blooms consistently with a minimum of care.  This plant has the particularity that flower that develop under hot weather have much less color than those that develop under cooler conditions.

Phaiocalanthe varieties, the sadness of being spurned for being easy

A white lipped variant of Phaiocalanthe Kryptonite

Phaiocalanthe Kryptonite 'Ursula'

Phaiocalanthe looks particularly good when shown in groups

A white form of Phaio. Kryptonite, for a time it used to be the most commonly available color

A group of white Phaio. Krytonite with inflorescences growing toward the light

A yellow clone of Phaio. Charlie Khlem

Pastel pink Phaio. Charlie Khlem, the intensity of color of the flowers seems to be greatly influenced by temperature.  In my location warmer temperatures means lighter colored flowers.

When grown in a place where the light shines on them evenly from all directions the inflorescences grow straight up

A bicolored Phaio. Charlie Khlem

The previous flower, freshly opened

A select clone of Phaio. Charlie Khlem

A group of Phaiocalanthes and Calanthes

Pity the poor Phaiocalanthe, it is burdened by the lack of those things that most attract orchidists.  It is not rare, it won’t take 10 years to bloom, the flowers are not ugly, contorted, or weirdly bizarre.   It has a sad tendency to resist dying if slightly neglected and a bit larger than normal variations in temperature won’t cause it to defoliate and depart for that great terracotta pot in the sky.    The lack of all the things previously listed means that Phaiocalanthe is generally less valued than other orchids that are the source of much confusion and handwringing among orchidist.  But if you value pretty flowers that demand only a modest amount of care, Phaiocalanthe has much to offer.  Here I show a selection of the varieties I have cultivated.  All were cultured the same, you can read about their culture in this same blog under the description of the culture of Phaiocalanthe Kriptonite ‘Ursula’.