Vanda brunnea tessellata x Vanda Kultana Fragrance

Seen at the November meeting of the Orquidistas de Puerto Rico Facebook group.

Oncidium Heaven Scent 'Sweet Baby', a fragrant Oncidium

This hybrid is similar to Oncidium Sharry Baby "Sweet Fragrance'.  However the inflorescences are shorter, and more densely flowered, at least in the plants I have seen.  The flowers have the same  fragrance, the main difference is in the color of the flowers.

A tale of manipulation, desire and grisly violent death on a Bulbophyllum flower

Do you want a hug?  Seem to say this crab spider
sitting on top of a Bulbophyllum flower lip.

You can see the spider sitting on the lip of the flower

When the spider would go away from the lip
 the fly would move to it.

The spider tries to hide from me.

A fly, not the fly in the previous photos, became dinner.

Yesterday I noticed that a Bulbophyllum inflorescence had become a focus of fly activity.  I decided to take a few photos but instead of the usual 18 to 55 mm zoom lens I use, I decided to try to see if I would be able to get some decent shots using my 100mm macro lens.  This macro lens is wonderful to take photos of still subjects such as orchid flowers but a real nightmare to use with subjects that keep moving even if they only move a few millimeters when you are focusing.

To my surprise the fly that was over one of the leaves of the orchid was strangely indifferent to my presence.  Yes, it would fly away if I got too close, only to return quickly if I retreated a bit.  I was able to get within a few inches of the fly and take the closest macro shots of a fly I have ever gotten.  I wondered whether the brain of the fly was somehow addled by the scent of the flower but what happened the next day disproved that theory.

In the morning, a fly, maybe the same one, was sitting on the flowers.  But there was a new visitor on the flowers.  It seems I was not the only one to notice that flies were being attracted to the flowers.  A small green crab spider had taken residence on one of the flowers.  The fly seemed aware of the presence of the spider as it would not go near it.  When I started taking photos of spider, it became agitated and ran away. It tried to hide in the base of the inflorescence.  I decided to leave the spider alone for a while.  The fly, when the spider had retreated, went all over the place where the spider had been.  I could see the spider was watching the fly, which was much larger than the spider, the fly activity was probably a very powerful lure to the spider to return to the flower.

Several times I came near the spider with the camera and every time the spider retreated to the perceived safety of the inflorescence.  But in the end, the spider decided to (metaphorically of course) grit its teeth and tolerate my presence.  The spider would sit on top of the lip of the orchid with its front legs outstretched, ready to grab any insect foolhardy enough to come close.  The theory that the fly was somehow befuddled by the orchid fragrance was disproved by the fierce way the fly would attack any other fly that would come close to the flowers.  I saw it confront aggressively and chase away, two other flies that alighted on the flowers.   In a perverse way, the strong allure that the flowers had for this fly was preventing them from being pollinated.  The large black fly had the wrong weight to properly activate the hinged mechanism of the orchid lip that ensured that the fly received the pollen.  The fly was fiercely preventing any fly of the appropriate size to affect pollination from sitting on the lip of the flowers.  So paradoxically even thought the flowers were surrounded by flies but not one flower had lost its pollinia or had been pollinated.

By the afternoon the flies had left and the spider remained sitting on the flower.  At 5:30 pm I went to take a look and discovered that the spider had been successful in catching a fly, just not the big flies that were around the flower in the morning.   I wonder if the spider will be there tomorrow, the flowers are getting close to senescence and will probably last only two or three more days.  Tomorrow I will again look to see if a new drama of manipulation, desire and grisly death plays itself out in the flowers.

Bulbophyllum tingabarinum Garay, Hammer, Siegrist 1994, has proven to be wildly attractive to a species of local fly.

The flowers of Bulbophyllum tingabarinum opened about two days ago.  This morning when I walked into the garden I found the flowers had attracted four or five flies that were walking all over the flowers.  I sampled the fragrance and found it stinky and disgusting.  However it appears the flies found it highly attractive.  The fragrance, at least in my orchid is not strong, you have to get close to the flowers to "savor" the full effect.  Most of the flies fled when I moved the orchid to a new location to take photos of the flowers.  But a stubborn one hanged for dear life from the flower and would not leave it even when I got very close with the camera.  The fly seemed particularly taken with the lip, in particular the area just under the column.  This particular fly was too small and light to properly activate the pollination mechanism in the flowers of Bulb, tingabarinum.   The fly seemed to be looking for something in the flower and explored every single part, the sepals, the petals, the lip and even the column.  When I finished taking photos, the fly was still busy and oblivious, moving over the inflorescence.

Oncidium Sharry Baby 'Sweet Fragrance'

This Oncidium hybrid has many virtues, it is relatively easy to grow, can be forgiving of neglect and if well cared for, it can produce large inflorescences of deliciously fragrant flowers that produce a powerful chocolate fragrance.  A single large mature pseudobulb can produce two inflorescences at the same time and those can carry dozens of flowers.  I have read that some people don't like the leaves of this orchid because they are not the smooth green of other Oncidium but can be covered with tiny blemishes, but to me this is a minor defect.  The flowers are so nice that it is easy to overlook the leaves.  Best of all mature plants can be found in many places from specialist orchid vendors to department stores.  Good sized and well bloomed plants can often be obtained at reasonable prices.

How I cultivate this plant:

Light:  Young plants get bright shade, adult plants get a few hours of sun in the morning but are sheltered from the harsh midday sunlight.  Giving the plants as much light as they can stand without burning has given me the best results.

Watering:  Almost every day when the plant is producing its pseudobulbs, particularly the phase where the pseudobulb is increasing in size.

Fertilizer:  In every watering when the plant is producing new growths.  No fertilizer when it is blooming or not growing.

Potting media: It seems to grow equaly well in bark, tree fern and coconut husk pieces. 

Temperature: Summer: 85F day, 75F night, winter 75F day, 65F night.