Brassia verrucosa

Also known as: The Warty Brassia or Brassia verrucosa h.v. gigantea Brassia verrucosa h.v. minor Brassia verrucosa h.v. brachiata Oncidium verrucosum Brassia verrucosa h.v. grandiflora Brassia aristata Brassia cowanii Brassia longiloba Brassia odontoglossoides Brassia coryandra Brassia brachiata Brassia verrucosa h.v. majus Oncidium brachiatum in the subfamily: Epidendroideae

Native to: Guatemala Honduras Mexico

General Information

The Warty Brassia is a sympodial cool to warm growing epiphytic orchid belonging to the sub family Epidendroideae native to Guatemala, Honduras and Mexico.

Plant Description

Sympodial. Grows to 50cm. Each new growth has numerous oblong shaped leaves that grow to 38cm long. Pseudobulbs grow to 6-10cm

Substrate(s)

• Coarse
• Bark

Care Notes

This orchid goes into a dormancy phase during winter, during this phase it is best not to provide water unless the plant is starting to look thirsty. The lack of water increases the chance of flowering in spring, and also reduces the likelihood of any rot forming. Do not resume watering until new growth has appeared and is growing strongly.

Often a period of intense growth occurs after dormancy. During this time the amount of light, water and fertiliser the plant receives will directly impact the amount of growth that occurs during this time, and in the case of seedlings, will reduce the time required to reach maturity.

It's recommended to heavily reduce the water amount at the middle to end of autumn to trigger dormancy. Leaves on older bulbs will begin to drop during this time while the newer bulbs continue to mature until terminal leaves appear at the tip of the pseudobulbs.

Repotting can be done any time of the year though it's best to do it in early spring when new growth is appearing as this also means new roots will appear to help the plant anchor into the new media and offset any damage to established roots during the repotting process.

 

Climate

Grows at low to high elevations. Rainfall ranges from 25mm to 188mm per day, heaviest in August and lightest in March. Temperature ranges from 12C to 24C, highest in May (16C to 24C) and lowest in January (12C to 19C).

Watering

Keep moisture levels up during hot weather as the plant is prone to dehydration

Fertiliser

dormant-medium-demand-orchid Use balanced fertiliser year round. Be sure to flush out excess fertiliser by running water through the media regularly year round. Apply fertiliser regularly at half strength year round. Use a low Nitrogen fertiliser during Winter. Use a high Phosphorous fertiliser during Winter.

Potting

These plants are quite forgiving and will do well repotted ever 2-3 years. The mix should be coarse, well draining, and allow space for air to move and for roots to grow. 

Alternatively, these plants will also do well mounted to tree fern or cork slabs, or mounted to trees.

Best time for repotting or mounting the orchids is the end of winter when new growths start to appear. Avoid repotting during hot weather,

This plant does very well in baskets or suspended pots This plant does well mounted to Cork slabs. Repotting is best done annually.