Bulbophyllum careyanum

Also known as: Carey's Bulbophyllum or Tribrachia purpurea Phyllorkis purpurea Bulbophyllum careyanum h.v. ochraceum Bulbophyllum careyanum var. ochracea Bulbophyllum careyanum var. sikkimense in the subfamily: Epidendroideae

Native to: Bhutan Nepal Thailand

General Information

Carey's Bulbophyllum is a sympodial cool to hot growing epiphytic orchid belonging to the sub family Epidendroideae native to Bhutan, Nepal and Thailand. It is named after the English Botanist in the 19th century.

Plant Description

Sympodial. Grows to 30cm. Each new growth has a single erect lance shaped, oblong shaped leaf that grows to 2-25cm long. Pseudobulbs grow to 1.5-9cm

Substrate(s)

• Coarse
• Bark
• Charcoal
• Treefern
• Spaghnum Moss
• Perlite

Care Notes

These orchids like to be kept on the dry side, but may need to be watered daily during warm weather, and prefer a well draining mix or also do well mounted, provided they can be watered regularly.

These are quite a forgiving orchid, there are no special requirements to get this orchid to flower, just good care and consistent conditions. Larger plants may be more fussy and can react poorly to change; a poorly timed repotting, a pest infection or an unusually hot day can set them back for a couple of years. However, even plants that have been treated poorly can thrive, and if they are set back they often recover much stronger then they would otherwise be.

Climate

Grows at low to high elevations. Rainfall ranges from 5mm to 251mm per day, heaviest in August and lightest in February. Humidity ranges from 50% to 83%, highest in August and lowest in March. Temperature ranges from 9C to 32C, highest in April (19C to 32C) and lowest in January (9C to 24C).

Fertiliser

Apply liquid based fertiliser per recommended directions. They can benefit from a high phosphate fertiliser leading up to flowering season, followed by a high nitrogen fertiliser when new growth appears, and a balanced fertiliser in other times. These orchids can also tolerate slow release fertiliser applied 1-2 pellets per cup (250ml) of media.

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 high Nitrogen fertiliser during Spring and Summer. Use a high Phosphorous fertiliser during Summer.

Potting

Due to the growth nature of these plants they are best mounted onto cork, tree fern slabs, or even trees if the climate suits. Water regularly especially in hot weather.

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