Bulbophyllum rothschildianum

Also known as: Rothschild's Bulbophyylum in the subfamily: Epidendroideae

Native to: Sikkim - India Thailand West Bengal - India

General Information

Rothschild's Bulbophyylum is a small sympodial cool to warm growing epiphytic orchid belonging to the sub family Epidendroideae native to India and Thailand. It is named after the English Banker family and Orchid enthusiast in the 19th century.

Plant Description

Sympodial. Grows to 20cm. Each new growth has numerous erect rigid leaves that grow to 17.8cm long. Pseudobulbs grow to 3.8-5cm

Flowers

Numerous short lasting, fragrant blossoms appear

Fragrance

The orchid is fragrant.

Substrate(s)

• Coarse
• Medium
• Fine
• 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.

 

Fragrant:

• IsFragrant

Climate

Grows at low to high elevations. Rainfall ranges from 5mm to 818mm per day, heaviest in July and lightest in December. Humidity ranges from 57% to 86%, highest in July and lowest in March. Temperature ranges from 5C to 27C, highest in April (20C to 27C) and lowest in January (5C to 18C).

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

It's best to observe the root system when repotting and use that as a guide:

A plant with a short root system will do better in a shallower pot with a fine mix, or mounted on fern or cork supplanted with a good amount of moss or similar material.

A plant with a long root system often does well in a pot filled with moss or fine media, mixing in perlite and charcoal is always beneficial to reduce the likelihood of the mix becoming soggy and keeps it fresh.

A plant with a coarser long root system can be potted in a deeper pot, but with 2/3 coarse material such as bark, expanded clay, or coco chips and topped with moss or similar material. This will allow the moisture to remain inside the pot but give the roots air as well.

This plant does well mounted to Cork slabs.