Stanhopea warscewicziana

Also known as: Warscewicz' Stanhopea in the subfamily: Epidendroideae

General Information

Warscewicz' Stanhopea is a medium sized sympodial cool to warm growing epiphytic orchid belonging to the sub family Epidendroideae. It is named after the Polish ORchid Collector in the 19th century.

Plant Description

Sympodial. Grows to 62-78cm. Each new growth has numerous leathery elliptic leaves that grow to 20-75cm long. Pseudobulbs grow to 2.5-6cm

Flowers

Numerous fragrant blossoms appear

Fragrance

The orchid is fragrant.

Substrate(s)

• Coarse
• Spaghnum Moss

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 71mm to 180mm per day, heaviest in August and lightest in March. Humidity ranges from 82% to 94%, highest in May and lowest in April. Temperature ranges from 14C to 23C, highest in June (17C to 23C) and lowest in January (14C to 22C).

Watering

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

Fertiliser

dormant-medium-demand-orchid Use balanced fertiliser during Spring and Summer. 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.

Use water retentive media such as moss to prevent roots from drying out quickly This plant does very well in baskets or suspended pots This plant does well mounted. Repotting is best done annually.