Bulbophyllum guttulatum

One of our most floriferous orchids is this delightful, compact, Bulbophyllum species. Bulbophyllum guttulatum flowers over a long period from early summer through to the autumn.

Bulbophyllum guttulatum is found from the Himalayas across to Vietnam in evergreen monsoon forest from 800 to 2000m. Its 2cm flowers have wonderful spotting (well worth zooming in on the photos)

We know this habitat well from our travels in Sikkim with its warm wet summers. The winters are dryer but plants would not experience long periods with no moisture and so keep their rather soft lush leaves. We water plants throughout the year and find they grow well both in pots and baskets. As the range of the plant indicates, the species is not too fussy about temperature and with us grows indoors with a minimum of 17C where it thrives, but the species would grow cooler.