Coelogyne chinensis

This orchid is delightfully sweet and very fragrant.

Coelogyne chinensis is native to Southern China and Vietnam and across South East Asia as far as Arunachal Pradesh where it experiences a wet summer monsoon and a cooler dryer winter when it flowers.

We have grown it both cool in our Cloud Forest Greenhouse (min 12C) and warm indoors. It grows well in both environments flowering in February when grown warm and in April when grown cool. We find that although the species grows and flowers in heavy shade it flowers much more profusely when grown in good light. 

The species is semi deciduous and when grown cool and bright drops it leaves before flowering. Interestingly, in common with many deciduous species, Coelogyne chinensis has a spike on top of its pseudobulbs left when the leaves fall, presumably to deter herbivores. 

The flower spikes emerge from the centre of emerging new growths and so we are now increasing watering for the growing season through to the end of September.

The species has been known as Pholidota chinensis until recent molecular studies have included all Pholidota species in Coelogyne