Isabellia virginalis

As you know we love miniature orchids and one of the most charming is this gorgeous species native to Brazil. 

There is little information about the species on the internet but an article in the 1919 edition of Curtis's Botanical Magazine is enlightening. It describes the discovery of the species in 1837 in the Organ Mountains, Brazil - although it was at that time described as a Maxillaria. We can understand the mistake since the growth habit is similar to miniature Brazilian Maxillarias but 8 pollinia and the flower details very much put it in the Cattleya family. 

In 1877 Barbosa Rodriguez (possibly Brazil's greatest botanist) created the genus Isbellia just for this species and correctly put it the Cattleya family. Isabellia virginalis has now been joined by two other orchids in Isabellia and we have both of them in our collection.

Anyway, having dealt with the history Isabellia virginalis is a really special species. As well as being tiny with beautiful flowers it grows an unusual net like structure protecting its pseudobulbs. Although we can't find any documented research , the flowers are well presented for humming bird pollination with a large opening to below the column to give access to the nectar and the clearest pink target stripe to help birds find the nectar efficiently.

We didn't come across this species during our travels in the organ mountains but the 1919 report describes it as an epiphyte on trees knowing this habitat well we can assume that the species enjoys cool temperatures and a dryer winter (when it flowers) The terate leaves suggest it grows in good light and so we grow the species high in our cloud forest greenhouse (min 12C) along with its fellow miniature members of the Cattleya family from the Organ Mountains; Isabellia purpurata, Isabellia violacea, Cattleya witigiana and Cattleya coccinea.

These five orchid species remind us of our wonderful times in Brazil as well as making us wonder if we have gone over the top in growing 600 species in our collection.

We have pollinated the flowers shown in the photographs and hopefully will have seedlings in the future.