Orchid of the Week

9th November 2026 - Aerangis biloba

A night time treat athe the nursery this week is the strong scent of this moth pollinated orchid African orchid.

Aerangis biloba is native to Central and West Africa where it grows in deep shade in woodland up to 700m altitude. The large leaves are a deep green again indicating a plant that enjoys low light levels.

We have explored Aerangis habitats in Rwanda and South Africa and in both we have found Aerangis species growing low in tree which reflects adaptions to cope with dry periods where shaded sites offer a little more moisture.

Aerangis biloba's name refers to the unequally bilobed leaves ( a character it actually shares with many Aerangis species) and even when not in flower the species makes an attractive plant.

We grow Aerangis biloba indoors in our modified Ikea display cases alongside Phalaenopsis species with a minimum room temperature os 17C although the day time grow lights increase day time temperature a little. We water well throughout the year but use a very open course bark compost.

Most Aerangis species are compact plants that produce impressive flowers and we would not be without our them in our collection.

The flowers have relatively short spurs (just 3-4cm) that contain the nectar for pollinating moths and plants are very free flowering. We find that this species is easy to grow from seed and de-flasks well straight onto mounts.

5th November 2026 - Cymbidium dayanum var. angustifolium

The star orchid this week is our stock plant of Cymbidium dayanum var. angustifoilum. This elegant little cymbidium makes a very straight forward house plant and we grow the species near a south facing window amongst other orchids (photo 2).

Cymbidium dayanum var. angustifolium is endemic to Borneo where it grows in warm lowland forest on Mount Kinabalu (Sabah). The habitat here is wet throughout the year and the species is reported growing low down on trees in evergreen forest.

We grow the species warm and wet throughout the year and find it flowers at any time during the year reflecting its natural habitat's lack of clear seasons.

Not surprisingly the species is also tolerant of shade and the plant shown here flourishes on a north facing windowsill.

In our opinion this species is the cymbidium best suited to growing as a house plant with its small stature and dranatic flowers. We also find the flowers are much longer lasting than the more usual and larger Cymbidium dayanum variety.

We find the species easy to grow from seed and and we have seedlings from this plant available on our ETSY shop.

2nd November 2026 - Cattleya cinnabarina

We have seen this dramatic orchid flowering in Brazil at around 1000m where we found it growing on a granite rock slope amongst stunted shrivelled grasses. It was flowering in the dry season where the habitat experiences very little rain. Without the protection of forest the rock slope has hot bright days but cool nights. In the wet season the rock slope would frequently run with water and the Cattleya's roots hold plants firm against the rock.

In cultivation we provide conditions similar to the Brazilian rock slope by growing plants mounted on cork and growing right at the top of our cloud forests greenhouse. The single leaves turn purple in the summer sun just like the ones we found in the wild. We hardly water plants at all from November to March.

The bright orange colour of the flowers shows that these species are hummingbird pollinated. This also explains why the flowers are held well clear of the leaves.

A stunning species.

1st November 2026 - Gomesa forbesii

Autumn has finally arrived with a few cooler nights and misty days. In the greenhouse our dry season flowering species are beginning to flower making November to April (Winter dry season in many tropical habitats) our peak flowering season.

One of the first on the scene every autumn is Gomesa forbesii. This beautiful orchid, previously known as Oncidium forbesii, is a species we have seen growing in Brazil during expeditions to South East Brazil in 2000 and 2006.

We found it growing at around 1100m on the tops of branches in good light on trackside trees in both primary forests and established secondary forest.

The species flowers on young plants with just one or two flowers and then as plants mature and pseudobulbs get bigger flowers spikes can reach 70cm long with up to thirty flowers.

The plant shown was purchased in flask in 2006 and has flowered reliably every autumn/winter since starting flowering just three years out of flask. We have used this plant as a seed source and have seedlings flourishing in flask (photo 2) and we expect to have seedlings for sale in about 12 months time.

We find that the species does well in baskets or pots of course bark and over time they produce a mass of roots as do plants in the wild. We grow the species happily in the roof of our Cloud Forest Glasshouse which is not a surprise as we found it growing in exposed spots close to cloud forest.

The Brazilian Oncidiums such as this species have recently been moved into the genus Gomesa based on DNA analysis which we have followed. We use Plants of the World Online https://powo.science.kew.org/ as a reference for keeping names up to date.

23rd October 2026 - Bulbophyllum speciosum

These wonderful flowers 6cm across belong to Bulbophyllum speciosum. The species is native to evergreen forest in Papua New Guinea from 600 to 1200m altitude and we find that the species does well both warm (indoors) or in our cloud forest greenhouse (min 12C).

We water plants throughout the year as they are almost always in growth, and grow plants shaded as they do not need high light to flower well (reflecting their naturally shaded habitat). The moss visible on the mount has arrived naturally as a result of our heavy watering.

The specimen shown is mounted although we find plants do equally well in pots

The flowers are bourn singly on thin stems from both the leading bulbs cand older bulbs and produce multiple stems that give a long flowering period every autumn - a gorgeous small orchid that we find straight forward to grow

21st October 2026 - Masdevallia guayanesis

Masdevallia guayanensis is not only found in Guyana but across the North Easst of South America from Venezuela to Northern Brazil. It is recorded from cool mountain forests at around 1800-1900m where it experiences rainfall throughout the year.

In cultivation we find that it enjoys growing mounted in fairly bright light providing it is well watered.

The flowers of Masdevallia guyanensis are long lasting and elegant on their long stems which are generally a little pendulous. Plants are compact with leaves around 6cm long making this a really attractive species.

We have been growing the species for more than 20 years and plants are quite slow to bulk up but it is well worth the wait. Flowering is very strongly seasonal and all our plants flower together every October.

19th October 2026 - Octomeria crassifolia

A regular autumn flowerer in our cloud forest greenhouse is the beautiful Octomeria crassifolia. We have always grown the species as Octomeria densiflora (restricted to Brazil and Argentina) but it is now considered synonymous with O. crassifolia which is more widespread across South America.

The beautiful yellow flowers always remind us of a wonderful April exploring Brazilian cloud forest.

Octomeria crassifolia is native to the Mata Atlantica cool cloud forests of Brazil and a species we found near Macae de Cima on our expeditions to Brazil in 2000 and 2006 at around 1300m altitude.

The lemon yellow flowers have a red lip, and are small (about 1cm across) but are produced in profusion. The grey-green thick leaves are also very attractive.

Our plants come from a flask purchased from Equatorial Plants in 2001 (just after our first trip to Brazil) and enjoy becoming large specimens especially mounted on cork bark like this plant.

We grow plants near the middle of our cloud forest greenhouse (min 12C) with good light but plenty of water throughout the year.

16th October 2026 - Stelis nexipous

Stelis nexipous is one of our larger flowered Stelis species remarkable for its deep wine red almost black flowers. Stelis nexipous is one of our more floriferous stelis species and plants produce masses of upright flower stems each autumn and the flowers are very long lasting.

The species is quite large for a stelis with leaves up to 20cm long and flower spikes up to 30cm long.

The name ‘nexipous’ means duck’s foot and describes the shape of the flowers which is unlike any other stelis in our collection - though we think it looks more like a ducks beak!. The dense spikes are secund (all the flowers facing one way) giving a dramatic display that lasts for several months.

The species is native to Ecuador and Peru where it is found in forests from 700-2400m and so it is less of a cloud forest specialist than some of the genus, resulting in a strong rooting plant and robust species to grow.

We grow the species among our other Stelis in our Cloud Forest Greenhouse (min 12C) with plenty of water and summer shade.

We have been growing Stelis nexipous for more than 20 years and always look forward to its flowering, Divisions of the plan shown are regulars on our ETSY shop.

15th October 2026 - Lepanthopsis prolifera

It seems that this has become miniatures week at Isle of Portland Orchids. Lepanthopsis prolifera is one of our smallest flowered orchids. You have to look carefully to notice the little spikes of dark red flowers a little more than 1mm across but in compensation the little flowers are delightful and the species flowers throughout the year.

The species is endemic to North Eastern Colombia but arrived in the our collection as a ‘weed’ on Pleurothallis sclerophylla. We first spotted a couple of tiny leaves on the mount of the Pleuorthallis, the leaves multiplies and have now produced many offspring.

Flowers are produced in sprays on a 1cm spike and usually line up back to back so that flowers look two ways.

From our experience this miniature is easy to grow mounted or in a small pot when kept cool and wet. We regularly have plants on our ETSY shop.

14th October 2026 - Stelis hirtella

We have another mini miniature today with Stelis hirtella, our smallest stelis species.

Our syock plants have now developed into little specimens 4cm across with multiple 3cm flower spikes that will be flowering until christmas with their enchanting little flowers. The sepals have a hairy surface that gives the species its name.

Stelis hirtalla is a cloud forest species endemic to Ecuador end enjoys cool conditions in our cloud forests greenhouse (min 12C) and plenty of water thoughout the year. In common with most of our mini miniatures we grow the species mounted where it will grow very happily on it cork bark home for many years.

This month we have reduced the shading on our greenhouses and the Cloud forest greenhouse now has just one layer of 40% shade net allowing our little gems like this species to enjoy the winter light.

12th October 2026 - Barbosella dusenii

In contrast to yesterday's large flowered Brazilian orchid we have a tiny Brazilian orchid today in Barbosella dusenii.

The leaves of Barbosella dusenii are just are a few mm long (the smallest leaves of any of our 650 species) and are produced on a creeping rhizome that over time covers the cork mounts we grow them on. The delicate flowers are surprisingly large for the size of the leaves and are produced a couple of times every year with a main flowering in the Autumn.

We grow the species mounted which it clearly enjoys and avoids the threat of the plant becoming smothered in moss in a pot.

The species is native to the Brazillian coastal cloud forests at around 1000m that we have explored on our expeditions where the wet season (summer) is rainy and the dry season (winter) is still damp due to heavy mists and dew. We replicate these conditions in our cloud forest greenhouse by hanging plants low down in the greenhouse and spraying daily throughout the year and twice a day in hot summers like 2026. We keep a winter minimum of 12C.

Despite their fragile appearance we find Barbosellas straight forward and resiliant to grow and we have never lost a Barbosella species in our collection.

We have two species of Barbosella including Barbosella dusenii on our ETSY shop

11th October 2026 - Cattleya perrinii (Laelia perrinii)

Several of our favourite Brazilian orchids flower in the autumn months and Cattleya perrinii 'alba' has just opened its large sparkling white flowers.

Cattleya perrinii is a species we have been lucky enough to see in Brazil where it is native to the Organ Mountains near the Atlantic Coast in Rio State. At that time it was included in Laelia.

Richard Warren who hosted our trips to Brazil in the early 2000's has explored the habitats of this lovely orchid and found it growing both as a lithophyte at 600m where plants experience bright light and a six month dry season, and as a mid tree epiphyte at 400m in semi shade and with rainfall throughout the year.

The habitat data suggests plants are not too fussy and we find plants flourish indoors (in warmth) and near a bright window (see plant in our bedroom near a south facing window -picture 2). In common with several closely related species (once Brazillian Laelias) plants produce relatively few fat roots and the key to success in cultivation seems to be looking after these roots with good drainage and no slugs!

As well as the 'albe' variety with have seedlings in the lab of the normal coloured form (photo 4 shows parent plant) and look forward to having those available in about 12 months.

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