The Dark Side of Orchids

Images of "Black" Orchids

Maxillaria schunkeana is the closest I've ever seen. See image in Cumulus DB.

see also: http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/orchid_gardening/21561

Black flowers are, for many, the unicorns of the orchid world... mythical beasts with an entire cadre of stories, hopes, and dreams built around the possibility of their existence.

Can an Orchid Conjure Evil?

For centuries, flower enthusiasts, poets, and the merely maudelin have all sought a truly black flower -- the kind you'd expect to find growing in a cemetery. When the orchid craze struck Europe during the 19th century, there was a great deal of speculation about the potential discovery of a black orchid, yet it proved as elusive as the black tulips people had been trying to breed for many years.

Alas, no truly black flower of any kind has ever been described.

But despair not (even that is your natural inclination). Thankfully for all the Depeche Mode loving Goths, Edgar Allen Poe fans, and turtlenecked, beret-wearing Bitnicks in the gardening crowd, there are some orchids that are so dark, they are worthy of being described as "black." In fact, most of them are alluring enough that you may want to get a couple, even if you've never secretly wanted to be a vampire or particularly thought of yourself as a fan of the macabre.

The Original "Black Orchid"

Coelogyne pandurata.

e black tulips, black orchids are flowers of the imagination. A few species of orchids have acquired the name "Black Orchid" by virtue of their very dark intense colour, while not black, which tends to the dark brown and maroon.

One of the these is the Australian native orchid, Cymbidium canaliculatun var Sparkesii, a form that is a rich intense dark maroon, with a touch of white and dark purple on the labellum. A species of the drier open eucalyptus forest, it grows high in the trees from hollow branches and crevices. Sparkesii, a pseudobulbous species, with stiff channelled leaves, a grower of the dry hot forest, requires a deep pot with a typical cymbidium media, lots of sunlight and maximum air ventilation. The spikes are produced in numbers and bear many deep maroon flowers which are fragrant. During the cooler part of the year, the plants need to be kept on the dry side.

The Original "Black Orchid" is an entirely dfferent type of orchid.

Trichoglottis brachiata ( or philippinense var brachiata) is an erect monopodial species that likes to climb. The plant will produce side shoots and grow into a specimen, with many flowers produced at the nodes along the stem. Each flower is up to 5 cm across, a rich velvety dark maroon, the lip prominently marked purple. The flowers are fragrant and long lived.

The best results are had by having it grow up a piece of treefern or similar totem, as the new roots are always produced from the stem below the new leaves, so repotting into a pot or basket without a climbing support will not benefit the plant.

An open media in a basket or slotted pot is best, a sunny spot and plenty of water and fertiliser when in growth will produce the best flowering. It is a tropical plant.

Another species from the Borneo and Philippines region is Grammangis stapelliflora ( or Grammatophyllum stapelliflorum). This is a small growing bulbous plant much like Grammatophyllum scriptum. but the spikes are pendulous and bear a number of dark, chocolate maroon to red brown flowers.

The flowers are up to 4 or 5 cm long, heavy textured. The species is tropical so requires a warm sunny place, a Cymbidium type media and a well drained basket or pot. At the start of new growth, copius water and fertiliser will encourage the flower spikes. After flowering a rest period is needed. Photos; see web page.

With a little imagination, any collection would be enhanced with these beautiful species, their colors and character so different.

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