Identification

[Townsville]

This is a great site - I have learned a lot - thanks.

I have just acquired a couple of orchids that are not in flower. They were identified only as "Dancing Lady" and "Papillon". Could anyone tell me what type of orchids these are so I know how to care for them? Thanks.

Townsville

[agarrat]

maybe you can describe the plants for us....I think the dancing lady is an oncidium

[Townsville]

Thanks - have done so.

The first two are Dancing Lady. Mature leaves look strappy - like my terrestials. The young spike is fairly smooth, but the spent one is striated. New shoots are coming from (apparently) the ground - like a new bulb shooting.

The third attachment is Papillon. It is part of a very recently divided plant. The new spike is smooth - the old one slightly striated.

Many thanks for your response.

Townsville
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[Daniel S. Barrett]

I think it's Onc. Gower Ramsey that's refered to as "Dancing Lady" .

[Daniel S. Barrett]

the last one looks predominately Cattleya. but, it could be cross bred with another type of orchid.

[Daniel S. Barrett]

"papillion" is french for "butterfly", which is probably the varieties name.

[jerrymeola]

Onc Grower Ramsey (yellow flower) is usually refereed to as dancing lady. Oncidium Taka is also refereed to as dancing lady. They are so similar that you can not tell them apart from the flowers. There are dozens of Oncidium and hybrids that have this size and shape of flower. Colors can vary from yellow to reds and everything in-between,



A popular red is Sharry Baby the Chocolate Orchid since it smells like chocolate.

[jerrymeola]

Papillon is indeed the butterfly orchid. It has some very unique characteristics. The leaves and bulb grow much like Oncidium but the flower stem will get to be about 3 feet long with a single butterfly shaped orchid on the end.

Do not ever cut the stem, once it starts blooming, because it is a sequential bloomer producing a new flower on the same stem for years on end. 3-5 years of continuous flowers is common.

It is a highly desired collectors orchid. Not as showy as some but fabulous in its own way.

[Townsville]

Thanks to you all

Townsville

[prisana]

Wait a minute, why are there a lot of butterfly orchids out there? Some of the Epidendrum, Oncidium, and Encyclia are some of the genera that bear the name "butterfly". I think they are trying to purposly confuse me. I don't know how they go about naming all these plants.

[Cynthia, Prescott, AZ]

Jerry, I think you are confussing papillon with papilio, which is as you describe above. The third picture is clearly in the Cattleya family. There is a Brassocattleya Papillon registered, but I couldn't find any reference to it on the internet.

[Townsville]

If it's any help, on both of my 'papillons' the new spike is brown from the bottom to the first node - looks a healthy brown. The old spike on one has flattened somewhat; on the other it is less flat but quite hairy. I repotted both as soon as I got them home - not a lot of root down there, and looked as though it had had too much water. I put them in a dendrobium mix - they seem to be very healthy.

Townsville

[Cynthia, Prescott, AZ]

These are not called spikes. Spikes are what grow on Phals and are just part of the blooming apparatus. What you have on a Cattleya are 'new growth' and 'pseudobulb' (that verticle portion below the leaf). If a Cattleya is going to bloom, it will usually produce what is called a sheath. This is a thin double leaf structure that forms an envelope for the buds, is much shorter than the leaf, and comes out of the pseudobulb inside the folded leaf. The portion that has gone brown in your picture is just some temporary sheathing tissue that protects the more permanent parts of the plant. You can expect more of this tissue to turn brown soon.

[Townsville]

Thanks again

Townsville