What is the difference between Miltonias and Miltoniopsis?

[potato_masher1986]

Could anyone tell me what the difference is between a Miltoniopsis and a Miltonia please. I have one at home that was a reject from work. I have had it for just over three years and it has never flowered since =( I thought I was going to loose it at first because all the bulbs but one turned to brown smush. I cut them off, and hoped it would survive. It has now got 6 psuedobulbs on it, and is developing more, but still hasn't produced a spike, so I have no idea what colour it is, or what shape the flower is or anything.
Fingers crossed...

[Cynthia, Prescott, AZ]

The plants come from different locations. I think Miltoniopsis come from S. America and Miltonia come from Mexico (Central A.?).

My understanding:

Miltonia) Intermediate growing and the plants walk across your pot top rather rapidly. The bulbs are separated by a noticeable section of rhizome. Medium light.

Miltoniopsis) A little cooler growing, I have mine on the floor of the GH, and the bulbs are very closely packed with no noticeable section of rhizome in between. Low light like Phals.

This is what I use as cultural norms for my species, others may do it differently. And hybrids may vary a bit from this. Cynthia

[Kev]

I asked this question once on another forum because it was confusing to me too. If you have a true species, that isn't as much of a problem. The distinction between the two is pretty much as Cynthia has outlined. If you have a hybrid, things can get very confusing because there can be both Miltonia and Miltoniopsis in a particular cross. You really have to do a lot of searching to figure that out.

The way it was explained to me was that almost all the hybrid stuff out there is referred to as Miltoniopsis unless it is a true Miltonia hybrid that definitely contains no Miltoniopsis species. In other words, if you have a hybrid Milt chances are it will be called Miltoniopsis. It may be a hybrid of Miltoniopsis species or it could contain both Miltonia and Miltoniopsis. It's still referred to as a Miltoniopsis hybrid.

Like I said, that was the way it was explained to me. Make sense?

[potato_masher1986]

Originally Posted by Cynthia, Prescott, AZ

the bulbs are very closely packed with no noticeable section of rhizome in between.

That sounds like it. Thanks