Two of the hard-caned Dendrobium species – D. superbbiens and D. canaliculatum from Australia – make up this worthwhile 1986 hybrid with its striking combination of white, red-lipped flowers. It is a tall-growing plant, leafed along the upper parts of its club-shaped pseudobulbs. The flower spikes arise from the top portion of the newly completed canes in later summer. The plant needs specialist care to address its fast, summer growing season, which is followed by a long resting period. All-year-round light is essential, with full sun in the winter. Warm conditions suit it best!

Flower Size: 2 3/4 inches (7cm) across

Flower Spike: 10 inches (25cm)

Plant Height: 1 foot (30cm)

Pot Size: 4 inches (10cm) long

An attractive hybrid which burst onto the tropical cut-flower scene in 1982, this plant found favor both for floral decoration and the pot-plant trade. The combination of pink and white gives its blooms a fairy-tale appearance, with the added elegance of the East. The six to eight flowers that are born in the fall on each spike will last for around four weeks. This plant and numerous others have all been derived from a very few species, the most dominant of which is D. phalaenopsis from Australia. It was first discovered on one of Captain Cook’s expeditions and became known as the Cooktown orchid. Good all-year-round light is important for successful flowering and production of the season’s growth, which is completed in a comparatively short time. The plant also needs a dry rest during the shortest days.

Flower Size: 2 3/4 inches (7cm) across

Flower Spike: 10 inches (25cm)

Plant Height: 1 foot (30cm)

Pot Size: 4 inches (10cm) long

Raised in Thailand in 1993, this robust and vigorous hybrid combines the best qualities that are sought in this type of orchid. Like most vandas, the plants will bloom at various times of the year, with six blooms to a spike and the flowers lasting for up to six weeks. When gown well, two flowering can be expected in a year. The plants should be housed in slatted wooden baskets, where their extensive aerial roots can spread freely. This makes them unsuitable as houseplants, even in a warm room – they do best in tropical countries, where they are extremely easy. In temperate climates with colder winters these orchids are challenging to grow, although it can be done with care in a warm, humid greenhouse.

Flower Size: 4 inches (10cm) across

Flower Spike: 10 inches (25cm)

Plant Height: 2 feet (60cm)

Basket Size: 4 inches (10cm) long

This vibrantly colored hybrid comes from a long line of vandas bred from species native to India. These include the sky-blue V. coerulea and the cream, beige, and green V. sanderiana (syn. Euanthe sanderiana), both of which are rare in cultivation today. Their place has been taken in collections by the larger-flowered hybrids, which come in a wide range of exciting colors. The flowers are well rounded, with overlapping petals and sepals, and veined over their surface. The plants are fan-shaped, lack pseudobulbs, and produce their flower spikes from the leaf axils mainly during the winter. This hybrid was raised in 1984 in Florida, where vandas grow best – they are easy to grow in all tropical areas. In temperate climates they are challenging and need extra care, but will reward you with flowers that last four to five weeks: all-year-round light, high temperatures, and humidity are essential for growth and flowering. In Southeast Asia these orchids are grown in their teams of thousands for the cut-flower trade.

Flower Size: 3 1/2 inches (9cm) across

Flower Spike: 9 inches (23cm)

Plant Height: 2 feet (60cm)

Basket Size: 4 inches (10cm) long

This is a warm-growing, hard-caned Dendrobium that, when given sufficient light, will produce sprays of pretty flowers from the top of the elongated pseudobulb throughout the sprint. The blooms will last for a good four weeks. Various colors from white and pale pink, through mauve to dark purple have all been derived from species native to Australia. This exceptional hybrid from 1992 borders on the elusive blue. Extremely popular it is grown worldwide for the pot-plant and cut-flower trade. However, an amateur can re-flower these orchids with the right conditions in a greenhouse: provide good light all year round and maximum temperatures in the warm range where possible. Keep the plants moist while they are growing, but allow them to dry out in the winter.

Flower Size: 2 inches (5cm) across

Flower Spike: 10-15 inches (25-38cm)

Plant Height: 8 inches (20cm)

Pot Size: 5 inches (12cm) long

Within the huge genus Bulbophyllum are some of the weirdest of orchids. The species all come from the Old World and vary enormously in size and design. Jersey, raised on the island of the same name in the Channel Islands in 1996, is one of a very few hybrids, and it produces large, stunning flowers with a high gloss overlaying the intricately veined sepals. The small lip at the center of the bloom is typical of the genus and the petals are neatly folded back. The flowers are carried singly on drooping flower spikes throughout summer, and they will last for about three weeks. The plant produces rounded pseudobulbs with a single thick leaf. It is fairly easy to grow but be careful not to overwater in the winter while it is at rest.

Flower Size: 7 inches (18cm) across

Flower Spike: 10 inches (25cm)

Plant Height: 10 inches (25cm)

Pot Size: 6 inches (15cm) long

This is a fancy new hybrid raised in 1991 within the Oncidium alliance, from which come so many fine and varied plants for indoor growing. It combines Cochlioda, Miltonia, Odontoglossum, and Oncidium. An exciting and colorful hybrid, it produces a tall, branching flower spike with a scattering of numerous flowers gaily patterned in red, yellow, and white. The plant is strong and robust, and has pseudobulbs similar to a true Odontoglossum. It needs to be grown cool and because of its complex breeding requires a bit more understanding than other hybrids within this alliance. Flowering time varies, but you can expect this plant to bloom for up to six weeks as the latest pseudobulb begins to mature and swell.

Flower Size: 2 inches (5cm) across

Flower Spike: 2 feet (60cm)

Plant Height: 1 foot (30cm)

Pot Size: 5 inches (12cm) long

Of all the variants found among the orchids, one of the most curious genera is Stanhopea. This species, found in 1764 in Central and South America, is typical of the genus with its four to six huge, expressive blooms held underneath the plant on a vertical flower spike. The heavily spotted petals and sepals are drawn back to expose the waxy lip and column. At the base of the lip are two dark “eyes” which guide the pollinating insect. These extraordinary blooms will only last for three days, during which time they emit a strong perfume. The plant has pseudobulbs that produce a solitary, tough broad leaf; it also makes a strong root system. Like Stanhopea Assidensis, this orchid will suit most indoor temperatures but needs to be grown in a slatted wooden basket suspended in good light!

Flower Size: 4 inches (10cm) across

Flower Spike: 6 inches (15cm)

Plant Height: 1 foot (30cm)

Basket Size: 6 inches (15cm)

Among the remarkable stanhopeas there are very few hybrids, and the species are still the most often grown. This is one of those rare hybrids, raised in Britain in 1922, and is a cross between two species, S. wardii and S. tigrina. Both parents originate from Central America, and the hybrid exhibits characteristics from each. It has the classical Stanhopea shape, the flowers being almost bat-like, with the lip and column held apart from the petals and sepals. The coloring is rich yellow overlaid with red spotting. When grown on large plants several flower spikes with up to six blooms per spike can be produced in one summer season, greatly extending the flowering period from a few days to several weeks. This orchid will suit most indoor temperatures but needs to be suspended in good light. Do not water when dormant. Like all stanhopeas, it must be grown in a hanging slatted basket to accommodate the flower spike that burrows through the potting mix to emerge underneath or at the side. Orchids are full of surprises!

Flower Size: 5 inches (12cm) across

Flower Spike: 4 inches (10cm)

Plant Height: 1 foot (30cm)

Basket Size: 6-8 inches (20-25cm)

Belonging to the largest genus of orchid, this pretty plant carries its small, neat yellow flowers in a dense raceme reminiscent of a fir cone. Its pungent scent suggests pollination by fruit flies. Their origins are somewhat obscure, but it holds a place among the smaller-growing, small-flowered collectibles and is desirable for its relative ease of growing. It produces small, rounded pseudobulbs with a single leaf and densely packed flowers that last two to three weeks in early spring. This orchid will grow in a small pot under cool conditions, or it can be grown on a piece of cork bark, which, if left alone for many years, it will cover with a solid ball of pseudobulbs and leaves!

Flower Size: 1/2 inch (1cm) across

Flower Spike: 6 inches (15cm)

Pot Size: 4 inches (10cm)