June 2009: More Favorite Epidendrums

By Thomas Mirenda

Epidendrum cnemidophorum (syn. pfavii) ‘Purple Gum Drop’, CHM/AOS. Grower: Joe and Rosalie Dixler.Photo: Lorraine Heyden.

There’s room for at least one — preferably more — epidendrum in every collection. Sporting an amazing diversity of plant sizes and flower colors, these New World plants offer something for everyone with a passion for unique orchids. In the June 2009 issue of Orchids, I discussed some of my favorite epidendrums. Here, a few more are presented that deserve a closer look.

Epidendrum cnemidophorum(syn. pfavii)
A showy Costa Rican species, this large epiphyte can grow upright leafy canes to 4 feet (1.2 m) capped with beautiful pink and purple flowers in great abundance. Reasonably easy to grow, this species may require more fertilizer than the average epidendrum, but it is well worth the effort. Inflorescences can rebloom so do not cut them off. With age, plants of this species make spectacular specimens.

Epidendrum eburneum
A warm-growing species from Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama, this plant looks very much like the better-known Epidendrum nocturnum and shares its delicious nighttime fragrance. However, the lip on this ivory colored species is different: broader and, some would say, showier. Another epidendrum of easy culture, each terminal inflorescence can have several successive flowers over several months.

Epidendrum escobarianum ‘Cindy’, CCM/AOS. Grower: Darren Norton and Chris Wilson/Mountain Orchids. Photo: Teck H. Hia.

Epidendrum escobarianum
An enchanting twig epiphyte endemic to Colombia, this miniature has beautiful imbricating leaves patterned with maroon bars. The flowers are quite large in proportion to the plant and always seem to appear in pairs. While it is reported to come from warmer habitats, most North American growers having success with this species seem to be from temperate climes, such as the Pacific Northwest, New England and Canada, where year-round cooler temperatures predominate. Despite my near obsessive fascination with Epi. escobarianum, I’ve not been successful with it in Washington, DC.

Epidendrum pseudepidendrum ‘Rudolph’, CHM/AOS. Grower: Woodstream Orchids. Photo: James Osen.

Epidendrum pseudepidendrum
One of the largest, outrageously colorful and variable species from lowland wet forests of Costa Rica and Panama, this plant’s flowers show clear adaptations for hummingbird pollination. Aside from the brilliant red, orange and purple colors on the lip, the labellum is hard, almost like molded plastic, to stand up to the onslaught of sharp hummingbird beaks impaling the flowers. Growing well in wet, intermediate conditions, this is another species that will take more than its share of fertilizer. And even though it comes from a seasonally dry habitat, year-round watering is probably best. Because of its lovely colors, this species has been used in several popular hybrids, most of which have retained the colors but brought down the excessive plant size, which can reach up to 6 feet (1.8 m).

Epidendrum schweinfurthianum
With wonderfully showy flowers of contrasting colors, this species is electric when viewed in person and difficult to capture in a photograph. The fine and rangy reedlike plants are capable of growing to 14 feet (4.2 m) in length in the wild, though it is much better behaved in cultivation. Nonetheless, there should be room in every collection for such a vibrantly colored orchid. Its original home is in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. Epidendrum schweinfurthianum is becoming more common in cultivation.

Epidendrum stamfordianum ‘Rona’, CHM/AOS, a pink-flowered form of the species. Grower: Harold and Rona Goldstein.Photo: Maurice Marietti.

Epidendrum stamfordianum
This lovely and easily grown epidendrum comes in several color forms. It is unique in that its large, arching inflorescences emerge from the base of the previous year’s fusiform (spindle-shaped) pseudobulbs. It has a wide distribution, ranging from Mexico through Central America and northern South America. Plants of Epi. stamfordianum benefit from a brief winter rest period, when they should be given higher light, and less water and fertilizer. — Thomas Mirenda is the orchid collection specialist at the Smithsonian Institution and an AOS accredited judge. He writes monthly for Orchids magazine.