Cyp Kentucky Maxi in flower

[RosieC]

Another hybrid from Garden Orchids, who use trade names for their orchids. Cyp Kentucky Maxi is suspected to be kentuckiense x fasciolatum according to the grower I bought this from. Whatever it is I'm really liking it

The flowers are much larger than the Paville I posted recently. Both of them seemed to take a week or so to lift the dorsal after the bud first opened, the last picture shows the third flower on this where the dorsal is still lifting.

The two front flowers both come from the same growth, which seems to be a double growth, the base of the stem looks like two stems so close together they are merging, then the leaf two below the flowers has a double tip as though it's two leaves 80% overlapping. Then the stem splits properly into two and there are two flowers at the top. I didn't notice this until we were taking the pics, I had assumed it was two stems that were flowering.

The pouch has is an interesting shape, not sure if it's clear in the photos. It looks to be flattened in one direction.

Again credit to hubby for the photos.

[cbuchman]

Rosie gorgeous plants to great photo credits to your husband!

[ronaldhanko]

Gorgeous, Rosie. Reminds me a bit of Cyp. montanum. You really do well with these.

[silken]

Gorgeous slippers and photos!

[RosieC]

Thanks Carrie, Ron & Silken.

I really love my Cyps

[WhiteRabbit]

WOW! These are beautiful! Very good growing!

[RosieC]

Thanks Sonya

[jrodpad]

Just beautiful. Do these need a crazy cold and dry winter?

-J

[flexdc]

Rosie just amazing! I heard Cyp. Are very finicky and requires special soil conditions. Can you enlighten us on what is your secret in groaning these?
Andrew

[RosieC]

Originally Posted by jrodpad

Just beautiful. Do these need a crazy cold and dry winter?

-J

We get freezing temps, sometimes just a few days in the winter, this winter we had a couple of week long periods including one in March which was rather late, the snow from that hung around a couple of weeks or more. In this country we are advised to cover them in the winter. I grow them in pots so because that means there is no ground water seeping to them I water on slightly warmer days about once a month.

I did find in March that the medium was frozen solid on them even though they had not been watered in weeks. I was worried as it was close to growing time so moved them into my greenhouse which is a minimum of 5C but I was later told that was not necessary.

Originally Posted by flexdc

Rosie just amazing! I heard Cyp. Are very finicky and requires special soil conditions. Can you enlighten us on what is your secret in groaning these?
Andrew

I think the cold is a big key to them not being finicky, but they also like a very open well draining soil. I don't have that here, so grow them in large pots with a mixture of linestone chips and fine bark which I buy from the same place I buy the plants. They like to be kept reasonably wet but well drained so I water every couple of days but in the tubs they never sit in water.

I understand that when growing they like a lot of fertiliser so I fertilise weakly on most waterings.