Pine Cay in the Turks & Caicos Islands (just east of Cuba) is one of our favorite places to vacation. It is privately owned with just a 13 room resort. There are no cars, TV, radios, etc. and the most perfect beach you've ever seen.
When we go in January, the Encylia altissima are in bloom. It's really interesting to see the color variation (from almost lemon yellow to dark brown and with various maroon patterns on the lip. There also seems to be 2 flowering patterns; one with larger but fewer flowers spaced apart; and one with smaller more closely packed and numerous flowers.
As you can see in the photos the leaves are about 12 inches tall and shaded/protected by other plants. The spikes are 6 feet or more and open to full sun.
The guy in the photo for scale is my husband.
We ever we go on vacation, we try to find local orchids whenever we can.
Encyclia altissima in the Turks & Caicos Islands
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