Restrepia trichoglossa
 

I really like this little plant, and as a beginner I find it undemanding and rewarding.
I currently grow it outside, since inside the buds started blasting. I persume because of the warm nights inside. it has now two flowers, a bud, and three new growths. It sprouts new buds and flowers practically every month.
I also like it because i tend to overwater, this one does not seem to mind it a bit, so i dont have to hold back :)

Very nice! It kind of looks like a flame :)

Nice! I've only grown Restrepia in pots. Nice to see that they also bloom on mounts. I know in the wild they are epiphytes, but I assumed the water demands would be too great to grow them "in captivity" without a greenhouse or terrarium.

Want!! That is such a cool little bloom

Well it's a cute little bugger.

It's blooming again, this is it's second bloom since the last pictures were taken.
It has another bud, it had two, but one was apparently eaten. The flower also shows some signs of being dinner for some creature - the tentacles (petals) are short and uneven...
It's getting cooler now here, and the plant is responding well, growth is faster and flowers last longer (in high summer they wilted in a day, this one s still strong after 3 days). Nighttime temperatuers are around 10°C, daytime depends on rain between 13 to 22°C, relative humidity is high.
This has proven to be a resiliant little plant. It survived being forgotten :blushing: in full sun without any visible damage.

Look what i found:
Attachment 129008
It's a capsule!
Since I'm reasonably sure natural pollinators are absent from the region, I wonder how did it come to this.
Three options come to mind:
1. flower fertilised itself, as some orchids do
2. a native insect species fertilised it,
3. a physical shock (like a fall) disloged the pollinia

none of the options seems particularly likely,
1. restrepias are generally speaking not very self-compatible, so they likely do not have mechanisms that make that possible?
the other two seem even more unlikely, i cant find any paper referring to the pollinator so i can not check if we have something similar, and the chances of the pollinia falling out and then falling on the stigma (of the same flower) are small, i imagine, if it's even possible?

Lucky you!

If it were mine, I would see how long that pod stays viable. If there are no other Restrepias blooming nearby, it must be self-pollinated somehow (with or without the help of an insect). It would be fun to flask the seeds!

Yeah, I am quite certain, that there aren't many Restrepias in my area
i will try to flask the pod, if it reaches maturity... I'll see how it goes. As it has another flurry of flowers coming and the conditions are stable, and if i get another pod...