Barbata means ‘bearded’ and the bearded coelogyne is a truly spectacular thing. This plant has been growing in Cool Asia since 1998 and is rapidly becoming a specimen plant. This year there are eleven spikes each with about ten large flowers. The dark brown ‘beard’ on the lip is probably an evolutionary adaption to […]

This small growing Masdevallia species is found in cloud forests in Ecuador and Peru from 1200-1550m altitude and so is well suited to conditions in our Cool Americas section (min 12C) where it grows in a basket that is kept well watered throughout the year and shaded. This is one of a charming group of […]

This week has been orchid planting week at the Rain Forest Biome at Eden and Hettie and her team have been planting an Orchid Wall near the entrance to the biome with the help of Jess, Issy and their parents. Plants used include many of the orchids supplied by the Orchid Project last year and […]

This Aerangis species is found right across central and east Africa where it grows in woodland and copes with seasonal dry periods by storing water in its thick roots which form an extensive root system over time. It has grey green, waxy leaves also evolved to reduce water loss. The large waxy flowers have 16cm spurs. […]

We have had this warm growing species native to southern China and Vietnam in our collection for sixteen years and the plant produces a single flower spike each autumn with large delicate flowers. The leaves are thin and terete suggesting a dryish natural habitat although it is reported to grow on mossy conifers in open but […]