I am really enjoying a feast of Masdevallias this week. The first of our Masdevallia coccinea clones has just opened (above) and we are still enjoying species we featured earlier in the year such as Masdevallia lucernula and Masdevallia decumana (below)

Most of our Masdevallias bloom over an extended period and we will have Masdevallia coccinea in flower from now until August.

Masdevallia coccinea is a very rewarding species and produces masses of large brightly coloured flowers in a range of colours including white, yellow, red and pink. It comes from Colombia and Peru where it grows in cool wet forest up to 3000m altitude. The long flower spikes hold the flowers well clear of the leaves for its humming bird pollinator. Our first clone to flower is always this slightly smaller growing light pink form. It benefits from being a good grower and producing lots of flower spikes.

We grow all of our Masdevallia coccineas in baskets and find that they enjoy the moist conditions and excellent drainage allowing the thick roots to flourish. Baskets also keep plants inaccessible from slugs and snails that are very partial to the root tips and new growths.