Maxillaria sophronitis has been the most popular purchase from our shop since it opened on April 20th and so it seems a good idea to add plants of our most reliable and easy to grow Maxillaria – Maxillaria preastans (below)

The species, from Mexico and Central America, is found between 1500 and 2000m altitude in humid evergreen forest and we find that it grows well both cool in Cool Americas (min 12C) and warm in Warm Americas (min 15C) as long as it is kept well watered throughout the year. We have seen the species in the wild in Costa Rica growing in the lush wet forests on the slopes of the Poaz volcano.

Single flowers are produced from the base of bulbs in summer and are large and showy with a distinctive black lip. Several flowers are produced from each bulb over a period of a few months making this a straight forward and rewarding species to grow. The flowers are long lasting.

The plants available are just showing buds from the base of the new growths and will be flowering in a couple of weeks.

Helpfully, I was sent a photo by Agnes today showing her Maxillaria sophronitis which is growing very successfully on her dining room windowsill where she keeps it well watered throughout the year.

We are always glad to see your orchids and where you grow them.