Christmas carols are full of references to the Virgin Mary but at the orchid project it is Isabellia virginalis that gets the attention. This is one of Issy’s favourite orchids – after all it seems to be named after her! Actually a lot of us claim Isabellia virginalis as one of our favourite orchids. This […]

Our most spectacular Cymbidium this Christmas is this long spikes delicate flowered species from the Himalayas. This Cymbidium is one of the many found in the Sikkim Himalaya and students on our school expeditions to Sikkim have seen this graceful species growing in large evergreen trees  at around 2000m altitude around Gangtok and in Southern […]

We are indebted to our Partner Scientist, Tengku, for this fantastic article in the Malaysian press giving details of the reintroduction trails for Dendrobium anosmum in Sarawak. The Photos include a photo of Jess and Otto with sustainable palm oil farmer, Wilson, amongst his trees. It is an honour to be able to do our […]

  It is the 25th and I would like to take the opportunity to wish all our followers a very happy Christmas and successful growing in 2020. Visiting the greenhouse on Christmas morning always feels a treat (despite the lack of the usual orchid elves!) and takes me back to all the Christmas days I […]

  With Christmas nearly upon us I thought I would find something in Christmas colours – The red flowers of Pleurothallis restrepiodes are more akin to the colour of mulled wine than Santa’s outfit but this orchid is definitely a seasonal favourite. This large growing Pleurothallis produces masses of large flowers every winter and early […]