Hello my dear readers,
I decided to write this article because of first of all my
own experiences and then your own.
Statistically guessing on this world there will be at least
5 or maybe 10 people wondering what is the difference between the complex
hybrid and the American hybrid, and then there will be another 5 wondering why
their American hybrid from this shop isn’t the same as their best friends from
another one.
Gezz… such confusion in the sentence alone! But be brave my
friends you are not alone.
First of all let’s recall what are Pahiopedilum orchids?
Besides being outstandingly beautiful, alien and exotic they are also quite
complex and different from the normal Phal. We may encounter in Tesco or other
big store. They are terrestrial orchids growing on the bottom layer of the
forest floor, preferring shadier positions with good humidity and quite a lot
moisture.
They are very much different from other orchid species as
their labellum has in time changed into a pouch shape to capture flies and by a
path of hair like growths to the depository of the pollen. Furthermore
Pahiopedilum orchids are one of few that only can be propagated by germination
alone, not unlike like most commercial orchids by cloning. Therefore these
orchids will be more genetically variate than their cousins which are pure
closes of one plant.
Most large stores and nurseries have signed contract to
receive orchids specially breed for one purpose, attract potential customers.
Most of them will be so heavily hybridized to achieve the ‘wow’ effect there
will be little or no resemblance to their grandparents.
The problem with these is that sometimes these wondrous
plants have a very mixed up and untraceable pedigree, however when it comes to
the classical American Hybrid the growers on most occasions use the same paths
to grow plants with similar configuration of characteristics. Sometimes adding
or taking out some things to “modernize” the look of the flowers.
Classical style American Hybrid.
As noticed above the flowers tend to bare reddish or brownish/dark yellow tones with a lot of defined marking which add to the attractiveness of the flower. Furthermore the flowers tend to quite big up to 9 inches across sometimes.
There is also a Europe styled version of the American Hybrid which is called often Prins Paphiopedilum, which looks quite similar. I had read on one of the orchid forums some opinion of their genetic parenthood of being : Paph. insigne 50%, spicerianum 32.8%, villosum 10.9%, druyi 4.7%, anc boxallii 1.6% - and plus something else?
Now when it comes to Complex Hybrids, well it's a totally different story. They come in beautiful, curious and horrible but all paphiopedilum's which have more than 3 different species in them can become classified as Complex Hybrids.
As seen above the Complex Hybrids come in various different forms in colors with different coloration and marking.
The growing popularity of the complex hybrid is both is advantage and it's curse. These hybrids seem to be more resilient and seem to fare better in the modern homes with the central heating and will surely reward a patient orchid lower with their vigorous growth. However, probably most of these hybrids never were recorder when and how and what kind of parentage it has. Once these are sold somebody will produce a new hybrid and something we have seen one year may not be available in 2 years or more if it's not really popular.
It's a shame that the mass market has kind of killed the beauty of creating valuable orchid plants that are worth finding and most of the Complex Hybrids which are really recorded can get really pricey but won't represent anything worth attention.
Where is the main title Slipper Wars part you will ask? Ah well imagine (yes, imagine it now!) you are 800 miles away in a foreign country and buy a paphiopedilum complex hybrid and bring it here and one of your friends buy same paphiopedilum in the local nursery and ... well the same paphiopedilum is not the same, the name is the same but the flowers will be different. Bigger, smaller, double, yellow, green. Mine is nicer, mine has more vivid colors.
Doesn't matter really. But then another friend comes and claims all hybrids ale American hybrids and there is a big confusion and a war and a forum discussion.
Oh my Lord here we go again, we all have been there.
If you remember when I mentioned above when one of the forum member said that they think the orchid may be : Paph. insigne 50%, spicerianum 32.8%, villosum 10.9%, druyi 4.7%, anc boxallii 1.6% - so imagine you change Paph. insigne to 45% and villosum to 5% and increase the druyi to 15.9. And this happens, it's the uncontrollable process of hybridization in a plant that needs to be germinated by seed. This means each plant is unique.
Please repeat this to yourselves, although you love your paphs., and cattleyas and oncidium from all of them (the cloned ones) only the Paphiopedilum's are truly unique.
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Some pictures presented in this article may not belong to me and are a property of their respectable owners.
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