neo

Neo1

Neofinetia falcata is another orchid that survived the trip to California and back. Come to think of it, it survived two cross-country trips before that. This plant is my first Neo (I have five now. See my second Neo "new Neo" here from last year, and here in 2009). I purchased Neo1 from an orchid club sale in 1995 as a single growth for $3. The woman I bought it from was so excited that she was able to grow an orchid enough that she could divide it. It sat in its little 2-1/4" pot for years without blooming or growing very much. But then when I put it into my orchid case, it took off. Three years ago, Neo1 looked like this.

 

I vaguely remember thinking, when I first encountered this orchid, that it wasn't impressive, with small compressed flowers (i.e. not "show quality" by cattleya or phalaenopsis standards) of a plain white. But perhaps that was because I had only seen single growth plants with a single flower spike, and for some reason those flowers weren't fragrant. Now that my plants have gotten to some size, it just might be my favorite orchid. And that is saying a LOT  coming from a die-hard cattleya fan. There are lots of things to recommend it. It is easy to grow (there was a time that I would never admit to liking an easy-to-grow orchid) and bloom (the trick is to give it enough humidity and light). It stays small enough to stay under the lights or on the windowsill. The flowers are delicate, intricate, and graceful - the long spur makes it one of the most alluring orchid I know. Perhaps best of all is the fragrance: a mouthwatering creamy vanilla creamsicle fragrance exudes from the flowers, and fills the room both day and night.  What's not for me to like? Mine is the wild form, the leaves plain, the flowers white with just a touch of pink at the petal tips. In Japan, where this orchid is native, there are hundreds of collector's forms, with various leaf shapes ("bean", "needle", etc.), leaf variegation, flower forms (extra petals, spurless), and some flower colors (pink, yellow) as well as hybrids. I've been lusting after some of these, but to be honest, I like the wild form the best.