Description of the characteristics of the orchid, agricultural technology for growing doritis, recommendations for flower reproduction, diseases and pests, interesting facts, species. Doritis the most beautiful (Doritis pulcherrima) or as it is also called Phalaenopsis pulcherrima. This plant belongs to the very ancient Orchid family (Orchidaceae) or it can also be called Yatryshkovy. All its representatives are monocotyledonous specimens of flora. They have a herbaceous type of growth and for their placement they choose rocky or sandy surfaces, or they can be placed on the trunks or thick branches of trees.
This genus is monotypic, that is, there is only one single representative in it, and the work on its taxonomy has not yet been completed. And since the plant once belonged to the Phalaenopsis genus, there is no established Russian name yet, then in the botanical Russian-language literature the flower bears the corresponding Latin name Phalaenopsis pleasing (it is indicated above). Often, because of the beauty of the flowers, doritis is called the “precious orchid”.
This precious flower is most common in China (in the Yunnan province and the Himalayas), in Indian Assam, in the lands of Thailand and Manyam, as well as in Malaysia, Laos and Cambodia. You can find this plant in Vietnam, on the islands of Borneo and Sumatra. Its native habitat is considered to be the forests located on the plains in the floodplains of the rivers. Doritis belongs to the plants that are protected by CITES (Appendix II) - an international convention that contains a list of plants that are prohibited from trade, as they are on the verge of extinction.
Doritis the most beautiful (Doritis pulcherrimal) does not have rhizomes and pseudobulbs - it is a monopodial orchid and has one apical growth point. It can grow as an epiphyte (settle on the branches or trunks of trees), a lithophyte (chooses rocky surfaces for its growth), or grow as a terrestrial representative of the flora. She was artificially bred by breeders in 1838 and named one of the many names of the goddess of love - Aphrodite.
The roots of this orchid are well developed and tough. Above the rhizome is a rosette formed by leaf plates of a beautiful dark green color. Usually 6–8 lanceolate or elongated-oval leaves are connected to it. Their length varies within 6–15 cm, and their width often reaches 1, 5–3 cm. Their arrangement is alternate and two-row on a short stem, which is carefully hidden by a foliage rosette. The top of the leaf plate may have a sharpness, but there are also blunt-pointed varieties. The surface of the leaf is leathery.
The flowering stem is rigid and upright, it can reach a height of 20–60 cm, and is crowned with up to 28 flowers collected in a branched inflorescence. This orchid differs from its brother Phalaenopsis precisely in the peduncle, which grows straight in it, when it has a bend in it. In length, the inflorescence reaches 50-60 cm. Shades of flower petals are very diverse, ranging from pale lavender to bright pink or dark amethyst (dark purple). In diameter, the petals open 3, 5–5 cm. The flower's lip is distinguished by three lobes. She is sedentary with a shortened marigold. The lateral lobes (petals, which are called petals) are oval in shape, straight can also be medium with oval-elliptical contours. And they are distinguished from phalaenopsis by their vertical arrangement. Sometimes they can grow in such a way that the edges of the petals and sepals are wrapped inside the flower. The column has almost straight outlines, the blades are narrowed. Pollinia - this is the name of a miniature formation with its inherent powdery, waxy or corneal density. This formation is obtained in the process of gluing or merging the entire amount of pollen (but maybe only part of it) in the anther nest - there are two of them in Doritis.
The buds open in turn, so there is a feeling of non-stop action. The flowering process takes place from early summer to late autumn. But there are individual specimens that continue to release and open buds in winter and spring.
This orchid does not require special attention and all the efforts spent on it are fully rewarded with a very decorative flowering.
Recommendations for growing doritis at home
- Lighting and location selection for the orchid. You must immediately choose a place for your "precious beauty" and try not to change it. It is important to remember that this capricious woman cannot stand the neighborhood with other flowers - other people's smells interfere. The room should be chosen for its cultivation bright, with windows that "look" to the west or east, so that direct streams of sunlight do not fall on it at noon. If there is no way out, and the doritis will have to be placed on a south-facing window, then it is recommended to attach tracing paper sheets to the glass or hang translucent curtains that scatter light. On the northern window, it is necessary to provide the plant with illumination with phytolamps or fluorescent lamps. The same will have to be done with the arrival of winter, since the natural duration of daylight hours will decrease.
- Content temperature. The plant thrives when year-round heat readings are around 20 degrees. But Doritis likes it when at night they will be reduced by only 4 degrees to the maximum. It is impossible for the plant to be in the autumn-winter period next to heating devices and central heating batteries, from this the flower will quickly wither. You also need to make sure that the orchid is not under the influence of a draft or air currents from an air conditioner. Since this flower loves fresh air, it is recommended to often ventilate the room, but first check if the plant is in the path of cold air currents.
- Air humidity when growing, doritis should be increased and this is ensured by special air humidifiers in the room or a pot with an orchid is placed on moistened expanded clay or moss in a deep container. You can install it in a pot in a large container, and overlay a pot with a flower with sphagnum moss around the perimeter and moisten it constantly. Spraying does not bring the desired effect, and during flowering it is not even recommended, since when drops of liquid hit the flower petals, brown spots appear on them and all decorativeness is lost.
- Watering the orchid. Moistening of the substrate is carried out in small portions of water every day in the summer, and with the arrival of winter, such watering becomes weekly. It is important that the soil in the pot is always slightly moist, but it is impossible to allow strong overdrying or flooding of the soil. Even drying out the soil from above will adversely affect the flower. Water is used only soft with heat indicators of 20-23 degrees. You can simply submerge the orchid pot in a basin filled with water. There she is 15-20 minutes, and then, pulling out the pot, allow the liquid to drain well.
- Fertilizers for doritis, they are applied in the spring-summer period every 15–20 days, and with the arrival of winter, feeding either becomes very rare or stops altogether. Fertilizers are used for orchids in the indicated dosage.
- General care. It is necessary to remember when growing doritis that it is very moody when the flowering process begins. The pot with the orchid can not only be rearranged, but even turned, otherwise the plant will drop the buds. Also, this "precious beauty" cannot stand smells, for example, if there is a vase filled with fruits or vegetables nearby, then doritis may lose its flowers. When the flower-bearing stem has faded, it should be shortened - this will stimulate a new wave of bud formation.
- Transplantation and selection of soil. The plant will require changing the pot and soil if the latter has become unusable (become rotten) and when the leaf outlet has grown too large, and can turn the flowerpot over. The new container is used transparent and plastic, in flower shops today a large number of specially designed pots are offered for growing representatives of orchids. They have holes made across the entire surface of the flowerpot so that there is constant access of air to the roots, and they are also equipped with a stand into which the liquid will drain after watering. It is necessary to lay a layer of drainage material at the bottom of the pot; small pebbles, expanded clay or marble chips can act as them. The shape of the pots should be small and narrow.
For transplanting, you can also use ready-made mixtures for orchids, but if you want to start compiling the substrate yourself, then you need to mix pine bark and crushed charcoal in equal proportions. Cut moss can be laid on the surface of the soil, it will retain moisture, from too rapid evaporation. This representative of orchids shows good growth when grown in blocks, but in this case it is necessary to lay a moss layer (chopped sphagnum) between the block and the flower so that the roots do not dry out so quickly.
Doritis orchid propagation tips
The easiest and most popular way to propagate a doritis flower is to split an overgrown bush. You can combine this process with a transplant. The mature plant is carefully removed from the pot and cut into pieces. Each of the divisions should have well-developed roots. The cut sites must be treated with crushed activated or charcoal - this will help to avoid infection and the appearance of putrefactive processes. When separating the side shoots, special care is required, as cutting can damage the core of the orchid and the entire plant will die. Delenki are planted in pots prepared in advance, at the bottom of which there is already a little substrate. The plant is immersed in a container. The roots are gently straightened, and the same soil is laid from the sides and from above, gently pressing. Until signs of rooting appear, orchids are kept in diffused lighting.
It happens that daughter rosettes of doritis are formed on faded peduncles. This is facilitated by sufficient humidity and appropriate heat indicators. Sleeping axillary buds can be stimulated. They must be wrapped in moistened sphagnum moss and covered with a plastic bag on top. In this case, you should constantly keep the moss moist and maintain the temperature at about 25 degrees. Since not a daughter rosette can be formed, but a new flowering stem. As soon as a sufficient number of roots appears on a young orchid, it is necessary to carefully separate and plant in a pot with a substrate poured into it. It is possible to carry it out to bright lighting only when the plant has completely mastered in a new place.
Diseases and pests of doritis, methods of dealing with them
When cultivating a precious orchid, the following troubles occur:
- when the leaf plates began to die off in the lower part, then it is worth checking the heat indicators, they are probably too low or the substrate has been flooded (the plant may begin to rot and die);
- when fertilizing was applied during the dormant period, the plant also reacts negatively to them;
- leaves may turn yellow because the orchid is too close to radiators or heat sources;
- the blanching of the foliage color is due to too high illumination, perhaps the plant is in direct sunlight;
- drafts negatively affect the orchid;
- if the leaves begin to die off from below, you should not be frightened, since this is a natural process of growth.
Diseases include powdery mildew, rust, anthracnose or soot fungus. It is necessary to carry out treatment with fungicidal preparations. Pests that can harm doritis include mealybugs, aphids, scale insects or spiderwebs. If these harmful insects are identified, it is urgent to spray the orchid leaves with insecticidal preparations.
But gardeners with experience at the same time advise, to prevent an attack of pests or infections, not to take a pot of an orchid into the garden outdoors.
Interesting facts about doritis
Wonderful orchid flowers have always amazed the imagination and many legends and fairy tales are associated with them. Since orchids are a fairly ancient family, it is not surprising that mankind has known about them since ancient times. And, for example, in China, they talked about miraculous flowers from the beginning of the 8th century BC, and such a wonderful specimen of flora in the lands of Latin America (at about the same time) and a little later in the territories of European countries did not pass by.
But the peoples living in New Zealand went even further, there is even a legend about the origin of orchids. In the Maori tribes, the aborigines were convinced that these plants came from heaven and were gifted by the Gods. Long before the first people appeared on Earth, the only parts of the earth were considered to be the high peaks of mountain ranges, completely covered with snow. When the days were sunny and clear, the snow melted and flowed down from the mountain peaks in stormy streams that formed magnificent waterfalls. Those who carried their waters further, pouring foamy waves into the seas and oceans, and it is natural that after the evaporation of this moisture, beautiful outlines of curly clouds appeared in the sky. And in the end, cloudiness completely covered the entire sky, hiding the land from the sun's rays.
When the majestic Sun wanted to see the earth again, it tried to pierce this cloud cover, and at this time a heavy tropical downpour started. After the streams of water stopped falling on the earth, a huge rainbow formed in the sky, spreading out to the entire sky. At that time, the surface of the planet was inhabited only by immortal spirits, who were so mesmerized by the view that they began to fly from all over to admire the action - the multi-colored bridge was wonderful! And naturally, there was not enough good place for everyone - squabbles and quarrels began. Then, when everyone found a place for themselves, they all together perched on the rainbow and sang joyfully. But since there were a great many spirits, the rainbow began to bend under their weight and soon simply collapsed, scattering into many multi-colored fragments. All immortal spirits were fascinated by this unprecedented rain. The earth, on the other hand, happily accepted the rainbow sparks, which began to cover its entire surface. Those fragments that fell on the trees were transformed into miraculous flowers - orchids, and since then these plants have been growing on the planet, conquering ever large spaces. And since roses did not grow in those places, they began to call the orchid the “queen” of the flower kingdom.
Doritis species
And although the orchid is unique in its genus, it also has varieties that differ in shades of sepals and petals, and some growers distinguish them as separate varieties:
- Alba has petals of a snow-white shade;
- Coerulea the main shade with which sepals and petals are cast is blue;
- Esmeraloda differs in a wide variety of tones in the color of the corolla;
- Buyssoniana, which has several shades, such as pinkish, cream, and the sepals have a yellow edge and the petals (lobes placed on the sides) have a pale lavender color.
What Doritis looks like, see this video:
