My first Ansellia bloom of the season, will update as they open

Ansellia africana var nilotica

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a157/thomasriver/Orchids/ansellia_africana.jpg

Very nice, I like the spots!

Very nice! Reminds me of a leopard or cheetah! Grrrrreat spots!

Cool flower. Spots look great. :D
How big is the flower and plant? Are they hard to grow?

Gideon,

Looks great! I have never tried one!

thanks

Gideon my envy is setting in again!

looks great :clap:

Very nice

Gordon has a plant similar to this one - although his is unlabelled so, until now, I was never sure what it was. As it was in his "private" collection area a lot of the plants are unlabelled. Bugger knows them to well and, given that he's half deaf, I hate yelling to ask the name of a plant.

Do you treat yours much the same as an oncid?

Cheers
Stephan

Cool flower. Spots look great. :D
How big is the flower and plant? Are they hard to grow?

The flowers are about 5cm (2in) across, but they make many many flowers, which are fragrant. They sort of smell like glycerine and it can become overpowering...I love it.

Some of my cultivars have remained small, with the canes being about 6 in, others are about 2 and a half feet long. I have read that they can become 12 feet in length.

I find the easy to grow here in South Africa, in the summer they are hung in the trees outside and in winter they are moved into the greenhouse for some heat and due to the frost in my area.

Very nice! Reminds me of a leopard or cheetah! Grrrrreat spots!

They are known locally as the Leopard Orchid :)

Here is a link to some lovely cultivars
http://www.lowveldorchids.co.za/ansellia%20africana.htm

Very nice

Gordon has a plant similar to this one - although his is unlabelled so, until now, I was never sure what it was. As it was in his "private" collection area a lot of the plants are unlabelled. Bugger knows them to well and, given that he's half deaf, I hate yelling to ask the name of a plant.

Do you treat yours much the same as an oncid?

Cheers
Stephan

Sort of...in the winter, in the summer they are exposed to the elements. Many years ago when I worked as a Botanical Field Techician, I did some botanical survey work in the Kruger National Park (South Africa's largest game park), I saw an Ansellia in bloom high up in a tree, exposed to the elements, in full sun. At the time I was not interesed in Orchids, but that sight haunted me, and when I got the oppertunity to get one many years later, I jumped at it.

Pretty cool Gideon

Reminds me a bit of the Arachnis.