Since I asked about the biggest Paph and Phrag species, I might as well ask which Cyp species is the biggest :D . I'm guessing kentuckiense? I don't grow any Cyps but I'm curious to know. Thanks!

For flower size, C. kentuckiense has to be up there. I'd assume some blooms in the macranthos complex are pretty big, too.

As for height, I don't really know. C. californicum? Something in the irapeanum complex? C. subtropicum? I don't know.

Yes, I think kentuckiense has the largest Cyp flowers but plantwise, I don't know. I think Ladyslipper Grower (Paul) posted photos of his kentuckiense (I think) a while back and his plants looked very big and tall.

Certainly Cyp californicum is up there in height and mass with all its stems; in mass it may well be the largest along with big Cyp reginae (which doesnt grow as tall). Cyp irapeanum is reported at more than 4 feet in height as is Cyp subtropicum. I'd like to see both of those!

Ron

In terms of height, indeed, the plants in sections subtropica and irapeana are the tallest. According to Cribb, C. subtropicum is the tallest at 1.5 meters (just under 5 feet!), followed by C. californicum at 1.2 meters (about 4 feet), and finally C. irapeanum at 1 meter (3 feet, 4 inches). Of course exceptional individuals exist, so perhaps we don’t know exactly the tallest plant, especially for C. subtropicum that has been seen by just a few people (I call it the phantom orchid and wonder if it is actually real).

Flower size, hmmm....I guess it depends on what you are measuring. The largest lips go to C. kentuckiense (often cited as having an “egg sized” lip), C. fasciolatum, and the rarely mentioned C. irapeanum. Maximum lip length respectively is 7 cm (about 2 and 3/4 inches), 7.3 cm (nearly 3 inches), and 7 cm. In terms of flower spread (adding in the petals), C. kentuckiense has the longest petals (up to 9 cm long; 3.5 inches) and the others are about 7cm long. C. kentuckiense petals tend to droop down, C. fasciolatum petals tend to be held backward, and C. irapeanum petals are held in a nice lateral stance. To wit, C. irapeanum has the largest spread at 14 cm (5.5 inches). Again, exceptional individuals exist, so flower sizes may actually exceed these sizes.

Finally, yes, finally (if your still reading this, I’ll be amazed, I stopped a paragraph ago), I would like to take a different tack. How about size in terms of biomass? Obviously the best clumping species would be the winners here. Consider Paul’s “mega reginae”, standing at about 3 feet. Specimens of this species have been recorded with over a hundred stems! Likewise, the smaller C. parviforum is known for having many stems, and one cultivated specimen of C. calceolus was recorded as having 200 stems! No doubt C. californicum can come in the race as well with huge clumps existing in nature. Finally, both C. formosanum and C. japonicum can form extensive colonies via stolons. If you remember a post I had on these a while ago, and their colonies can get huge. It is very likely that some of these are in fact just a handful of individuals, hence they too could be the winners.

YOU ASKED FOR IT!

Tom

Excellent! :good: Very interesting and informative post, thanks Tom! :cool:

Certainly Cyp californicum is up there in height and mass with all its stems; in mass it may well be the largest along with big Cyp reginae (which doesnt grow as tall). Cyp irapeanum is reported at more than 4 feet in height as is Cyp subtropicum. I'd like to see both of those!

Ron

Thanks Ron! Great info.

But it's time the world know about it. In the GREAT QUEST for the ULTIMATE HUGE FIRE ENGINE RED CYP, I present you with C. Red Rooster (registation pending). This was the flower this past spring. As you can see, I couldn't believe its color and size!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v164/tvelardi/WowCyp.jpg

My head is exactly 26 cm from the chin to the crown, so you can see this baby is a full 24 cm from top to bottom and even larger from side to side. And look at that color! Not even in my wildest dreams would I have imagined it that red! Not even in Photoshop using the most lurid techiques could I have come up with such a color!

But please, for now, mums the word on this baby. I've contracted with a Japanese tissue culture lab on getting these meristemed, and we should have a nice crop going by next year. Of course, this being a one of a kind plant in limited quantity (and remember, I live in Japan where EVERYTHING is expensive), prices for blooming size divisions could run into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Currently there's a waiting list of over 2,000 people, so plants will be sold on a lottery basis until larger stocks can be produced.

Tom

PS Yes, feel free to refer to me from now on as that demented monkey man in Japan. I'll take no offense...

ok... I'm officially freaked out by Tom! :p

:lol: :laugh2:

OMG I just snorted my coffee! :cheeky:

I regret to inform everyone that Tom Velardi is no longer with us. The investigation continues on whether he has gone back to his home planet on the mother ship, or simply eaten head first by a giant cyp.

:lol:

Dinna anyone ever tell yas it's only one drop of Superthrive per gallon of water?!?!? :roll:

PS Yes, feel free to refer to me from now on as that demented monkey man in Japan. I'll take no offense...
:laugh:
:bowing:

That sure is the hugest Cyp flower I ever saw...:laugh:

I would like to place an order for 10,000 Cyp Red Rooster! I will plant them in front of my faded red barn. They can hide its condition and people will think I had it painted (for two weeks of the year anyway!).

Ron