Disperis reichenbachiana

We grow this specie in moist places with average light and where there is not a lot of vegetation as most don't get taller than around 15 cm. Possible the best feature of this specie are its leaves. It might not be easy to grow members of the Disperis genus in (very) artificial conditions and wonder if there are any other growers of this genus at Orchids Forum? NB: even the tag "Disperis" was not allowed....., or wrong name?

 

Accidentally we have Brachycorythis kalbreyeri also in flower, I would not say they are closely related, not in appearance and genetically (subtribes differ).

 

Indeed this genus is mostly from Africa. We have a number of species from this genus and all of them are flowering at this time (of the year). I will post at least another one shortly. I also checked on the relation between Disperis and and Brachycorythis, and indeed they are more related than I thought: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disperis. Never too old to learn.

 

Thanks for explaining the relative relations between the genera!

Indeed Disperis spp. are difficult to find when in hibernation. Though I cannot talk about experiences by others, I find them not difficult to spot when they are above ground and actually easy to spot while flowering, because often the background is green only and also other vegetation short(er). Moreover, the different species, or at least the majority of the Kenyan ones, grow in specific undisturbed habitats, with some overlap. And when e.g. Disperis dicerochila is flowering on a tree trunk it is simply standing out. See my next post.

 

A welcome surprise, some seedlings:

Disperis seeds, like more terrestrials, are not that tiny, and maybe not so much wind when the seeds were released and therefore stayed close to home. Do not seem to flower in y1.