Two Neos

This evening I snapped a few photos of two very special Neofinetia falcata orchid plants. These are tiny plants, but they would sell for a relatively large amount of money — that is, if I were selling. These are collector items,
rare special varieties which have been developed by the Japanese
over hundreds of years using selection and breeding.

The first plant featured here is Neofinetia falcata variety ‘Houmeiden’ which sports ultrapink root tips and a creamy white coloration which always appears on the topmost leaf. This plant also gets long-spurred flowers which are extremely fragrant. They are in the standard form for this species, and their color is white, sometimes tinged with pink. The first two photos showing the pink root tip were taken as the sun was setting, and the third photo showing the other side of the plant was snapped after the sun had set.

The second plant featured here is Neofinetia falcata variety ‘Kinginrasha’ which has leaves with a rough surface texture. This plant is a bit more difficult to grow than many other varieties of Neofinetia falcata. The flowers are fragrant and have a rough texture just like the leaves. They are white with a pink tinge. They face upward and are thicker than normal for the species. The root tips are reddish brown. ‘Kinginrasha’ is not an inexpensive plant, but it is not as costly as ‘Houmeiden’. All three photos were taken as the sun was setting.