When I discovered that orchids could have beautiful mottled foliage in addition to lovely blooms, I was in love.
The first that really caught my attention was Phalaenopsis schilleriana. This Phalaenopsis species from the Phillipines is very popular and is available from many orchid vendors!
It is a pretty versatile species, and while it comes from a tropical climate, it is more tolerant of typical household temperatures, and may benefit from a nighttime drop of about 10 degrees to promote blooming. I currently have three schillerianas, one is mounted and has yet to bloom for me, the other two are potted in bark. All three are quite different, with different patterning on the leaves, one has fatter leaves, another has red undertones… fascinating variation.
This is the one that bloomed for me this spring! It was from Peter at Big Leaf and was purchased as a larger seedling. It has very distinct spotting on both the flowers and the leaves. It loves to grow air roots, and seems to prefer it a bit on the dry side… it does not grow on the Phal shelf (which is misted) but instead has a place on the shelf above.
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| Mounted Phalaenopsis schilleriana. It has been on this mount for over a year, and has yet to bloom. This one has leaves that are extra thick, almost like sone succulents. |
Phal schilleriana is a spring bloomer, and so is the next species- Phalaenopsis sanderiana.
My sanderiana’s leaves are an interesting silvery color, and every leaf seems to be a bit different. The blooms are large and purplish pink. It produced 5 blooms in May, then rebudded on the same spike to make 4 more blooms in April, the rebudded again with another 4 blooms in July. Aaaaand I self pollinated it and it produced a seedpod. (Unfortunately the seedpod seems to be sterile, the flasks are not germinating). This plant is from Plantswelltraveled on Etsy.
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| Phalaenopsis sanderiana, April 2024. |
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| Phalaenopsis sanderiana |
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| Silvery leaves on Phalaenopsis sanderiana. |
Another spring blooming species from the Phillipines is Phalaenopsis stuartiana. My stuartiana is labeled “Nobilis ‘915’” and has long narrow leaves. It currently has two basal growths, and it produced 3 spikes this year. The flowers are white with a distinct lower triangle with burgundy spots on yellow, and a curvy lip. They have a light rose scent. This was also from Plantswelltraveled on Etsy.
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| Phalaenopsis stuartiana- mine has long, narrow mottled leaves and has produced a basal growth. |
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| Phalaenopsis stuartiana in April 2024. |
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| Phalaeopsis stuartiana var nobilis "915"- very distinctive blooms, yellow with burgandy spotting on the lip and lower triangle. |
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Phalaenopsis stuartiana produced 3 spikes this year, all of them loaded with blooms that opened in rapid succession. Very nice presentation.
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Next, we have Phalaenopsis phillipinensis. These plants are all seedlings in compots from a flask from
Meyers Conservency and are probably several years from blooming. I made two compots from the flask I got, and they are all doing well. I think this is a spring blooming species? I hope to find out someday.
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| Phalaenopsis philippinensis compot. |
I also have a seedling from Hausermann orchids. It is larger, but hasn't bloomed yet... maybe this spring?
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| Phalaenopsis philippinensis seedling from Hauserman Orchids. |
Finally, I have a primary hybrid, Phalaenopsis Rothschildiana which is a hybrid of Phalaenopsis amabilis and schilleriana. This was purchased as a seedling from Big Leaf a couple years ago, perhaps this will bloom this spring! I love its silvery leaves.
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| Phalaenopsis Rothschildiana, summer 2024. |
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Phalaenopsis Rothschildiana, has not bloomed yet, but maybe this spring.
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And that's it for the spring-blooming mottled leaf orchids. Any that I'm missing that I should add to my collection? Part II will be about the fall blooming species.
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