Pleione formosana (Alba Group) ‘Claire’

Windowsill Orchid Orchidaceae

A charming, well-established white-flowered selection of Pleione formosana, producing crisp, pure-white flowers above the emerging pleated foliage in early spring. ‘Claire’ is an old selection associated with Taiwanese material introduced into European cultivation, rather than a modern hybrid, and was already being grown in Britain by the late 1980s. It is a particularly rewarding little orchid for a sheltered rock garden, trough or alpine house, where its large flowers belie its diminutive stature.

Plant pseudobulbs shallowly, with their upper halves exposed, in a very free-draining mixture of fine bark, leaf mould and grit. Keep moist from the beginning of spring growth through summer, feeding lightly with a dilute orchid fertiliser. As the foliage dies back in autumn, allow the compost to dry and keep the dormant pseudobulbs cool and almost dry, protecting them particularly from winter wet. Bright shade or gentle morning sun is ideal.

Selection: Established white-flowered form of Pleione formosana, associated with Taiwanese material
Height: 10–15cm
Spread: 15–20cm
Flowering: March–April
Position: Bright shade or morning sun
Soil: Very free-draining, humus-rich orchid compost
Hardiness: H5–H6