Pleione Tolima gx ‘Moorhen’

Windowsill Orchid Orchidaceae

An early Ian Butterfield cross, ‘Moorhen’ combines Pleione pleionoides with P. formosana ‘Alba’, producing an exceptionally handsome plant with deep purple flowers, a wide-open lip and striking orange markings. The broad, richly coloured flowers are held on short stems above the emerging foliage, giving a wonderfully dramatic display despite the plant’s diminutive stature. It is one of those Pleiones where the hybridisation has genuinely improved the drama of both parents.

‘Moorhen’ belongs to the Tolima grex and has been in specialist cultivation for many years. Grow in pots, troughs or a sheltered rock garden in bright shade or gentle morning sun. Use a very free-draining, humus-rich compost based on fine bark, leaf mould and grit. Plant the pseudobulbs shallowly, leaving the upper portion exposed. Begin watering as growth starts in spring and keep evenly moist during active growth, feeding lightly with a dilute orchid fertiliser. As the foliage dies back in autumn, reduce watering and keep the dormant pseudobulbs cool and almost dry, protecting them particularly from winter wet.

Breeder: Ian Butterfield
Cross: Pleione pleionoides × P. formosana ‘Alba’
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

¹ Grex (gx): In orchid nomenclature, a grex is the collective name given to all seedlings resulting from a particular registered cross. Unlike a cultivar name, which identifies an individual selected plant, the grex name applies to the offspring of that specific parentage.