Phalaenopsis

Phalaenopsis is a gender with around 83 species spread throughout Southeast-Asia, from the Himalaya to the Philippines and North-Australia. They are epiphytical plants, with an exception of some lithophytes.

They don’t have pseudobulbs, but leaves grow out of the rhizome. These thick, elliptic leaves grow in rows from two next to each other. A healthy plant has about 4 to 5 leaves. The flower stem grows upwards out of the rhizome in between the two leaves. Attached to this, a flower bunch will grow that can last up to 3 months in case of good care. The plant can bloom for a longer time with new flowers, but it varies per plant and per species what characteristics the plant has.

The name of the Phalaenopsis refers to the resemblance with a night butterfly (moth). ‘Phalaina’ means moth in Greek, and ‘opsis’ means similar. Furthermore the Phalaenopsis are often used as living room plants.