I am afraid, I am a man of obsessions. These last couple of weeks, I have been literally haunted by slipper orchids. I have recently expanded my orchid collection in my conservatory after several visits to specialized nurseries (not documented on the blog) and since then, I have actively documented myself on some of these plants. In an odd and frustrating way, my interest has been hooked by Slipper Orchids although I didn't paid a special attention to them during the said visits ! :-(
I am currently reading the Very nice Slipper Orchids of Borneo by Phillip Cribb, an apparently very nice introduction to the Bornean group of Paphiopedilum, and I am also gathering my knowledge and memories of this charismatic group of orchids : I recall I tried to grow a few garden centre plants nearly 20 years ago and eventually lost them after a few seasons; I observed the beautiful Cypripedium acaule in Virginia in 2011 in situ - a great memory-; I posted a blog article on the recently described Paphiopedilum robinsonianum; another more recent one on Paphiopedilum lowii; I studied in the wild my first Paphiopedilumin situ last year both in Borneo and Cambodia (no article yet on the blog) and I recall some nice discussions with many friends on Paphiopedilum, Cypripedium and Phragmipedium, the best known genera of the so-called Slipper Orchid. All of this is a fuel to the obsession, obviously.
While I was about to show more pictures on Mulu National Park from my 2016 Borneo trip, it came to my mind that I had observed some specacularPaphiopedilum rothschildianumplants in Poring Orchid Conservation Centre in Sabah. One of the most famous of all slipper orchid the charismatic P. rothschildianum is a true iconic plant. Although, the pictures below certainly do not have the air of grace of wild plants, they are inspiring enough to me and they definitely give me the incentive to try this genus at home 20 years after my first attempt. As I await the opportunity to admire more Paphiopedilum in their habitat (it's just a matter of time hopefully), I will purchase some of these plants in my favorite orchid nurseries so expect more pictures of Paphiopedilum on this blog from now on. ;-)
