Bamboo Baby

Phal. Bamboo Baby

The late great jazz singer Dinah Washington used to sing, "What a difference a day makes." Well, to paraphrase the song title, in the course of orchid breeding, what a difference an FCC makes. Unlike Paphiopedilums which get FCCs just for being yellow (and their numbers are legion), Phalaenopsis seem to have gotten the short end of the stick. It seems that most judges are willing to bypass minor flaws on a single flower (even if it is the ONLY flower and therefore the flaw affects 100% of the flowers) but they will NOT overlook a minor flaw on 1 or 2 flowers on a multi-branching spray with lots of perfect flowers. (Sigh….)

Anyway, think of all the FCCs to Phalaenopsis. (N.B. A complete list of all FCCs is at the end.) Once you get all the way up to 19 (or about 1 every 2 years since 1970), you can stop. (Considering the number of Phalaenopsis shown, very few are deemed of exceptional quality or maybe some people simply do not recognize the quality before them.) Be that as it may, Phal. Bamboo Baby ‘Coqui’ is one of the 19 FCCs.

This hybrid of Phal. Honey Dew and Phal. amboinensis was registered by Jones & Scully in 1971. It was remade on several occasions. Phal. Honey Dew was basically a white (about 75%) with small inputs of Phal. sumatrana, Phal. equestris, Phal. schilleriana and Phal. stuartiana. The flowers of Phal. Bamboo Baby tend to be quite large with heavy substance in addition to being yellow-green apically: in other words, the flowers were white in the centre shading to various shades of yellow to green on the outer portion. But they were LARGE for the time – mostly 3 - 4" and they had good flower count. The AOS awards to Phal. Bamboo Baby are as follows:

‘Orchidglade’
AM – 81 pts., Feb. 22, 1973 – 12 flowers and 4 buds on 2 inflorescences – 8.0 cm.
Colour – pale green flowers

‘Jenni Lynn’
HCC – 79 pts., March 28, 1973 – 7 flowers – 7.3 cm.
Colour – light yellowish-green, pink flush on sepals and petals near base

‘Lynn’
HCC – 77 pts., April 24, 1974 – 9 flowers on 1 inflorescence – 8.3 cm.
Colour – pale green tepals shading to pink toward column

‘Charlotte’
AM – 85 pts., May 21, 1975 – 17 flowers and 6 buds on 2 inflorescences – 7.5 cm.
Colour – sparkling pale yellow-white, blending to white at centre

‘Coqui’
AM – 89 pts., March 3, 1977 – 3 flowers and 8 buds on a 3-branched inflor. – 8.4 cm.
Colour – greenish white with center portion white; reddish brown spotting and barring

‘Dainty Miss’
HCC – 78 pts., March 29, 1978 – 4 flowers – 8.0 cm.
Colour – tepals creamish-yellow, lightly sprinkled with pinkish spots

‘Zuma’
HCC – 76 pts., March 14, 1980 – 6 flowers on 1 inflorescence – 7.8 cm.
Colour – cream with definite light lime-green overlay on apical halves

‘Moon Glow’
HCC – 78 pts., April 15, 1980 – 15 flowers on a branched inflorescence – 7.8 cm.
Colour – white, shading to light green or chartreuse towards apices

‘Scully’s Tipperary II’
HCC – 78 pts., February 26, 1981 – 8 flowers + 2 buds on an arched inflor. – 8.6 cm.
Colour – dull yellow, flushing to pale pink at bases

‘Zuma Canyon’
AM – 80 pts., May 11, 1981 – 8 flowers – 9.3 cm.
Colour – white at bases, suffusing to icy green on outer two-thirds

‘Carmen Diaz’
AM – 81 pts., April 14, 1982 – 8 flowers on 1 inflorescence – 8.5 cm.
Colour – light cadmium yellow with no visible spots, basally very light pink blush

‘Pat Trumble’
HCC – 76 pts., April 16, 1982 – 14 flowers and 2 buds on 1 inflorescence – 7.8 cm.
Colour – light chartreuse-green with lighter center, concentric red circles

‘Coqui’
FCC – 91 pts., February 17, 1984 – 6 flowers on 1 inflorescence –9.0 cm.
Colour – white with yellow-green on apical halves, purple dots overall

‘Linwood’
AM – 83 pts., May 2, 1984 – 8 flowers on 1 inflorescence – 9.0 cm.
Colour – light green externally, white centrally

‘Caguas’
AM – 85 pts., February 7, 1985 – 6 flowers on 1 inflorescence – 9.3 cm.
Colour – white with light dotting of chestnut brown and some light rose blotches, apical half bright chartreuse to lime green

‘Soroa’
AM – 80 pts., March 13, 1985 – 11 fl. + 12 buds on a 4-branched inflor. – 10.0 cm.
Colour – light green on outer portions, white toward center with typical light concentric markings of rose

‘Lisa’
HCC – 77 pts., February 15, 1986 – 14 fl. and 1 bud on a branched inflor. – 8.2 cm.
Colour – Basally white changing to pale chartreuse apically with pale maroon bars

‘Monchito’
AM – 84 pts., March 18, 1987 – 4 flowers and 1 bud on 1 inflorescence – 8.8 cm.
Colour – pale lime green, fading to white centrally with pale chestnut brown bars

‘Debbie’
AM – 82 cm., May 6, 1987 – 5 flowers and 10 buds on 1 inflorescence – 10.0 cm.
Colour – pale yellow-green, cream basally with scattered pale pink dotting

Phal. Bamboo Baby was and remains a wonderful hybrid. However, none of the clones were meristemmed. The 'Coqui' clone and several others were available but they were never inexpensive. Several were available as stem propagations but the ‘Coqui’ clone was the one that everybody wanted. What a difference an FCC makes: the ‘Coqui’ clone was not the largest nor the most floriferous and, arguably, not the best colored. Yet, this was the clone that everybody wanted. Since 1980, a few hybrids have been made almost every year with Phal. Bamboo Baby but very few have proved to be an improvement on their parent.

As with Phal. Spica (which was discussed last month), the second-generation hybrids seriously outnumber those from the first generation. The first generation did produce several notable progeny among the 59 registered hybrids: P. Misty Green (x P. Barbara Moler), P. Golden Omni (x P. Daryl Lockhart), P. Clash of Titans (x P. Deventeriana), P. Misty Baby (x P. Misty Green), P. Bamboo Nancy (x P. Nancy Lockhart) and P. Stella D’Oro (x P. amboinensis).

Phal. Bamboo Nancy (x P. Nancy Lockhart) has been used extensively in Taiwan. Yet, with the exception of Phal. Misty Green, no other P. Bamboo Baby hybrid has either been used extensively or produced outstanding results. Maybe, it’s too soon to tell or maybe many of the other progeny never received wide enough distribution but, as it stands, P. Misty Green is the only P. Bamboo Baby hybrid that will live on as an important stud plant. Is it because this grex produced so many great offspring? There are well over 20 AOS awards and many of the best have not been shown. In general, the awarded clones of P. Misty Green tend to resemble their P. Bamboo Baby parent in colour and size, ranging up to a high of 9.6 cm. The best P. Misty Green that I ever saw was the result of a selfing of the ‘Arlington’, AM/AOS clone. The flowers were large, flat and solid yellow-green with almost no red marking.

Some of the more prominent offspring of P Misty Green are the following: P. Brother Polar (x P. Brother Imp), P. Corona de Oro (x P. Corona), P. Goldberry (x P. Golden Amboin), P. Misty Pride (x P. Golden Pride), P. Golden Peoker (x P. Liu Tuen-Shen), P. Pine Hill (x P. Lorraine Kenny), P. Chiayi Spot (x P. Paifang’s Queen), P. Flight of Birds (x P. Pine Hill), P. Brother Princess (x P. Princess Spot), P. Misty Moon (x P. Spotted Moon), P. Texas Mist (x P. Tabasco Tex), P. Buena Cerise Sparks (x P. Zuma Violet).

Because of the low availability of stems of Phal. Bamboo Baby or because of their high price or for some other unknown reason, there have only been about 60 first-generation hybrids registered. Is it because of this or because in this world of instant gratification and continued breeding with only the newest hybrids that there are so few first-generation hybrids? For whatever reason, Phal. Misty Green, a cross originally made by Joseph Redlinger, has quickly surpassed its parent. With so many good clones of this hybrid (both awarded and unawarded) and its wide distribution, how far can Phal. Misty Green go? Or will its offspring surpass it in the same way that it has surpassed Phal. Bamboo Baby? If so, which one will it be?

But a quick look at recent hybrids (e.g. Phal. Brother Peak, Phal. Brother Purple, Phal. Brother Peacock, Phal. Perfection Is, Phal. Super Stupid, Phal. Everspring King as well as three AQs: Phal. Brother Wildcat, Phal. Brother Oconee, Phal. Brother Passion) tells us that the legacy of Phal. Bamboo Baby will live on. But how important will it be? Hybrids are still being made with P. Bamboo Baby. Will the perfect hybrid turn up soon?

Or is P. Misty Green the perfect P. Bamboo Baby offspring? Only time will tell.

* * * * *

Oh yes, for those who wanted to know about all those FCCs, in alphabetical order, with the number of hybrids for some of the least fertile:

1. Phal. Abendrot ‘Celia’
2. Phal. Ambo Buddha 'Phoenix' - 2 first-generation hybrids;
3. Phal. Bonnie Vasquez ‘Zuma Creek’ – 2 first-generation hybrids;
4. Phal. Chain Xen Diamond 'Celebration'
5. Phal. Crystelle Smith ‘Frank Smith’
6. Phal. equestris ‘Candor Violette’
7. Phal. equestris ‘Royal Ruby’
8. Phal. Ever-Spring Fairy ‘Shang Pin’
9. Phal. George Vasquez ‘Eureka’
10. Phal. Golden Emperor ‘Sweet’ – 5 first-generation hybrids;
11. Phal. Mahalo ‘Carmela Orchids’
12. Phal. Maria Vasquez ‘Malibu’ – 8 first-generation hybrids;
13. Phal. Orchid World ‘Trenton’ – 21 first-generation hybrids;
14. Phal. Perfection Is 'Chen' - 3 first-generation hybrids;
15. Phal. Renee Freed ‘Bonsall’ – 4 registered crosses;
16. Phal. Sierra Gold ‘Suzanne’ – 10 first-generation hybrids;
17. Phal. Strawberry Sundae ‘Red Vengeance’ – 0 hybrids;
18. Phal. Zadian ‘Gee Whiz’

And, oh yes, Phal. Bamboo Baby ‘Coqui’

The opinions expressed in the plant of the month articles are those of Howard S. Ginsberg and are based on various discussions, observations and research which includes American Orchid Society Awards by James R. Fisher and David A. Bishop (available from the American Orchid Society) as well as the Wildcatt Database (available from the Wildcatt Database Company). The Wildcatt Database may not be perfect but it is far and away better than whatever is in second place.