Phal. venosa

Phal. venosa is a relative upstart in the history of Phalaenopsis. Discovered around 1980 and only really introduced into cultivation in the mid-1980s, Phal. venosa was originally known as Phal. psilantha (and awarded as such). This name was difficult to change and, for a time, there was such confusion among hobbyists that some believed that that these were two distinct species. (Culture note: many people give this species less light than other Phalaenopsis that they grow.)

As with several species that are intense yellow, some judges were intensely enamored with this "new" species, accounting for the number of awards. We now recognize that the best flowers of Phal. venosa for breeding yellow are those that are deep yellow or yellow-green and almost solidly overlaid with brown or mahogany coloring. Originally, many people believed that the greener the flower, the better the plant for breeding regardless of the amount of brown/mahogany overlay. Floriferousness, and especially size, can vary widely among the good clones: for example, the original C.B.R. plant shown in Florida in 1982 had 2 flowers on 1 inflorescence and was 4.0 cm. but the natural spread of the awarded flowers go up to 4.7 cm.

With the exception of 1994 and 1996, there has never been a year in which more than 20 Phal. venosa hybrids were registered. The first hybrids made with Phal. venosa were only registered in 1984, 15 years ago. Several hybridizers remade many hybrids that had been made with Phal. amboinensis. Others struck out in new and different directions. However, many people now freely admit that breeding with Phal. venosa can be difficult and that, while Phal. venosa hybrids can be very attractive, breeding with some of them is nearly impossible. Phal. Zuma Aussie Delight (Sweet Memory x venosa) has been meristemmed and is in hundreds of collections. Despite this fact, there are only a couple of registered hybrids and hundreds, possibly thousands, of failed attempts.

Phal. venosa was used in making several primary hybrids. One of my favorite hybrids is Phal. Kuntrarti Rarashati (x Phal. equestris), registered in 1986 by A. Kolopaking. Its use in hybridizing has only just begun. (The first hybrid was registered in 1995.) The nicest multflora I have ever seen was a Phal. Taida Pixie (x Phal. Carmela’s Pixie) at an orchid show in Taipei in 1997. The hybrid Dtps. Pico Lady Ruby was registered by Brother Orchid Nursery in Taiwan in 1995. The hybrid was re-made just shortly afterwards by Ed Merkle. His cross resulted in several AOS flower quality awards and an Award of Quality to the proud breeder-exhibitor. To date, very few hybrids have been attempted but a cross to Phal. Mahalo has produced seed. Another hybrid of Phal. Kuntrarti Rarashati, Phal. Little Yellow Ball (x Phal. amabilis) produces very floriferous, multi-branching inflorescences bearing peach-colored flowers.

Ooi Leng Sun registered Phal. Penang Girl (x Phal. violacea) in 1984. The hybrid has been used about 10 times in making registered hybrids. However, in much the same way that many Phal. amboinensis hybrids were remade using Phal. venosa, you can expect that Phal. Princess Kaiulani hybrids will be remade using Phal. Penang Girl. It is not very floriferous but a large adult plant will rarely be out of bloom. It is both colorful and fertile, a wonderful combination. A delightful fragrance is an added bonus. Expect Phal. Penang Girl to be a very important hybrid now and in the future.

Another primary hybrid, Phal. Ambonosa (x Phal. amboinensis) was registered by A. Parnata in 1984 and has been used extensively in breeding. There are four awarded clones to this grex. Flowers range from about 4.5 to 5.5 cm natural spread and can be quite plentiful. It is the parent of about 30 registered hybrids to date, having been used since 1989. Most of its hybrids to date are hardly known but Phal. Minho Queen (x Phal. Paifang’s Auckland) has one award and Phal. Brother Torro (x Phal. Peach Boy) has several.

The hybrid Dtps. Jim (x Dor. pulcherrima), registered by H.P. Norton was one of the first Phal. venosa hybrids, registered in 1984. Despite the elapsed 15 years since this hybrid was registered, only 3 first-generation hybrids have been registered to date, and only since 1995. There are no second-generation hybrids. Similar Phal. venosa hybrids registered in 1986 and 1995 by H.P. Norton, Dtps. Tony (x Red Elf) and Dtps. Shadrach (x Dtps. Inferno) are each the parent of only a single hybrid.

In 1984, John Miller registered the first hybrid of Phal. venosa with a large white (Phal. Mem. Anton Smith) as Phal. Bob Gordon. This hybrid received 7 AOS awards and has only been used 9 times in further breeding. Phal. Taipei Gold was also one of the first Phal. venosa hybrids (x Gladys Read), also registered in 1984. There are 8 awards to different clones of Phal. Taipei Gold, most of them from the first time that this hybrid was made. But the plants proved difficult, if not impossible, to breed with. Many people thought that they might be triploids, the result of crossing a diploid Phal. venosa with a tetraploid Phal. Gladys Read. The cross was remade several years later using a known diploid Phal. Gladys Read and the results were very different. The ‘Gold Star’ clone was set aside and has now gained wide distribution. It - and, presumably, other clones - have been used to make about 60 hybrids to date, many of them in Taiwan : first-generation hybrids include Phal. Brother Lawrence, AQ/AOS, Phal. Brother Passat, AQ/AOS, Phal. Brother Victory, Phal. Brother Gold Miss, Phal. Sogo Chin Chien, Dtps. Sogo Manager and second-generation hybrid, Phal. Taida Lawrence, AQ/AOS. Almost all of these hybrids produce large yellow to (generally clear) yellow-green flowers, relatively large and reasonably floriferous.

Phal. Golden Bells (x Phal. Golden Sands), a hybrid registered in 1988 by H.P. Norton, is possibly the next most prolific Phal. venosa hybrid. It has received three awards to date and is the parent of approximately 40 registered hybrids to date. Considering the relative youth of this grex, it has already begun to prove its worth with several of its first-generation hybrids such as Phal. Orchidview Bellringer, Phal. Melodious Bells and Phal. Golden Circles but, yet again, it is much too early to examine the complete impact of this grex.

Another Phal. venosa hybrid, Phal. Pago Pago (x Phal. Lippeglut) is possibly the biggest disappointment in further breeding. This grex was registered in 1988 by Zuma Canyon Orchids and produced incredible art shades on very floriferous plants. They caught the eye of many a judge which accounted for the high number of awards to this grex. However, there are only about a handful of registered hybrids to date.

Phal. Francis Melendez (x Phal. Bamboo Baby) is another well-known and well-distributed hybrid of Phal. venosa. Despite 15 awards to Phal. Francis Melendez, it is the registered parent of less than 10 hybrids to date.

There is a group of Phal venosa hybrids that can best be lumped as near-primary hybrids. There are many of these including Phal. John Ewing (x Phal. George Vasquez) and Phal. Venimp (x Phal. Malibu Imp) in the United States and Phal. Coral Nosa (x Phal. Coral Isles) in Taiwan. The flowers in this group all tend to be quite dark, star-shaped and few in number. However, they are all fragrant and relatively new to the hybridizing world. Of these, Phal. Coral Nosa has probably been the plant that has been used the most in hybridizing. It is the parent of Phal. Black Eagle (x Phal. George Vasquez), Phal. Chiayi Golden Moon (x Phal. Maritea), Phal. Ta Lin Kaiulani (x Phal. Princess Kaiulani) and Phal. Black Beauty (x Phal. gigantea).

As usual in yellow breeding, it’s too soon to give definitive comments. Let’s wait five years – until we have a better idea of the lasting impact of Phal. venosa.