Calanthe vestita var

Flower Size up to 2 1/2"to 3" [6.25 to 7.5 cm]

Calanthe vestita var commonly known as The Calanthe that is Surrounded by Bracts is a medium sized, hot to cool growing, terrestrial orchid found in Burma, Vietnam, Lower Thailand, Malaysia, Borneo and the Celebes with subconical bluntly angled, pale greenish grey pseudobulbs carring broadly lanceolate, acuminate, prominently ribbed underneath, deciduous leaves that narrow basally into a channeled and winged petiole that blooms in the winter on a basal, suberect and then nodding 3' [90 cm] long, 6 to 15 flowered, racemose inflorescence with the peduncle pubescent and the bracts, ovate-lanceolate, and the fragile textured, long-lived flowers all arising before the leaves. This terrestrial species needs a dry winter rest as the leaves yellow and fall off and then, after the plant has bloomed, repot and wait for the new growth to appear to resume watering.