Laelia milleri (long)
Margaret Baker
Charles and Margaret Baker
Laelia milleri Blume
AKA: N/A
ORIGIN/HABITAT: Brazil. Although not described until 1960, this
species, because of overcollecting, is now considered to be extremely
rare, if not extinct, in nature. Plants were found in the region of
iron mines in the Serra dos Ingleses mountains above Itabira, which is
about 45 mi. (72 km) east-north-east of Belo Horizonte in the State of
Minas Gerais. These rupicolous plants grew at 2600-3950 ft. (800-1200
m). Although they were normally found on rocks, early visitors to the
habitat reported that their roots usually grew into the moss, lichens,
detritus, and plant debris that filled crevices in the rock. This
material around the roots allowed good drainage but helped hold
moisture during the dry season.
CLIMATE: Station #83587, Belo Horizonte, Brazil, Lat. 20.0ĄS, Long.
43.9ĄW at 1812 ft. (552 m). Temperatures are calculated for an
elevation of ft. 3300 (1000 m), resulting in probable extremes of 90ĄF
(32ĄC) and 31ĄF (-1ĄC).
N/HEMISPHERE JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT
NOV DEC
ĄF AVG MAX 71 73 76 76 75 74 76 76 77 76
71 71
ĄF AVG MIN 47 50 54 57 58 59 60 60 59 57
51 47
DIURNAL RANGE 24 23 22 19 17 15 16 16 18 19
20 24
RAIN/INCHES 0.5 0.8 1.6 5.1 9.1 12.5 11.5 7.6 4.9 4.0
0.9 0.4
HUMIDITY/% 70 69 68 71 71 75 77 76 76 76
72 69
BLOOM SEASON * * ** * * * * * * *
DAYS CLR N/A
RAIN/MM 13 20 41 130 231 318 292 193 124 102
23 10
ĄC AVG MAX 21.7 22.8 24.4 24.4 23.9 23.5 24.5 24.4 25.0 24.4
21.7 21.7
ĄC AVG MIN 8.3 10.0 12.3 13.9 14.5 15.0 15.6 15.6 15.0 13.9
10.6 8.4
DIURNAL RANGE 13.4 12.8 12.1 10.5 9.4 8.5 8.9 8.8 10.0 10.5
11.1 13.3
S/HEMISPHERE JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR
MAY JUN
Cultural Recommendations
LIGHT: 2500-4000 fc. Bright conditions are required. Light should be
filtered or diffused, and plants should not be exposed to direct sun.
Strong air movement should be provided at all times.
TEMPERATURES: Summer days average 74-76ĄF (24-25ĄC), and nights average
59-60ĄF (15-16ĄC), with a diurnal range of 15-16ĄF (9ĄC).
HUMIDITY: Near 75% in summer and autumn, dropping to near 70% in winter
and spring.
WATER: Rainfall is moderate to heavy from spring to mid-autumn.
Conditions then dry rather rapidly into a 3-4 month dry season in late
autumn and winter. The rock surfaces on which these plants grow cool
very rapidly at night. This results in large amounts of dew being
deposited when water vapor in the air coming in contact with the cold
surface is condensed onto the rock. This is the same principle that
causes beads of water form on the glass holding a cold drink.
Cultivated plants should be watered relatively frequently while
actively growing, but plants should be allowed to become somewhat dry
between waterings. Water should be gradually reduced in late autumn.
FERTILIZER: A balanced fertilizer mixed at 1/4Đ1/2 recommended strength
should be applied every 1-2 weeks. Many growers prefer to use a high
nitrogen fertilizer early in the year when plants are actively growing.
They then switch to a high phosphate or "bloom booster" formula in late
summer or autumn in order to promote flowering the following season.
REST PERIOD: Winter days average 71-73ĄF (22-23ĄC), and nights average
47-50ĄF (8-10ĄC), with a diurnal range of 23-24ĄF (13ĄC). Water should
be reduced for cultivated plants in winter. They should be allowed to
dry out between waterings, but should not remain completely dry for
extended periods. Fertilizer should be reduced or eliminated until
water is increased in spring.
GROWING MEDIA: Plants are usually grown in pots, either clay or
plastic, using an open, fast draining medium. Many growers use only
medium-sized fir bark for adult plants. However, varying amounts of
perlite or sponge rock, usually about 10%, are often added to help hold
the medium open as it starts to break down. In extremely dry areas,
chopped sphagnum may be added to keep the medium from drying out too
rapidly. Plants should be repotted when they overgrow their pot or the
medium starts to break down. This us usually about every 2 years.
Repotting should be done just as new root growth is starting, normally
late winter or early spring. This allows the plant to become
re-established in the shortest possible time before the added stress of
hot, dry, summer weather.
MISCELLANEOUS NOTES: The bloom season shown in the climate table is
based on cultivation records. In the habitat, these plants bloom in
late spring.
Growers report that plants often grow well but bloom poorly. They
indicate that the addition of rusty nails to the pot, thereby
increasing the available iron, will initiate blooms within a few
months.
Plant and Flower Information
PLANT SIZE AND TYPE: A 4-7 in. (10-18 cm) sympodial lithophyte.
PSEUDOBULB: 1.2-3.1 in. (3-8 cm) long. The pseudobulbs are swollen at
the base and more or less strongly suffused with red or purple.
LEAVES: Up to 4 in. (10 cm) long. A single, narrow, stiff, flat, fleshy
leaf with a sharp tip is carried at the top of each pseudobulb. The
underside of the leaves are normally heavily suffused with red or
purple. Unlike most rupiculous Laelias, each leaf is held at somewhat
of an angle to its pseudobulb instead of being erect.
INFLORESCENCE: Up to 14 in. (35 cm) long. The erect spike emerges from
the top of the the most recently matured pseudobulbs. Sheaths usually
form at the end of the growing season and are then held on the plant,
often becoming dry and brown, until the spike emerges the following
spring. At times, however, the spike may emerge almost as soon as the
growth is completed.
FLOWERS: 4-10 blossoms are normally carried on each inflorescence, but
as many as 18 have been reported. The flowers in succession over a long
period of time, with several blossoms normally open at any one time.
Plants may, therefore, be in bloom for several months. The star-shaped
flowers are 1.5-2.0 in. (3.8-5.0 cm) across. The dark orange-red to
blood-red sepals and petals are 0.2-0.3 in. (0.6-0.8 cm) wide. The
dorasl sepal is somewhat longer than the lateral sepals and petals. The
yellow-orange central lobe of the lip has a rounded tip, is heavily
veined with red, and has frilly, ruffled, red margins. The side-lobes
of the lip are curled over to form a tube around the column.
HYBRIDIZING NOTES: Laelia milleri has been used extensively to impart
its small size and bright colors to hybrids made with other Laelias and
Cattleyas. It probably also passes along a tolerance for cooler
temperatures as well as the tendency to produce long flower stems.
However, growers report that the offspring may have problems with
recurved flowers.
REFERENCES: .
Fordyce, F. 1982. Think small....and discover the might of miniature
Cattleyas. Orchid Digest 46(3):85.
Ghillany, B. A. 1971. Hunting trips after a hidden red starlet called
Laelia Milleri Blum. Orchid Digest 35(10):312.
Hamilton, R. 1988. When does it flower? 2nd ed. Robert M. Hamilton,
9211 Beckwith Road, Richmond, B.C., Canada V6X 1V7.
McQueen, J., and B. McQueen. 1993. Orchids of Brazil. Timber Press,
Portland, OR.
Northen, R. 1980. Miniature orchids. Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York.
Pabst, G. 1984. The section Parviflorae Lindl. of the genus Laelia.
Orchid Digest 48(1):13.
Withner, C. 1990. The cattleyas and their relatives, vol. 2:the
laelias. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
PHOTOS/DRAWINGS: .
Copyright 1995, Charles and Margaret Baker
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Charles & Margaret Baker, Portland, Oregon, USA (cmb...@teleport.com)
"Orchid Species Culture" - Timber Press. Vol.1, Pescatorea, Phaius,
Phalaenopsis, Pholidota, Phragmipedium, Pleione - ISBN 0-88192-208-0
Vol. 2, in press, Dendrobium