This is our remake of the classic Paph. Clair de Lune, registered by renowned orchid breeder Frederick Sander in 1927. “Clair de lune” means moonlight in French. I want to share the history behind this remarkable remake.
Dr. Norito Hasegawa and Dr. Harold Koopowitz, former co-owners of Paphanatics Unlimited (no longer in business), are my Paph mentors when I was first starting out. They remain my dear friends to this day.
They were both frequent visitors to the legendary Orchid Zone (no longer in business) and they induced me its owner Mr. Terry Root. Terry has a background in ornamental horticulture and we maintained a very good friendship for many years. Paphanatics, Orchid Zone, and Stewart Orchids were pioneer Paph hybridizers in the USA at that time, breeding many outstanding Paphs, creating many well-known hybrids and contributing greatly to the understanding and appreciation of Paphs.
Paph. Maudiae (Paph. callosum x Paph. lawrenceanum) was registered in 1900 by the Charlesworth Ltd. This was most likely the colored form of the hybrid. In 1920, Paph. Emerald was registered by C. Cookson, which is Paph. curtisii f. alba x Paph. Maudiae (alba form). This trailblazing hybrid set the trend for green Maudiae-type Paphs. I have always had a fondness for green Maudiae-type Paphs. Terry accomplished his best work on breeding Maudiae-type Paphs, so when he let me have one of his best Paph. Emerald 'OZ Green Giant' for my personal collection I was ecstatic! He made me promise to guard it and to make future hybrids. The pollen parent, Paph. Alma Gevaert 'John Hanes' (lawrenceanum f. album x Maudiae f. album), was a gift from one of the great Paph hybridizers—Mr. John Hanes, who is also good friend of the legendary Mr. Ernest Heatherington of Stewart Orchids. Together, they drafted the first American Orchid Judging Handbook and were important in the early history of Orchid Digest, and the American Orchid Society.
Over the course of 15 plus years, I had attempted to remake this hybrid using these two significant Paphs without success. It was not until the development of Mega Thrive that we finally got a seed pod. And it did not die in 2-3 months like the previous attempts (Paph can take up to a year for the seed pod to ripen). Long story short, we also employed embryo rescue in-vitro—a technique that I learned from Dr. Toshio Murashige of University of California at Riverside, that promotes the development of immature or weak embryo into viable plants. Very limited (less than 100 plants) were raised from the entire seed pod.
The leaves of these plants are very wide, thick, and dark green, and exhibiting many signs of polyploidy. These plants have large, long lasting, striking, green and white flowers that can last up to 3 months. They are easy to grow and adaptable and can be grown on windowsills, under lights or in an orchid cabinet. Great for beginners. The variegated foliage is charming with deep blue-green checkered markings on a lighter white-green background; attractive even when not in bloom.
Paphs detest soggy growing medium; pot in well-draining media. Grow them in bright light and warm temperature with high humidity and good air circulation. As with all Paphs, its roots are sensitive to salt buildup from excess fertilizer which causes leaf tips to turn brown. It is a good practice to flush the medium with fresh, clean water once a month and repot Paphs in fresh media every year.
We will share a limited number seedlings so do not wait. Do not miss this opportunity to buy this remarkable remake. Highly recommended.
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PLEASE NOTE: Since this is a Seedling Population (not a Mericlone which produces exact duplicates), the picture is for illustration purposes only. No two plants will be the same from this cross, and they will flower in a range of possibilities coming from the two parents.