Paphiopedilum fairrieanum


fma. fairrieanum	fma. bohlmannianum

Paphiopedilum fairrieanum (Lindley) Stein

Described: Lindley in Gardener's Chronicle, 1st. series, 17: 740 (1857)
Transferred: Stein in Stein's Orchideenbuch, 467 (1892)
Etymology: Named for R. Fairrie, who first exhibited the plant before the RHS in 1857.
Varieties & Forms:
Paphiopedilum fairrieanum fma. bohlmannianum (Matho in Orchideenbrief, I/42, (July 1942)) Braem in Orchidees. Culture et Protection, No. 36: 35-38 (1998) - albino form
Synonyms:
Paphiopedilum fairrieanum var. flavum hort. ex Pradhan in Orchid Digest, 42(4): 151-58 (1978)
Chromosome Count -

2n = metacentrics telocentrics n.f.

26 26 0 52

Leaves: 4-8, 8-28 cm long, 2-3 cm wide, above mid- to dark-green with faint mottling, below pale green
Inflorescence: 1- (rarely 2-) flowered, 12-45 cm long, light green, purple-pubescent
Bloom: 5-8 cm wide
Plant: forms clumps in the wild

Distribution -
Elevation: 1400-2200 m
Peak Flowering in the Wild: October-January
Ecology: From Cribb 1998, found on "outcrops of crystalline limestone on sheltered grassy slopes, on rocks in oak forest, on open gneiss ledges amongst grasses with good drainage and in dolomitic gravel on ledges above rivers and streams."
Mean Temperature Range: 6-21°C
Light: light-moderate shade
Medium: calcareous, grass and leaf litter

Water (D-drier, M-moderate, W-wetter) -

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From Van Der Cingel 2001: "One of the adaptations mentioned for myophilous/ sapromyophilous flowers to attract or guide pollinators is the presence of transparent windows. These windows guide a fly to certain places inside or outside the flower and relate to the behaviour of flies towards light in dark places. Such windows are usually mentioned as guidance for trapped insectes inside the lip of Cypripedioideae. Their significance has often been discussed. In P. fairrieanum there are 'auxiliary transparent windows' in the flag (dorsal sepal), 'serving as a backboard as in basketball', which are therefore supposed to play a role in the attraction of flies (Van der Pijl & Dodson 1966)."

Braem, Guido J., and Guy Chiron. Paphiopedilum. Saint-Genis Laval, France: Tropicalia, 2003.
Cribb, Phillip J. The Genus Paphiopedilum. Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia: Natural History Publications in association with Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, 1998.
Gruss, O. "Albino Forms of the Slipper Orchids." Orchid Digest 69, no. 4 (Oct/Dec 2005): 204-29.
Hooker, W.J. "Cypripedium fairieanum. Mr. Fairie's Lady's Slipper." Curtis's Botanical Magazine 83 (1857): Tab. 5024. <view article>
Karasawa, K. "Karyomorphological Studies in Paphiopedilum, Orchidaceae." Bulletin of the Hiroshima Botanical Garden 2 (Mar 1979): 1979.
Van Der Cingel, N.A. An Atlas of Orchid Pollination. Rotterdam, Netherlands: A.A. Balkema, 2001.

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Page Created By: Stephen Manza
Last Updated: 7-22-06
contact: silence882@gmail.com

2n =	metacentrics	telocentrics	n.f.
26	26	0	52