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Species library › Bulbophyllum › Bulbophyllum elegans
Orchids Little published: much of this is inferred from related species

Bulbophyllum elegans

A Bulbophyllum from the wet zone of Sri Lanka, described by Gardner and published by Thwaites. Specimens come from Hantane, Adam's Peak and the Ratnapura, Kegalle and Matara districts, with an old label giving 3000 to 5000 ft. Published details of its habit and ecology are thin, so care is inferred from its wet-zone montane range.

Bulbophyllum elegans
Photo: William de Alwis / Harmanis de Alwis, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
At home, aim for
Day Warm-growingTargets in Plantistry
Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry
Humidity Humid airBand in Plantistry
Light Dappled lightDLI and PPFD in Plantistry
No rest periodGrows on trees (epiphyte)

Where it grows wild

No habitat notes are attached to the specimens. The localities are all in Sri Lanka's wet zone, which is covered with tropical wet evergreen forest and submontane forest, where Bulbophyllum typically grow as epiphytes on trunks and branches.

An old label gives Hantane at 3000–5000 ft (about 900–1500 m) and one specimen is at 914 m. Recent observations from the Ratnapura, Kegalle and Matara districts suggest it also reaches lower wet-zone hills.

Sri Lanka

🔒 Growing it like that

The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:

✓ Day and night temperature targets, and the limits it tolerates
✓ Humidity band, and how to hold it
✓ Light as DLI and PPFD for a grow light
✓ Wet and dry seasons, and whether to rest it
✓ Substrate and airflow
✓ A step-by-step setup to grow it like the wild

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Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, used under its Public domain licence, unmodified.