Bulbophyllum fletcherianum

Fletcher's bulbophyllum

A giant Bulbophyllum from southern Papua New Guinea. Its pendent leaves reach 1.8–2.1 m long and up to 30 cm wide, the largest leaves of any known orchid, and its pseudobulbs are bigger than tennis balls. The maroon, carrion-scented flowers attract blowflies. It grows on fairly exposed cliffs and mossy branches in hot lowland valleys, needs a lot of space, warmth, humidity and constantly moist roots, and flowers rarely in cultivation.

At home, aim for

Day Warm-growingTargets in Plantistry

Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry

Humidity Humid airBand in Plantistry

Light Bright, filtered lightDLI and PPFD in Plantistry

No rest periodGrows on rock (lithophyte)

Where it grows wild

Herbarium labels from the Waria River valley in Morobe Province describe a lithophyte on a fairly exposed cliff, rooting in humus-filled cracks. Wikipedia adds that it grows on sunny rock outcrops or mossy tree branches, sometimes as a pseudo-terrestrial. Its leaves hang down the rock face.

The wild labels give 400–450 m in the Waria River valley; a cultivated plant from Port Moresby was recorded at 500 m.

Papua New Guinea

🔒 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 CC BY-SA 3.0 licence, unmodified.