Dendrobium malbrownii

McIlwraith hermit orchid

A small Australian orchid that forms clumps of crowded, wiry stems 10–30 cm long with narrow dark green leaves. It bears tiny single cream flowers with a purple-and-yellow lip between December and April. It is endemic to rainforest on the McIlwraith Range on Cape York Peninsula, where it grows on small rocks, logs and trees. It needs warm, humid, shaded conditions and a mount or small basket that drains fast.

Dendrobium malbrownii — Photo: Lewis Roberts, CC BY-SA 3.0, 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

Expects a seasonal restGrows on trees (epiphyte)

Where it grows wild

Grows in undisturbed rainforest on the McIlwraith Range, on small rocks, logs and tree trunks. It is both epiphytic and lithophytic, low in the forest where light is filtered and the air is humid.

GBIF records span 31–760 m, median 510 m (23 records with elevation). This is lowland to low-upland rainforest.

Queensland (McIlwraith Range, Cape York Peninsula)

🔒 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.