Paphiopedilum charlesworthii
A compact slipper orchid from limestone hills in the Shan States of Myanmar and neighbouring north-west Thailand, Yunnan and Assam, known for its broad, flat, rose-pink dorsal sepal. It roots into humus and leaf debris lodged on limestone at about 1200–1600 m, where a mild, wet monsoon summer alternates with a cool, drier winter. Grow it as a cool-to-intermediate paphiopedilum with a slightly drier, cooler winter.
Where it grows wild
Grows in pockets of humus and vegetative debris on limestone rocks and outcrops in seasonally dry hill forest, usually in shade or broken light under shrubs and trees. It is sometimes described as epiphytic or semi-terrestrial, but its typical home is lithophytic on limestone.
Literature gives about 1200–1600 m; a 2021 record from Lampang, Thailand is at 1150 m. Our wild GBIF set has no usable records for this species.
🔒 Growing it like that
The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:
Grow Paphiopedilum charlesworthii? Add it to a free garden and its full profile opens. Pro opens all 38,374 profiles in the library, plants and fungi.
More Paphiopedilum
Profiles are drafts built from measured range and climate and from published sources; each section carries its own confidence in the app.