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Species library › Paphiopedilum › Paphiopedilum javanicum
Orchids Partly documented

Paphiopedilum javanicum

A mottled-leaved slipper orchid from the mountains of Java, Bali, Flores and Sumatra, with var. virens on Mount Kinabalu in Borneo. It grows on the ground in montane forest at about 750–2100 m, so it wants shade, cool to intermediate temperatures and steady moisture. It is listed as Endangered and wild populations are declining.

Paphiopedilum javanicum
Photo: Orchi, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
At home, aim for
Day IntermediateTargets in Plantistry
Night Close to the dayTargets in Plantistry
Humidity Ordinary room humidityBand in Plantistry
Light ShadeDLI and PPFD in Plantistry
No rest periodGrows in the ground

Where it grows wild

A terrestrial orchid of montane forest. Herbarium labels describe it in forest on Flores, and on Kinabalu on a steep south-facing slope on loamy soil near a large waterfall. Like other mottled-leaved Paphiopedilum it roots in humus and leaf litter on the forest floor under a closed or broken canopy. Published detail on its microhabitat is thin.

750–2100 m. Var. virens specimens from Kinabalu come from around Tenompok and the Penosok Plateau, in the mid-montane zone. Specimen labels in GBIF carry no elevations.

JavaBaliLesser Sunda IslandsSumatraBorneo

🔒 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.