Paphiopedilum wentworthianum
A rare slipper orchid from the mountains of Bougainville and Guadalcanal, with tessellated dark and light green leaves and a single flower up to about 8 cm across in late winter and spring. It grows in deep humus on shaded forest floors over volcanic rock at roughly 900 m and above, so it wants intermediate, evenly humid, shady conditions rather than the lowland heat of the islands. It is known as difficult in cultivation and very few plants remain in the wild.
Where it grows wild
Montane rainforest, rooting in deep layers of humus and leaf litter on the forest floor and over volcanic rock; sometimes described as a humus epiphyte. Plants sit in deep to moderate shade under a closed canopy with constantly moist, humid air.
Recorded at about 900 to 1800 m (the Internet Orchid Species Encyclopedia), with Wikipedia extending the upper limit to 2800 m. Our only measured site sits at 59 m, far below the real habitat.
🔒 Growing it like that
The wild conditions above, turned into targets for a shelf, a tent or a greenhouse. The full profile has:
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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.