Looks perfect!!

The 2nd phal. is beginning to open up on the pygmy date palms
The 3rd one will open any day now. I'm so glad my experiment worked. I love seeing these blooms!

I'm going to buy myself a palm! 😂so my phals will bloom great like that!

Me too!

I have two clumps of Pygmy palms, but they're way out at the end of our driveway. I'm afraid either people would swipe my orchids, or I would forget to water them way out there. I'd also only see them when I'm driving in and out, I really don't go out into the front yard very often. Hmm, there is a nice palm outside the back gate, though . . .

It would be hard for someone to steal the orchid once it has attached. They could cut the bloom off, but the roots of these phals have attached so firmly that it definately would be a challenge to remove them.

I went and looked at both the Pygmys out front, and the Sabal palms (there are two!) outside the back gate. The Sabals are a better candidate to host the Phals, I think. They already have some broms in the bottom boots, and I could put the Phals high enough up that a casual passer-by couldn't snatch them (before they get well attached. Plus they'll get watered more dependably than out front, since I do spray the broms on there with the hose occasionally when it's dry.

That looks like a perfect set up Elaine.

A perfect situation. If you start phals. that aren't blooming it will give them a chance to set roots and no one would be the wiser to them. I've been looking for discounted phals to add to the collection. The first time I saw orchids growing on palms was when I lived in the Bahamas and found them to just be so magical looking, but I wasn't sure it would work here in my zone. So I'm so happy they do. The palms can get a little boring looking but now I have air plants , staghorn ferns, spider plants, other assorted ferns, and hoya growing on them and it definately adds more interest to them

Not in a grocery store, this was unusual to me

Wow, cool markings on that one!

it caught my eye, but so did the $40 tag on it. That place can be pricey but it has a good selection and takes care of things.

Spots and stripes.

Green spots…. Result of some infection???? There are some dark spots within the green portion….

That is odd, I don't think I have seen this before.
Did you use fresh water on your otherwise nice looking blooms?

Sorry, travel day yesterday.

Yes, ~weekly using mostly tap water, sometimes rain water, misting around the base most days. Very strange.

Weird!
calling Nick, @Catpaworchids any ideas?

Oh, I am terribly sorry that I did not see this earlier everyone. This is certainly strange and something I have not seen before.
Is it just on a single flower? It is not mechanical, not a fungus, not bacterial, not insect damage. It is not something like either sunburn or a chemical burn.
So what does this leave? Algae? Not likely but it reminds me of water spots. But if they are, why turn green?
Botrytis is a possibility. That arises from humid situations with little or poor air movement. Botrytis is really noticeable on white flowers, often Cattleyas or Phalaenopsis. Tiny black spots that mar the flower and don't rub off is classic Botrytis.
But honestly the green leaves me clueless.

Does the grower have a fan gently blowing on the orchids? Stagnate, stale air is not good for orchids. A nice airy, buoyant atmosphere is ideal!

Could it be just random mutation on a possibly over cloned plant? Reminds me of the cool flares you sometimes see in Cattleya.

Well random mutations can be found for sure within orchids.

The cool flares, darts, tri-lobed lips, can trace their origins back to rare or unusual species. There is a form of Doritis pulcherrima with triple lips. There is a form of Phalaenopsis equestris with triple or peloric lips
My mind is blank at the moment but the recent big lipped or 'butterfly lipped' Phalaenopsis come from a fairly recently discovered species with that attribute.
Look at Cattleya intermedia 'acquinea' as producing peloric Cattleyas, Cattleyas with petals mimicking the lip. Think of Cattleya intermedia 'orlata' having that extra dark color to parts of the flower.
Vuylstekeara (sp.?) Cambria 'Plush' versus Vuylstekeara Cambria 'Lansing's Favorite'. Same hybrid, same parents yet Lansing's Favorite was proven to be a sport or mutation of Plush!!!
Food for thought!!!???
Unless this could possibly be some type of breakdown of the genes within a Harlequin Phalaenopsis some how? What does everyone think?



This image is not exactly what I mean by Harlequin Phalaenopsis but we perhaps remember this Phalaes that had extra tissue on the petals and sepals. It kind of gave them a corduroy texture to the tissue, wrinkled or ribbed like corduroy.
I am sure many of us have seen these spotted white Phalaenopsis with bright amethyst spots randomly on the flowers?? Maybe a mutation from that type of mass produced Phalaenopsis? But to see random, kind of greenish free form blotches appear, I just have no idea.

Which is why I am wondering if the green is some kind of organic stain on the flower? It is a puzzle!!!