Pleurothallis restrepioides

Pleurothallis restrepioides is a medium-sized pleurothallid from wet montane forest in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, recorded from around 800 to 2900 metres. Large, glossy, elliptical leaves are topped by one or two racemes of purple-spotted flowers, each with a lip that rolls into a short tube at the tip.

What to expect

• Flowers: Several to many per raceme, heavily spotted in purple, held above the leaf.
• Plant: Upright stems, each carrying a single large, glossy leaf. No pseudobulbs.
• Tolerance: Its wide natural altitude range makes it one of the more forgiving pleurothallids in cultivation.

Growing notes

• Temperature: Cool to intermediate. Avoid prolonged heat above the high 20s.
• Light: Shade to filtered light. No direct sun.
• Water: Keep evenly moist. With no pseudobulbs to store water, it should not dry out completely.
• Humidity & air: High humidity with steady air movement.

About the name

Also listed as Stelis restrepioides and Elongatia restrepioides. Kew currently accepts Pleurothallis restrepioides.

Shipping & condition

Supplied at flowering size – either a mature plant or a division from a plant that has already flowered – grown on in the Dandenong Ranges. Plants are packed on Sunday and sent on Monday. Buds and flowers cannot be guaranteed at time of shipping due to seasonal and environmental factors.