Coelogyne mooreana.
No common name.
Not often grown the Coelogyne family of orchids has about 140 different species that come from India, through southeast Asia, southwest China, the Philippines, and the islands of Indonesia to as far east as New Guinea and islands of the southern and eastern Pacific. Some are quite tropical in needs but about seventy five percent come from the higher country where it is relatively cool. This means that they can grow out of doors in our warmer northern areas.
Coelogyne mooreana (sorry it doesn’t have a common name) comes from about 1300 metres up in the Lang Bien Mountains of Vietnam. It grows as an epiphyte on trees and even on rocks where there is plenty of air movement.
Flowers appear on up to 40cm upright spikes in the early spring to early summer. These spikes are about the same height as the leaves. The four to seven flowers, up to 8 cms across are pure to crystal white with a golden yellow blotch on the mid-lobe of the lip. They tend to all open gradually up the stem and will last for four to six weeks. They are lightly scented.
The pseudo bulbs are tightly clustered and are crowned by two shiny-green blade-like leaves.
I find that my plant growing in a pot needs no special care as long as it is in light shade. New growth starts at the same time as flowering. If you can find one this orchid is worth trying to naturalise in the garden.