The upright spike on my cutting has literally taken months to open. It protruded from its developing leaf shoot all winter with very little sign of any activity until the warm weather of spring arrived. However, it was well worth the wait. It is certainly an attractive example of one of the so-called 'white' orchids and the flowers are long lasting (1 month).

It is difficult and confusing to separate this plant from other members within the group Section Ocellatae - so named and grouped together because the lip has eye-shaped spots. In this case, the erect inflorescence grows from the top of a mature growth whereas others grow from the base of existing psuedobulbs with the new growth. Other well known examples in this group include Coelogyne nitida and Coelogyne corymbosa.

Like other members of its group, it is cold growing from high altitudes ranging from the Himalayas , Nepal, NE India, Burma and into Yunnan in China.

Negatives: This is a difficult plant to acquire and I have not seen it on sale anywhere. It seems to be fairly slow growing so is not likely to get divided very often. You can generally only get hold of one through generous personal contacts but they are out there.

Rating: ♦♦♦  Unless you are a collector I would recommend that you purchase Coelogyne nitida. It is much more available, more easily grown, more free flowering, has more perfume and very attractive. However, don't ever pass up the opportunity to grab a Coel punctulata if you get the chance and have the room.

Sometimes sold as: None known

Varieties: None known

Hybrids: None registered

 

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