Another relatively new Coelogyne to the cultivated world, Coelogyne tommii was only officially described and named in 1999 by Gravendeel and O'Byrne and named after Mr Tommy Sng who cultivated the type specimen in Singapore. Very little else is known about this Coelogyne. It is thought to have originated in Malaysia but there is nothing on its distribution, altitude range or growing conditions. However, because it is closely related to the Speciosae Section which includes better known species such as Coelogyne speciosa, usitana and fragrans, it can be assumed to need similar conditions to these, i.e. a warm, moist environment.
The images above are of my first flowering of this small plant cutting. For some reason the first flower has opened upside down!. The thing I noticed first is that the spike of three to four flowers, is more upright and more like a nearly simultaneously opening cluster than the typical spikes on Coelogyne speciosa. The sepals are quite green and the lip colouring is an unimpressive muted milk chocolate. I had been expecting a fragrant flower but not so yet. This is its first flowering and it is too early to draw firm conclusions. I find that many plants develop much more favourably with a bit of maturity. My cutting (from David Banks) is growing in a humid glass house in Canberra from 80C to 300C and seems to be very easy going and happy to flower in these conditions.
Negatives: Although a good sized flower at about 8 cm across, it is not as impressive as other members of the Section Speciosae. However, it is different and is an excellent candidate if you are making a collection of Coelogynes.
Rating: ♦♦♦
Sometimes sold as: This plant's name has been changed from Coel tomiensis.
Varieties: None known
Hybrids: None registered
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