Pleurothallis tribuloides

Photo
Pleurothallis tribuloides is a mini plant, leaves to only about 2"
tall. It is a clumper, forming a dense clump of closely packed
growths. The blooms eminate from a small sheath surrounding
the base of each leaf, with no evident spike. The blooms are
small, perhaps 3/8", generally a dull crimson red in color, and
somewhat resemble a closed crab claw. I refer to this plant as
being "sneaky" as the blooms seemingly just appear with no
warning. The plant may stay in bloom for as long as 2 years,
perhaps longer, with only a very short break taken between
waves of blooms. After the cycle is completed, the plant will
generally wait until the next Spring before starting another cycle.

This is a very easy plant to grow and bloom. While the best
growth seems to occur when the plant is kept just damp, the
plant actually seems to prefer dry periods in order to bloom at
it's best. Our own plant is 5 years old, mounted, and is only
watered once per week. The area is in bright shade and rather
humid, generally 70-90%. The plant seems resistant to most
organisms that might harm it. We therefore do not include the
plant in our normal pesticide/fungicide regime, there being no
particular reason to poison the plant unnecessarily. 

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