Lepanthes blepharistes

Tiny flowers on a very small plant.  I underwatered this one for a while, and the leaves look just terrible.  It's starting to come back - In a month or two it will look nice enough to photograph.

Scaphosepalum rapax

Warty, weird and wonderful.  The Scaphosepalums are sequential bloomers.  I had seen pictures of the flowers of this species before, but never realized what size the plant is.  It's a real gem, compact and floriferous.

Trisetella gemmata

The first Trisetella I ever saw was T. heubneri (triglochin). It was in J and L Orchids' display at the Milwaukee Orchid Society show in 1984. I fell in love, but I was afraid to try such a small and frail-looking plant. I got this one from J and L, and it has done pretty well for me. It seems a little slow to establish, but now that it has taken hold, it appears to be doing fine.

I'm interested to see how my definitions have changed, too.  I remember thinking of this as a "tiny" orchid.  Now that I'm growing it, I think of it as "mid-sized" with "large" blooms.

The Trisetellas were formerly a part of the Masdevallia complex, and were one of the earlier genera split off from that group.

Lepanthes aeora

Lepanthes aeora, originally uploaded by Duane McDowell.

This is the first really mature Lepanthes in my collection. I got it from Orchids Limited here in the Twin Cities. It has been in bloom continuously for months now, and is always growing. It is a very vigorous plant. From Ecuador.
Also available from Ecuagenera at: http://www.ecuagenera.com

Lepanthes gratiosa

Lepanthes gratiosa, originally uploaded by Duane McDowell.

Another Costa Rican beauty. Beautiful foliage, great vigor.

Lepanthes fimbriata

Lepanthes fimbiata, originally uploaded by Duane McDowell.

The colors on this are just amazing. Strong growing plant, looks like it will be in bloom a lot!

Porroglossum meridionale (lip up)

Porroglossum meridionale (lip up), originally uploaded by Duane McDowell.

Porr. meridionale is one of my favorite orchids to grow. Beautiful pebbly leaves with red netting, sequential blooms several times per year, and great presentation. For me, it's been a very easy grower, doubling in size every few months.
The lip is "spring-loaded." When an insect lands on the lip, the lip snaps up, smashing the bug into the column. This dislodges the pollen onto the bug's back, and if the bug has already been on another flower, this bloom gets pollinated. The bug is released unharmed after this undignified treatment. It must be a good system - they keep coming back for more... Maybe its like a bug roller-coaster ride...

Lepanthopsis acetabulum

Lepanthopsis acetabulum, originally uploaded by Duane McDowell.

My first blooming of this species - it has ten spikes! Very difficult to photograph - I'll have to keep trying. The flowers are relatively small....
The name means "vinegar cup."

Lepanthes chameleon

Lepanthes chameleon, originally uploaded by Duane McDowell.

My first bloom on this species. Robust plant, seems like a strong grower. It's throwing lots and lots of spikes - looks like it will be a very showy member of the collection!

Lepanthes erinacea

Lepanthes erinacea, originally uploaded by Duane McDowell.

Really fun everblooming species. I love the leaf shape, too.

Lepanthes telipogoniflora

Lepanthes telipogoniflora, originally uploaded by Duane McDowell.

I just can't get enough of this one. Tiny little plant with massive flowers (well, fingernail-sized anyway). Grows easily and blooms all the time.

Pleurothallis species - Andes above Mindo, Ecuador

Pleurothallis species - Andes above Mindo, Ecuador, originally uploaded by Duane McDowell.
Growing terrestrially in full sun at high altitude. I don't know the taxonomy of this group well enough to know if I've even got the right genus...  I think a lot of these are considered Stelis now.  Definitely a tough plant - this was a harsh environment.

Myoxanthus reymondii - Hacienda La Bravera, Merida, Venezuela

Myoxanthus reymondii - Hacienda La Bravera, Merida, Venezuela, originally uploaded by Duane McDowell.

Scaphosepalum merinoi

Scaphosepalum merinoi, originally uploaded by Duane McDowell.

Great sequential bloomer. The plant is 4-5" tall and the blooms are about 2" across. It throws lots of spikes all the time, so it's almost always in bloom. I grow it on the cool side of intermediate in my terrarium. The spikes are a little long (8-10"), but they run out horizontal from the base of the plant, so they don't bump up against the top of the terrarium.
http://www.ecuagenera.com

Masdevallia mendozae

Masdevallia mendozae, originally uploaded by Duane McDowell.

Hugely floriferous species, very easy to grow. The plant is about 4" tall, and the blooms are about 2" long.
http://www.ecuagenera.com

Duane McDowell: Muscarella species

Duane McDowell: Muscarella species: "Muscarella species P03901, originally uploaded by Duane McDowell.Easy to see how these little guys might arouse the romantic interests of bu..."

Lepanthes aeora (Side view)

Lepanthes aeora (Side view), originally uploaded by Duane McDowell.

This is an everblooming and very vigorous plant. It's not terribly showy (except in close-up), but it's a joy.
I grow it on tree fern in the terrarium.
http://www.ecuagenera.com

Restrepia cuprea 'Eichenfels'

Restrepia cuprea 'Eichenfels', originally uploaded by Duane McDowell.

Nice big flowers (about 1 1/2") on a 4" plant. I love the rich coppery color in the fused sepals.
It blooms off and on all year.
I grow this at the greenhouse at the University, which is a little warmer than would be optimal. To make up for the excess heat, I grow it in a clay pot which I have tucked inside another clay pot. I have sphagnum moss in between the two, which keeps the roots of the plant nice and cool. It seems to work quite well.
I set a pod on this recently, but I didn't harvest it in time - it split in 35 days; lots of seed... I'll have to remake the cross.

Platystele orectoglossa - Ecuador

Platystele orectoglossa - Ecuador, originally uploaded by Duane McDowell.

Another nice miniature. I grow it in the terrarium on the cool side of intermediate. I love the blooms and how long it stays in flower. The spikes get a little rangy after a while - I cut them off when they start looking ratty.
This one came from Orchids Limited here in MN (http://www.orchidweb.com)
Originally from Ecuagenera (http://www.ecuagenera.com).

Lepanthes calodictyon

Lepanthes calodictyon, originally uploaded by Duane McDowell.

This is the most commonly grown of the Lepanthes species.  It is one of the easiest to grow well, and it blooms just about continuously.  It is, of course, grown primarily for its foliage.  I grow mine in a small chunk of tree fern that I've drilled a hole in.  I wrapped the roots in sphagnum and put them into the hole in the tree fern, so it's really like a small tree fern pot.
I grow on the cool side of intermediate in a terrarium.  I water daily.
http://www.ecuagenera.com