Significant Characteristics of a Cooktown Orchid

Color

• Cooktown orchids bloom in colors that vary from a delicate pinkish-mauve to deep lavenders and purples. In the wild, the flowers of Cooktown orchids bloom on racemes that measure 200 to 400 mm in length, but cultivated varieties can grow much larger. White, blue or spotted Cooktown orchids are a rare find, but like their lilac counterparts, they feature the distinctive dark purple spot at the base of their labellums that helps identify the species.

Size

• Vappodes phalaenopsis plants can grow to reach heights of up to 80 cm when established on one of their preferred mediums: loose bark or charcoal or live tree branches or trunks. Healthy Cooktown orchids produce up to 20 flowering canes that reach lengths between 10 and 40 centimeters, and each flower is typically between 3 and 6 cm wide. On the upper part of the plant's pseudobulbs, three to six lance-shaped leaves will sprout to lengths of about 12 cm.

Bloom Time

• Cooktown orchids usually flower during Queensland's dry season, which lasts from March through July. Wild Cooktown orchids produce flowers for up to six weeks through the Australian fall and winter, with individual flowers reaching widths of up to six centimeters. Cooktown orchids bloom best in sunny, well-drained areas of Queensland's northern coast, with large plants carrying up to 20 individual flowers at a time.

Habitat

• Vappodes phalaenopsis is a native orchid to the tropical northern region of Queensland, Australia, and its common name comes from the state's town of Cooktown. The natural range of the Cooktown orchid rests in far northern Queensland and includes the area from the Endeavour River Valley, south to the Font Hills and west of Mount Molloy. The preferred habitats of the Cooktown orchid include coastal scrub on rocks and trees, mangroves and swamps, rainforests, gullies and thickets.