NEOFINETIA FALCATA 'SUIKADEN' 翠華殿 IN BLOOM

'Suikaden' 翠華殿 is a beautiful compact shaped FUUKIRAN with fairly large white flowers. One feature that makes it even more special - its sepals and spur retain their green tips after openning, although the green may be very subtle or dissipate as flowers age. As with all FUUKIRAN, the fragrance is very pleasant and strong.

Neofinetia falcata 'Suikaden' 翠華殿 displayed in a vintage Japanese pot painted with CHUNRAN motif (maker unknown)

Neofinetia falcata 'Suikaden' 翠華殿 flowers close up

LONG AWAITED FLOWERS OF NEOFINETIA FALCATA 'HISUI' 翡翠

One of my favorite blooming FUUKIRAN is 'Hisui' 翡翠. I have always been drawn to green flowers, as green highlights its lines and shapes like no other. Related to that, I love black and white photography, as its somehow able to focus my eye on details, otherwise overlooked in color photos.

As I gaze at the flowers, it is clear, why this FUUKIRAN was named 'Hisui' 翡翠 or jade. There is a Chinese saying: "gold has a value; jade is invaluable". Green is quite rare among FUUKIRAN, especially at the time when 'Hisui' 翡翠 was discovered in 1980's. Besides, Jade is the national stone of Japan.

Last thing I want to mention is its fragrance, which reminds me of european cyclamen (Cyclamen purpurascens). As with many FUUKIRAN, its scent gets much stronger during the eveningt.

Although, old blooming specimens will impress with their profusion of flowers and foliage, my very young plant photographed on the rainy day, transcends delicateness.

Neofinetia falcata 'Hisui' 翡翠 displayed in pot with beautiful jade crackled glaze by the famous Heian Kouzan.

Neofinetia falcata 'Hisui' 翡翠 flowers close up.

CHANGEFUL FLOWERS OF NEOFINETIA FALCATA 'KINGINRASHA' 金銀羅紗

A beautiful 'Kinginrasha' 金銀羅紗 is in bloom. My plant is very young with only one fan, yet it is blooming. Star shaped flowers are pure white with the spur rolled in a circle. Very nice and compact presentation!

Neofinetia falcata 'Kinginrasha' 金銀羅紗 displayed in a vintage pot by Koshousen, Yamaaki kiln, Tokoname, Japan.  

Another effective feature of this FUUKIRAN is pedicel (a steam that attaches flower to the inflorescence). The pedicel is green at the base, transitioning to reddish, followed by light yellowish green color before the flower.

Neofinetia falcata 'Kinginrasha' 金銀羅紗 flowers with colorful pedicels.

In addition, white flowers of 'Kinginrasha' 金銀羅紗 turn yellowish at the end of their life. Thus 'Kinginrasha' literally means "Gold and Silver Felt", where 'felt' refers to the ruff texture of the leaves. Flower yellowing is common among Neofinetias, the uncommon part is that the flowers of 'Kinginrasha' 金銀羅紗 while yellow preserve their shape for some time before wilting.

Freshly opened flowers of Neofinetia falcata 'Kinginrasha' 金銀羅紗 

Flowers turn yellow at the end of their blooming cycle.

NEOFINETIA FALCATA 'YAMATO NISHIKI' 大和錦 IN BLOOM

Fairly standard as far as its shape, white blossoms of Neofinetia falcata 'Yamato Nishiki' 大和錦 create a beautiful display above variegated foliage. What I like about this FUUKIRAN, is its fairly short and self supporting flowering spikes.

My plant is quite young, with only one mature and three immature growths, but it is promising to be an abundant bloomer in the future.

Neofinetia falcata 'Yamato Nishiki' 大和錦 displayed in an antique Uematsu Tosui pot with "cat's feet" legs

Close up of Neofinetia falcata 'Yamato Nishiki' 大和錦 flowers

Neofinetia falcata 'Yamato Nishiki' 大和錦 in bloom

GENTLE BLOOMS OF NEOFINETIA FALCATA 'KUTSUWAMUSHI' 轡虫

So delicate, flowers of 'Kutsuwamushi' 轡虫 are unique and very appealing. Every flower part, including the spur, tend to face upward. White, tinted with pink flowers give out a sweet aroma that gets stronger in the evening and through the night.

Neofinetia falcata 'Kutsuwamushi' 轡虫 displayed in a pot by Bigei (Hirata Atsumi) of Tokoname, Japan

Neofinetia falcata 'Kutsuwamushi' 轡虫 flowers close up

BLOOMING NEOFINETIA FALCATA 'SHOUJOU' 猩々

It is a beautiful spectacle, Neofinetia falcata 'Shoujou' 猩々 in bloom! Amethyst color tinted flowers are less common among typically white flowered FUUKIRAN. Even a young plant like mine, with only one spike and five flowers is a show stopper. The pale amethyst growing root tips coordinates beautifully with the amethyst tips of the sepals and petals. 

Blooming Neofinetia falcata 'Shoujou' 猩々 displayed in a Japanese pot by Youzan (Shimizu Masakazu) of Tokoname.

Neofinetia falcata 'Shoujou' 猩々 flower close-up

NEOFINETIA FALCATA 'TAMAKONGO' 玉金剛 IN BLOOM

It is finally in full bloom! A year later, recovered from a move, the orchid has put out two flowering spikes. This particular FUUKIRAN creates a beautiful compact display of MAMEBA type foliage and flowers with short spur. The showy look and sweet fragrance, combined with ease of growing, makes this FUUKIRAN one of the most desirable in my collection.

Another characteristic of this FUUKIRAN is long roots. The plant develops long branching roots and therefore best displayed in a tall pot, where its silvery roots can be fully appreciated.

Neofinetia falcata 'Tamakongo' 玉金剛 displayed in a pot made by Keiko Stusnick, Japanese-American potter

Neofinetia falcata 'Tamakongo' 玉金剛 flowers close up

A JEWEL AMONG THE ROOTS

One of the most striking root tips amongst the FUUKIRAN is known as "ruby". Although the color is of a bright amethyst. Check out the photo below. No description can do the justice of this striking color! After the winter's dormancy these brightly colored root tips appear from the steams of certain FUUKIRAN cultivars. As the roots continue to grow, the ruby tips are followed by the white root cover, known as velamen. Velamen is a protecting epidermal layer, characteristic of many air plants. One of the functions of which is to act as a sponge collecting moisture around the live root tissue beneath.

Growing root tips of Neofinetia falcata 'Houmeiden' 豊明殿

When the root active growth is paused or completed, the ruby root tips disappear until the next growth cycle.

Regular watering and higher humidity will attribute to a maximum root growth of FUUKIRAN awaken from a winter sleep.

ON THE CLOCK

During the past couple of weeks most of my FUUKIRAN woke up with new root growth. Also the flowering spikes have started to enlarge.

All my plants are located outdoors. The day time temperatures have stabilized above 75 to low 80s F (23-27 C) and in the 60s F (15s C) at night. The given light is bright filtered until about 2PM (under a tall live oak tree), then shade. Humidity fluctuates between 50-60% daytime and 98% at night.

All indicating the need for more often watering and fertilizing. I mostly use foliar / root spay with Super Biogold fertilizer.

Here are a few examples of an active root growth: