Pleione Tongariro

Pleione 'Tongariro' is an exceptionally colourful hybrid variety, undoubtedly originating from the Formosan Pleione. This delicate terrestrial orchid charms with its early, vibrant pink flowers, which are large in relation to the plant. Its fuchsia pink flowers have a lip that is striped with purple-red and white. Cold-sensitive and requiring a dry winter rest, this pleione is more easily grown in a pot with an orchid substrate, which allows it to overwinter in good conditions. In regions with very mild winters, it can be installed between the stones of a semi-shaded rockery protected from winter rains.

Pleione 'Tongariro' is an Asian cultivar. Its wild ancestor, Pleione formosana, is a botanical species native to the subtropical mountain forests of Taiwan. In nature, it grows in the humus that accumulates between mossy rocks, and even in the hollow of a trunk, in a humid atmosphere. Therefore, it is a plant with specific soil and climate requirements. All Pleiones belong to the orchid family. These orchids are more easily cultivated in a cold greenhouse with a winter rest period. Pleiones can be grown in a well-drained soil mix like other garden orchids (Cypripediums, for example) with a few precautions, in temperate regions where winters are mild and summers are cool.

Pleione 'Tongariro' has a smooth, dark green to purple pseudobulb and develops deciduous foliage, absent in winter. An adult plant measures about 15-20cm (6-8in) in height. From the end of winter, sometimes already in March, the plant produces new young shoots. Flowering occurs in April, at the same time as the young leaves emerge from the ground. Each bulb produces one or two flowering stems, each carrying a solitary flower measuring about 8cm (3in). Each flower is composed of long sepals and petals of a very bright fuchsia pink, surrounding a large fringed trumpet-shaped lip of the same colour, striped with red and purple on a white background. After flowering, this orchid produces leaves and new pseudobulbs that arise from the initial pseudobulb. The 15cm (6in) long leaves are lanceolate and elliptical in shape, plicate and of medium green colour. In autumn, the leaves turn yellow and fall, and the plant enters winter dormancy. It survives thanks to the reserves contained in its pseudobulbs. In the following spring, the new bulbs formed will produce others, allowing the Pleione to grow over the years.

Plant Pleione 'Tongariro' in a partially shaded, wind-protected area, in an orchid substrate or a light, humus-rich, sandy soil that remains slightly moist from spring to the end of summer. Plant it in a fresh rockery between rocks, alongside Cypripedium, Bletilla, small ferns. Due to its low hardiness, it is essential to protect the base from winter moisture. This plant is often grown in large pots, which will be overwintered in a cold greenhouse with minimal watering.

Tips: After flowering, it is essential not to let the soil dry out, as this is when the pseudobulb grows and multiplies.

When you receive your orchids, handle them with care: these plants produce few roots and are delicate!