Chiloschista trudelii outcross #5558 and 5559 (approximately 15 seedlings per flask).

Species: In 2018 plants of this species came into the US with the name Chiloschista nakornpanomensis, which was not a published name. It is from Vietnam but without a specified location. In late 2022 it was described as the new species Chiloschista trudelii. Like all Chiloschista species it is a leafless plant that occassionall produces a few leaves. The inflorescense is frequently branched making for a nice full presentation as can bere seen in the last image below. It is fragrant, though I would describe the fragrance something close to scorched plastic. Fortunantly, it is only noticeable when very close to the flowers. It has been an easy grower.

Culture: These are best grown mounted so they dry quickly and have lots of air around the roots. Traditionally they are grown with little or now moisture retentive material at the roots. I grow these in a warm greenhouse (minimum winter nights of 65F, days are 80 to 85F) in moderately bright light. They should do well in intermediate conditions also. For most of the year they are watered daily with dilute fertilizer and are dry within an hour or two. During the winter they get misted every few days and watered occasionally. As the plants get larger, they can put on quite a display. In nature they do experience a month or so in late winter to early spring that is quite dry. But I haven’t tried replicating that in cultivation.

Starting Chiloschista from flask: For small plants, I have found that they are most easily dealt with by taking them out of flask and laying them in a tray lined with landscape fabric or even window screen. If the humidity is adequate there is no moss or medium, just the fabric. They do not root onto the fabric so they are easy to remove later. When they have reached a good size they can simply be mounted on what every you choose. I use cork, oak or other hard wood. They can, of course, be mounted directly out of flask if you prefer.

Chiloschista trudelii: I wasn't careful labeling the images of the parents so show several different plants from my collection that represent the species well.