The Red Orchid Tree is a rambling shrub or a climber with beautiful terracotta red flowers. The flowers have 5 spreading, clawed petals with slightly ruffled margins. They are pollinated by insects and by birds in the wild. It is very showy when in flower. Flowers late summer through early winter. It is evergreen or semi-deciduous. It has bi-lobed, grayish-green leaves that look like butterflies. Grows up to 10 feet tall and up to 25 feet wide. It is hardy in zones 9-12 so it can be grown in Central and Southern Florida and in southern California. Native to the De Kaap Valley in South Africa. Also known as the Pride of De Kaap.
Growing Instructions for the Red Orchid Tree
The seeds have a hard seed coat that has to be treated, or scarified, in order for water to enter the seeds so that they can sprout. 1. Scarify the seeds by nicking or sanding the seed coat. The seeds can be sanded with sandpaper, a nail file or an emery board. 2. Soak the seed in warm water for several hours. 3. The seeds like moist, well-drained soil. Prepare a mixture of half potting soil and half sand, perlite or vermiculite. Put the soil in a pot. Water the mixture so that it is moist but not wet. 4. Put the seeds on the soil. 5. Cover the seeds with a thin layer of soil. 6. Water the seeds. 7. Place the pots in an area with warm temperatures in full sun or part shade. The seeds have erratic germination and may take 2-6 weeks to sprout. 8. When the seedlings are a few inches tall, they can be transplanted.