Otaara Haleahi Embers is a compact orchid of the cattleya alliance that produces spikes with clusters of golden to red-orange glowing blossoms. The progeny of Blc. Golden Tang and Ctna. Why Not, a complex hybrid, has bloomed with a wide variation of blossoms with intricate details unique to each individual. This cross has produced a surprising amount of uniformity in terms of plant size and blossom size, but no two flowers seem to share identical details from plant to plant.

Golden orange blossoms with intricately laced edges in burnt orange to berry red blossoms dotted in maroon are just two of the possibilities coming out of this cross. This is an example of a cross that hobbyists might adore and what the commercial grower may not.

I've often been told by orchid hybridizers that the goal of the orchid breeder is to produce uniform hybrids, that is, orchid plants that grow and produce blossoms like one another. Just recently I ran into an orchid grower/breeder who had acquired our Blc. Haleahi Profusion and was wondering if we had more seedlings. His comment was how great the hybrid was, stressing how uniform and clone-like it was. Otaara Haleahi Embers goes contra to this concept, where finding two identical blossoms is almost impossible. It still amazes me how much difference can be expressed from the same parents and yet all the siblings are similar in general sense.

Although the goal for many orchid producers may be to grow only uniform orchids, there is definitely something to be said about complexity and individuality, for example the human race.

Well, on second thought. maybe after cloning humans gets underway the general populace might want to just order exactly what they want, rather than taking the chance on a unique surprise.