A Beautiful Coelia Orchid

Coelia bella is a great orchid species, both easy to grow __and easy to pronounce. Its charming purple, white, __and yellow flowers give off a light marzipan or almond oil fragrance.

To say Coelia, ignore the “o” and say Celia like the woman’s name, SEE-Lee-Ah. The second part of its Latin name, bella, translates as beautiful. In the wild, this species lives from southern Mexico through Central America in rainforests up to 5000 feet (1500 m) in elevation.

In addition to its lovely flowers, this orchid is also known for its distinctive, egg-shaped pseudobulbs (some of them look more like fat tomatoes than eggs!) My plant happily grows outdoors all year in a partly sunny area next to our house. I give it regular water, fertilizer, and a winter dormancy. This variety can handle a wide range of temperatures. It needs extra care during repotting to avoid damage to roots. The last photo below shows two fat pseudobulbs and a flower spike hanging out of the pot, indicating that my plant is overdue for repotting. But that obviously hasn’t slowed down the flower show on this beautiful Coelia.

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