Miltoniopsis Lillian Nakamoto ‘Tanto’

This is one of the best Miltoniopsis for beginners and also one of the more unusual ones for its flowering. After growing Tanto for the last 6 years I’ve found it to be one of the most tolerant Miltoniopsis for the summer period in South East Queensland. This plant will happily keep growing during December and January before its main flowering season from late January through to April or May. Now those of you that grow Miltoniopsis will straight away notice that this flowering season is very different from the majority of Miltoniopsis, which is August through to December. The photos show a large specimen Lillian Nakamoto growing in a 175mm pot (7 inch).

That pure white flower with the black eye is just an eye catcher, and comes with a light rose fragrance. You will occasionally see Tanto’s with a little bit of pink blush above the black eye, this usually occurs if the flowers have developed during the cooler months of the year.  As you can see by one photo that was taken in a much cooler climate, that pink blush will really develop under cooler conditions.

Tanto prefers a coco/perlite potting mix that retains moisture between watering but is free draining, as the last thing you want to do is sit a Miltoniopsis in water. Miltoniopsis do very well where their roots are kept cool during the summer months and have plenty of humidity around them, so the pot in pot technique is recommended. Pot in pot is where you place a terracotta pot (larger than your specimen orchid pot) in a tray of water, and then fill the inside of the terracotta pot with gravel, on which is placed your specimen orchid pot above the water level. The water will evaporate up through the terracotta pot and keep the roots cooler and surrounded by very high humidity, something that Miltoniopsis love. They also don’t like to be out in the rain, so are best in a covered greenhouse or growing location so that the foliage stays dry.