Orchids -- Keikei

 

I love orchids and have been growing them for several years.  There is a spot above my kitchen sink that they seem to like so I have some flowers all year round.  Something I have read about but never seen is a keikei.  Keikeis are new little orchid plants that start from a node on a flower spike.  There is even a special keikei paste that can be applied to joints on the spikes to force a keikei to sprout but it is not always successful.  It is pretty rare for a keikei to spontaneously start growing from a spike so you can imagine my excitement when my friend, Bob, asked me to water his orchids and I noticed a keikei growing on one of his plants. 

I took a couple of photos from different angles.  Here above and below it is possible to see the keikei roots, those long silvery green things sticking out from the top of the plant.  Usually they are hanging out at the bottom of the plant like those draped over the lip of the pot. 

This picture above shows a closer view where the roots are below the brand new leaves.  The keikei should have been planted in its own pot before now but we will do that tomorrow and hope that the new little plant will thrive packed in a small container filled with soft moist moss. 

The baby orchid in its new pot

Then one day it will put forth its own flowers and look like this Phalaenopsis or Moth Orchid but probably be all white instead of purple/pink or polka dotted.