Oncidium Aka Baby ‘Raspberry Chocolate’

Oncidium Aka Baby is the next generation of fragrant Oncidiums coming from the original ‘Chocolate Orchid’ (Oncidium Sharry Baby ‘Sweet Fragrance’).  Where Aka Baby is a major improvement over its parents Oncidioda Jimbo and Oncidium Sharry Baby is its clean foliage, compact spike and higher flower density.  Anyone that has grown Oncidium Sharry Baby ‘Sweet Fragrance’ will know about the black spots that form on it’s leaves under normal growing conditions.  The other problem to some people is the very tall flower spikes that can top 1500mm high, or 5 feet tall.  Aka Baby on the other hand grows with clean foliage and flower spikes that top out at 800 to 900mm high with more flowers on the spike.

Aka Baby does have a small amount of Cochlioda noezliana in it, technically making it an Oncidioda rather than a pure Oncidium.  This is readily apparent in Aka Baby’s darker green foliage and bulb when compared to other pure Oncidiums.  The best Oncidioda for this is Copper Scarab ‘Brass Brethren’ which have the darkest green foliage and bulb of anything I grow.

Oncidium Aka Baby was bred by Mr Arthur ‘Art’ Buckman of Hawaii and registered in 2008.  The cultivar ‘Raspberry Chocolate’ was awarded a HCC/AOS in October 2009 at Hilo, Hawaii.  There has only ever been the one cultivar (Raspberry Chocolate) produced commercially and I know of no other cultivars that were selected by Art Buckman.

This plant is a great grower, making it an excellent choice for any beginner.  With regular water (keep moist but well drained) and fertiliser it will often produce two new growths per bulb and sometimes two spikes per new growth, making it very prolific.  An older plant in the nursery flowered with an incredible 16 flower spikes and it was still in a 140mm pot.  We have found it tolerant of a wide range of temperatures from 4 to 42 Celsius.  Like most Oncidium Intergenerics it likes to be grown outdoors with good airflow but medium to high humidity.

The best part about Oncidium Aka Baby ‘Raspberry Chocolate’ is the fragrance, a wonderful light fragrance with slight chocolate overtones that can fill a house.