I have a lovely double petaled pink and white tropical Hibiscus that I'd like to trade for a large blooming size Paph or Phrag or something related to Catts. If you dont have a large plant, I'll take 2 smaller ones as long as they are blooming size. Or, whatever, I love all orchids, so I can be flexible! The hibiscus is about 24 inches tall, and the three trunks (each is slightly larger than a pencil in diamter) are "woven" together as a braid into a single trunk. The mass of leaves and flowers is about the size of a basketball, and there are a dozen open flowers and twice that many buds. The flowers are about 3 inches across and are double flowers, which resembles a carnation. The flowers are white and pink, with the edges a bright rose-like pink. I'm happy to email some pics if you'd like. I'll pay for shipping and heat packets for the hibiscus to you, and you do the same for the orchid to me. Joseph Salt Lake City

I hate to be the naysayer, but other than that leaf tip, your plant looks awfully happy. I agree that if it fertilizer burn or something of that sort, you'd think you'd see it on more than one leaf. Then again, if you had a disease or something, you'd think that might be more than the tip of one leaf as well. I'd consider lopping much more of that leaf off, if it concerns you. That's a pretty big sized plant - personally I wouldn't worry about saving one leaf if you think that leaf has something funky going on.

Hey! I'm in N.C. as well. I wouldn't be surprised if I know of your local source. Those large multifloral paphs can take years to bring to blooming size, and even then, it can be years between blooming even on large, established plants. If the plant has 3 buds, it sounds to me like this is the first time it has bloomed, as I would expect to see 4-5 flowers on a mature, previously bloomed Lady Isabel. So, you're taking a chance on the plant -- it might be a blockbuster award quality plant or it could end up a total dud. Keep in mind though, that even if the flowers are very high quality, it's unlikely to be awardable with only 3 blooms. The next thing to consider is, do you currently grow any other large multifloral paphs and have you been pretty successful with them? These guys take up a lot of space and can be a bit tricky, especially compared to the easier paphs like the Maudiae types and the sequential multiflorals. If you have little experience with the large multiflorals, then you may have to consider the fact that you're paying $90 to own this thing while it is in bloom, and you may never see it bloom again or it may be many, many years at the very least. As long as you know what you're doing, it sounds like your growing conditions could work for the plant. These guys like lots of light, very good air flow, and warm temps. The caveat to that is that many people who grow roth hybrids mention that in order to induce the plants to bloom, they need to have a very wide shift in day/night temperatures, otherwise you end up with an expensive foliage plant. In all honesty, without seeing the plant or knowing which roth and stonei cultivars were used in its breeding, it's hard to say if $90 is a good price or not. Certainly, I've seen blooming Lady Isabels for far more than $90, and I've seen them go for as little as $65. So, under the assumption that this thing has good parents from a reputable breeder, $90 is likely to be a fair price. Personally, I wouldn't buy it, despite being a slipper guy, but that's because I have to avoid the big growers and I prefer things that bloom at least once a year in my conditions, and most of the multiflorals do not bloom that often when grown under fluorescent lights.

Here are some images to pour through while you are waiting for a definitive word. I think you may have nailed the ID on your own. On page 16 of the link is P. Villosum. Here is a link that might be useful: http://paphiopedilums.netfirms.com/