Brassia caudata aka Cricket Orchid

Brassia caudata is native to the tropical Americas. Its range extends from southern Mexico (Chiapas, Campeche, Quintana Roo, Tabasco, and Veracruz) through Central America (Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama) and the Caribbean (Cuba, Hispaniola, Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago) to northern South America (Venezuela, Colombia, the Guianas, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, and Brazil). It also occurs as a native in southern Florida, making it one of the few Brassia species naturally found in the United States. In habitat it grows as an epiphyte on exposed tree trunks in tropical rainforest from sea level up to about 1,200 meters.

As an epiphyte, Brassia caudata should not be grown in regular potting soil. The American Orchid Society recommends a medium-grade epiphyte mix — typically fir bark, sometimes blended with charcoal and perlite — in either a pot or a slatted basket so roots can breathe and drain freely. The mix should hold light moisture briefly between waterings without staying soggy.

Brassia caudata tolerates a fairly wide temperature range in habitat, from hot to cool conditions, but the American Orchid Society's general guidance for the genus is intermediate temperatures (roughly 60–80 °F / 15–27 °C). It comes from elevations spanning sea level to 1,200 meters in tropical rainforests, so it adapts to typical warm household conditions as long as nighttime temperatures drop slightly to encourage blooming.

Brassia caudata grows in tropical rainforest, so it appreciates moderate to high humidity. The American Orchid Society advises maintaining consistent moisture in the growing media and around the roots without ever letting the medium become waterlogged. Standard orchid humidity (50–70%) is generally suitable.

The flowers of Brassia caudata are fragrant and long-lasting.

Each flower is roughly 1.5 inches (3.75 cm) wide but up to 6 inches (15 cm) long, owing to dramatically elongated, spider-like tepals — the genus-wide trait that gives Brassia its common name 'spider orchid'. Flowers are borne on lateral, unbranched, many-flowered racemes that emerge from the base of the pseudobulbs. The lip is not attached to the column, and blooms are fragrant and long-lasting.

Repot Brassia caudata into a medium-grade epiphyte mix in a pot or basket. The American Orchid Society advises repotting only after new root growth begins, following the emergence of new shoots — that timing avoids stressing the plant when it is most active and lets the new roots anchor into fresh medium quickly.

In the wild, Brassia caudata is pollinated by female spider-hunter wasps in the genera Pepsis and Campsomeris. The wasp mistakes the elongated lip for a spider, repeatedly stinging and trying to grasp it; during this struggle the pollinia attach to the wasp and are carried to the next flower. Most Brassia species — including this one — show a rapid post-pollination syndrome, with flower color fading soon after the anther is dislodged.

In its native tropical and subtropical range — from southern Florida and the Caribbean through Central America to northern South America — Brassia caudata grows outdoors as an epiphyte on tree trunks in rainforest from sea level to about 1,200 meters. Outside the tropics it is not frost-hardy and must be grown indoors, in a warm greenhouse, or moved outside only during the warm months.