RPM1 wrote:

"theoneflasehaddock"


I'm sure, being in a house, there were a limited number of
Paphs that could have pollinated it.



I only have one Paph. The only other plants that have been
in bloom have been Milt. Ron's Rippling Delight, Vuyl Yokara
Perfection, Brsdm. Shooting Star Black Gold and of course the
Paph. The rest are a dozen assorted former trash rescue/hospital
patients which are now, with healthy growth and roots, ready for
pots. The Paph is extremely robust right now. I'd hate to
compromise it.



Well, that makes it easier... In general, no matter how hard you
try, even knowing one parent is insufficient to determine the other
parent, especially with hybrids. Not entirely true, depending on the
line of breeding (hybrids between two distinct species are pretty easy
to figure out). But, in your case, what you have is a selfing. None of
your other orchids could have pollinated your paphiopedilum. They just
can't. So, by deduction, the plant must have fertilized itself.

So, one of two things is probably going on. 1. Somehow you managed
to get the pollen from your plant on the stigma of your plant. This is
usually difficult without trying to do it. Sometimes it is difficult
even if you try to do it... 2. You don't actually have a seed pod.
Sometimes the ovary (the part right behind the flower) hangs on, looks a
little swollen, and stays green for a long time after the flower parts
have fallen. There aren't actually any seeds in there. I'd wager that
you are seeing exhibit (2). There is a finite chance that it was
pollinated when you bought it, if it was in bloom, but unlikely if the
flower lasted a long time in your hands.

However. If you have a robust plant, and you thought the flower was
excellent, you will be safe in leaving the 'pod' on the plant until you
know one way or the other. Make a label that says "Paph. Macabre x
self", and wire it to the stem so it doesn't get lost. It is Macabre,
right? Even better, name your particular plant, like this: Paph.
Macabre "Rob Said So" (you can choose your own clonal name). Then your
tag looks like: Paph. Macabre "Rob Said So" x self. You can give a
clonal name to any plant you choose, it goes in quotation marks, and the
major benefit to this is that (someday, when you are doing this more
often) you will know which one of your many Macabres you used to make
that particularly stunning set of seedlings.

You will know you have seeds when the capsule dehisces (drys out and
splits open). Dry powdery seeds will fall out, and you can tap them out
onto a sheet of white paper. Sow/flask/admire as you see fit. They are
really, really small, but each seed is indeed visible to the naked eye,
if you look close. There is no guarantee (and there never is) that this
seed is viable (alive). If you get seedlings, you may safely label them
as Paph. Macabre. Macabre x Macabre is still Macabre (it isn't good
science, but it is the rules). If you get seed, and you are still
interested in trying to get baby orchids, there are plenty of resources
on the web that tell you how to do it, more than a few books, or you
could just drop me a line and I'll give you some more information.

Have fun!

Rob

--
Rob's Rules: http://www.msu.edu/~halgren
1) There is always room for one more orchid
2) There is always room for two more orchids
2a. See rule 1
3) When one has insufficient credit to purchase
more orchids, obtain more credit