Fredclarkeara After Dark ‘SVO Black Pearl' FCC/AOS

'SVO Black Pearl’ is the best of the ‘black flowered’ types, when mature it produces 2-3 pendent inflorescences per bulb, caring 12-18 flowers each and is one of the best growers (right photo).

Fredclarkeara After Dark ‘Sunset Valley Orchids' FCC/AOS

‘Sunset Valley Orchids’ FCC/AOS is the best of the ‘spotted flowered’ types, it produces 1-2 pendent inflorescences per bulb, caring 12-18 flowers, it is an excellent grower and the spotted flowers are amazingly beautiful (left photo).

(Fdk. After Dark ‘SVO’ FCC/AOSx Ctsm. John C. Burchett ‘Ursa Major’ FCC/AOS)

Fdk. After Dark ‘SVO’ (Mo. Painted Desert x Ctsm. Donna Wise) is a spectacular spotted flower of superb shape, presentation and size. By crossing it with the highly awarded Ctsm. John C. Burchett (Ctsm. Joao Stivalli x Ctsm. Susan Fuchs) with its huge flat lip and rich dark burgundy color will add size and shape to this cross. I can’t imagine a better pairing. Tremendous award potential, with long lasting flowers.   (SVO 2022)

(Fdk. After Dark ‘SVO Amazing’ x Ctsm. John C. Burchett ‘Ursa Major’ FCC/AOS)

Fdk. After Dark ‘SVO Amazing’ (Mo. Painted Desert x Ctsm. Donna Wise) is the most fertile of the Fdk. After Darks, it is always holding pods so it has never been shown; its flowers are every bit as good as the awarded FCC’s. The flowers are heavily blotched dark burgundy, have superb shape, excellent presentation and size. The highly awarded Ctsm. John C. Burchett (Ctsm. Joao Stivalli x Ctsm. Susan Fuchs) with its huge flat lip and rich dark burgundy color is truly outstanding. Expect larger, fuller and dark colored flowers that last 6 or more weeks. I can’t imagine a better pairing, except for SVO 2022. Incredible award potential.  (SVO 2023)

Descriptions courtesy of Fred Clarke, Sunset Valley Orchids

Fredclarkeara After Hours 'SVO Way Good'

(Fredclarkeara After Dark ‘SVO’ FCC/AOS x Catasetum Mark Dimmitt ‘Ed Wise’)

(Fredclarkeara After Dark ‘SVO’ FCC/AOS x Catasetum Mark Dimmitt ‘Ed Wise’)  Fredclarkeara After Dark ‘SVO’ (Mormodia Painted Desert x Catasetum Donna Wise) is a spectacular spotted flower of superb shape, presentation and size. By crossing it with Catasetum Mark Dimmitt (Catasetum Donna Wise x Catasetum Orchidglade) with its extra dose of Catasetum pileatum and Catasetum expansum in its back ground should allow for improved flower size and lip shape. It is hard to improve on the world famous Fredclarkeara After Dark, but this may do it…. .  (SVO 2017)

(Fredclarkeara After Dark ‘SVO Amazing’ x Catasetum Mark Dimmitt ‘Ed Wise’) 

Fredclarkeara After Dark ‘SVO Amazing’ (Mormodia Painted Desert x Catasetum Donna Wise) is the most fertile of the Fredclarkeara After Darks, it is always holding pods, thus never awarded. The flowers are heavily blotched dark burgundy, have superb shape, excellent presentation and size. Catasetum Mark Dimmitt (Catasetum Donna Wise x Catasetum Orchidglade) with its extra dose of Catasetum pileatum and Catasetum expansum should allow for better lip size and shape. Flowers were 25% larger with an improved lip shape that was black in color.  (SVO 2025)

Photo Credit:  Fred Clarke, Sunset Valley Orchids

(Descriptions courtesy of Fred Clarke, Sunset Valley Orchids)

(Fredclarkeara After Midnight 'SVO Dark Beauty' FCC/AOS' x Catasetum Orchidglade 'Davies Ranches' AM/AOS)

With this cross we are taking the nearly perfect darkest burgundy flowers of Fredclarkeara After Midnight 'SVO Dark Beauty' and pairing them with the huge lip and colorful spotted flower of Catasetum Orchidglade. Our experience has taught us that this type of hybrid makes for improved flower form. The flower color of the progeny will range from solid deep burgundy to densely spotted burgundy, and a few might even be light yellow with bold red spots. These will be unique and beautiful flowers. Photo to the right is the flower the cross was named after.  (SVO 6487)

(Fredclarkeara After Midnight 'SVO' AM/AOS x Catasetum Orchidglade 'Davie Ranches' AM/AOS)
At SVO we are all about developing flowers with new looks and colors.  With this cross, the dark red flowers with very dark burgundy spots of Fredclarkeara After Midnight'SVO' are paired with the huge lip and colorful spotted flower of Catasetum Orchidglade.  Past experience has taught us this type of hybrid makes for improved flower form while allowing for new color combinations.  The flower color of the progeny will range from red and densely spotted to light yellow with bold red spots, and a few will be the darkest burgundy.  There is lots of potential to get unique flowers from this cross.  (SVO 6480)

Photo Credit:  Fred Clarke, Sunset Valley Orchids

(Descriptions courtesy of Fred Clarke, Sunset Valley Orchids)

Fredclarkeara Dark There After is an orchid hybrid originated by Fred Clarke in 2009. It is a cross of Fredclarearak After Dark  x  Catasetum Donna Wise.

Fredclarkeara After Dark ‘SVO’ (Mormodes Painted Desert  x  Catasetum Donna Wise) is a spectacular spotted flower of superb shape, presentation and size.  Catasetum Donna Wise ‘Susan’ (Catasetum Orchidglade  x  Catasetum tenebrosum) is the most recent award to this highly awarded grex and it is also the best. The expectation here is that the addition of Catasetum Donna Wise back on to Fredclarkeara After Dark will improve the lip size and shape while reinforcing the dark color genes. It is hard to improve on the world famous Fredclarkeara After Dark, this may do it. Can you imagine 3” black flowers that last for 6-7 weeks! Tremendous award potential. (SVO 2016)

Photos and description courtesy Fred Clarke, Sunset Valley Orchids

Fredclarkeara Enter Light is an orchid hybrid originated by Fred Clarke in 2014. It is a cross of Fredclarkeara After Dark x Catasetum pileatum.

Photo Right:  Fredclarkeara Enter Light 'SVO Dark Beauty' FCC

Photo courtesy of Fred Clarke, Sunset Valley Orchids)

Fredclarkeara Turning Point is an orchid hybrid originated by F.Clarke in 2015 and is a cross of Mormodes Lime Tiger x Catasetum expansum.

From 2014,  SVO 5047

This is a new Fredclarkeara hybrid. Here we are looking for dark green flowers with darker green stripes, how cool is that? The Mo. Lime Tiger (Cl. Rebecca Northen x Morm.  elegans v. alba)  is a green flower with green stripes and I believe this color will be a dominant characteristic.  It produces 3-4 pendent inflorescence per bulb and is quite showy.   The Ctsm. expansum ‘Mindori’ is a dark green almost an olive color, very unusual for the species; it will reinforce the overall flower color and add bloom size to the grex. Flower life will be close to 8 week s as with other breeding of this type.

Description and photo courtesy of Fred Clarke, Sunset Valley Orchids

Fredclarkeara breeding is just fantastic, with hybrids having beautiful color, superior shape, high flower count, and perfectly arranged flowers that are fragrant and very long lasting.  Enter Light (After Dark x pileatum) has been “spot on” in flower quality, with four AM/AOS and one FCC/AOS awarded so far! Orchidglade 'JTM' is short for 'Jamie's Tortured Midnight' (pileatum x expansum).  This is a very fine cultivar, with exceptionally dark flowers and huge, flat lips. Enter Light is already amazing, and adding back the huge pileatum-based lip of Orchidglade will further increase and flatten the flower and lip size of the progeny, while maintaining the amazing color.  I'm not sure how a cross can get any better than this...

Left Photo: Fredkclarkeara Enter Light 'SVO Dark Beauty' FCC/AOS

Right Photo: Catasetum Orchidglade 'JTM'S

Description and photos courtesy of Fred Clarke, Sunset Valley Orchids

Here is a hybrid with highly awarded parents. Both parents of this After Hours (Fdk. After Dark 'SVO' FCC/AOS x Ctsm. John C. Burchett 'Ursa Major' FCC/AOS) have FCC's, and 'Dark Thirty' has FCC quality flowers as well! Enter Light 'SVO Dark Beauty' FCC/AOS is the best of the best! Its shape, color, form, ease to bloom, fragrance and flower life are all superior. This and SVO 7226 are the second and third times a Fredclarkeara has been crossed to another Fredclarkeara! The opportunity for exceptional offspring is mind boggling.

Left Photo: Fredclarkeara After Hours 'Dark Thirty'

Right Photo: Fredclarkeara Enter Light 'SVO Dark Beauty' FCC/AOS

Description and photos courtesy Fred Clarke, Sunset Valley Orchids

This is a very special pairing, as the Catasetum held the capsule in this hybrid, an unusual occurrence in Fredclarkeara breeding.  John C. Burchett (Ctsm. João Stivalli x Ctsm. Susan Fuchs) is among the most impressive of the modern pileatum-based Catasetum hybrids, with unusually rich burgundy color and huge, flat, nearly-black lips. The breeding of Dark There After is (Fdk. After Dark x Ctsm. Donna Wise), and the cross was quite successful, with 7 AOS awards.  The large, full-shaped flowers are a rich deep burgundy color. I have not yet seen a Fdk. cross bloom with a Catasetum as the capsule parent, and I must confess that I 'm really looking forward to seeing these. ( - Fred Clarke, Sunset Valley Orchids )

Left Photo: Catasetum. John C. Burchett 'Ursa Major' FCC/AOS

Right Photo: Fdk. Dark There After 'SVO Winters Night' FCC/AOS

Description and photos courtesy of Fred Clarke, Sunset Valley Orchids

Barnabas Collins is a new Mormodia (Clowesia x Mormodes) hybrid registered in 2014, and one cultivar from this grex has already received a coveted First Class Certificate from the American Orchid Society. When awarded, 'SVO Dark Night' produced 117 flowers and buds on 7 inflorescences, all from one pseudobulb!!! If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed it! The flower is a deep wine color with darker burgundy spotting – truly gorgeous! If this sounds appealing, look a bit farther down this list and you’ll find a remake of Mo. Barnabas Collins (SVO 8189). The other parent of this grex is Ctsm. Orchidglade, a trusted breeding plant that has been proven many times over to impart excellent growth habit and lots of large, well-shaped, solid dark burgundy flowers that are produced several times a year. The cultivar 'JTM' is short for 'Jamie's Tortured Midnight.'  This is a new Fredclarkeara hybrid using an exceptional Mormodia and a proven breeder in 'JTM.'  I can only dream of the possibilities until these start to bloom!  If I were a betting man, I would definitely put money on this one.

Left Photo: Fredclarkeara After Hours 'Dark Thirty'

Right Photo: Fredclarkeara Enter Light 'SVO Dark Beauty' FCC/AOS

Description and photos courtesy Fred Clarke, Sunset Valley Orchids

This is a truly novel Fredclarkeara hybrid. I have been waiting several years to have this available - the potential is tantalizing!  Painted Desert has a well-documented and long history of breeding excellent offspring, adding color, shape and flower longevity. This the first cross with the 'Black Lip' cultivar of callosum.  Its color is exceptional, and inflorescences have high flower count and beautiful arrangement.  This pairing has tremendous potential!  Will the flowers be like black stars?

Left Photo: Mormodia Painted Desert 'SVO' HCC/AOS

Right Photo: Catasetum callosum 'Black Lip' AM/AOS

Description and photos courtesy of Fred Clarke, Sunset Valley Orchids

Over the years we have made many Fredclarkeara (Fdk.) hybrids, and here's one that's been in the planning stages for quite some time. This cross is designed to produce deep emerald green flowers, very unusual for a Fredclarkeara! Turning Point (Mo. Lime Tiger x Ctsm. expansum) was just that, a turning point in deep green flower breeding.  How do you continue to improve?  Reintroduce the deep green color and large lip of Ctsm. expansum 'SVO Midori' AM/AOS again, to strengthen flower color and flatten the lip of the offspring. Being a Fdk., plants will bloom in late fall, and flowers will have excellent durability. If you have ever desired deep emerald green flowers, here is your opportunity.

Left Photo: Fredkclarkeara Turning Point 'San Clemente'

Right Photo: Catasetum expansum 'SVO Midori' AM/AOS

Description and photos courtesy of Fred Clarke, Sunset Valley Orchids

The hybrid Turning Point (Mo. Lime Tiger x Ctsm. expansum) was just that, a turning point in deep green flower breeding.  How do you continue to improve on the green color? How about breeding it with another deep green, De Etta Harris (Donna Wise x Crownfox Voodoo)? The cultivar 'Emerald Goddess' is a surprising deep emerald green, a color rarely seen in flowers, with a flat lip and strong upright stem. This cross will give us a range of flower colors, with many being pure deep green, some a rusty-red, and possibly a few with spots.  This is a Fdk., so the flowers will bloom in late fall and have excellent durability.

Left Photo: Fredkclarkeara Turning Point 'Green Goddess'

Right Photo: Catasetum De Etta Harris 'Green Goddess'

Description and photos courtesy of Fred Clarke, Sunset Valley Orchids