Name: Dryadella aurea Luer & Hirtz
Etymology: aurea = golden / golden-yellow — refers to the characteristic, bright yellow coloration of the flowers.
First description: 1999 by the American botanists Carlyle A. Luer and Alexander C. Hirtz in Monographs in Systematic Botany from the Missouri Botanical Garden (76: 160).
Origin / distribution: Ecuador.
Location / habitat: Grows epiphytically in humid mountain and cloud forests of the Andes at elevations of approximately 900 to 1,100 meters. It prefers shady to partially shaded spots on moss-covered branches, with high humidity year-round and steady air movement in intermediate conditions.
Description & notes: Dryadella aurea is a very compact, clump-forming miniature orchid. It forms dense tufts of small, succulent, almost cylindrical or narrowly lance-shaped leaves that emerge directly from a short base. The tiny but striking golden-yellow to orange-yellow flowers appear on very short inflorescences right at the base of the plant, often sitting just below or among the leaves. The sepals have a distinctive texture and often show fine reddish or brownish markings in the throat.

In cultivation, this species requires intermediate temperatures and does not tolerate extreme, stagnant summer heat. Since it has no pseudobulbs, the substrate must never dry out completely, but it must be extremely well aerated (e.g., a fine moss-and-bark mix). It is ideally suited to mounting on cork or growing in small net pots, provided consistently high humidity above 75% and gentle, continuous air circulation are maintained.

In vitro culture: You will receive a flask containing 4 young plants. The plants are generally already large enough to be deflasked. After opening, carefully remove all the nutrient medium from the fine roots with lukewarm water and place the young plants on moist sphagnum or in a very fine, airy substrate that retains some moisture. During the first few weeks, we recommend very high humidity, intermediate temperatures, and bright but sheltered light with gentle air movement. Keep evenly and lightly moist; avoid both complete drying out and waterlogging.