Of all the flowers on earth, orchids are particularly fascinating. Not only are they beautiful, but their life stories often have a bit of mystery and wonder clinging to them. Although widely distributed, many can only be found in isolated, virtually inaccessible places--volcanic mountainsides, dense jungles, boggy swamps, etc.
Beginning quite seriously in the 19th century, orchid enthusiasts have devoted years and whole lifetimes to discovering as well as growing new types of these flowering wonders. Although most orchids are acquired these days from nurseries that specialize in breeding the plants, many of them being developed through hybridization, it is good to know something of their natural origins.
Orchids are herbacious plants of which tens of thousands of species are known, with more still being discovered.They show an astouding range of color and shape, which has added greatly to public fascination with them. Gardeners often take pleasure in maintaining a wide variety of orchids to show off their mastery of the art of cultivation.
Orchids grow everywhere around the world, excepting the desert regions and polar zones. Some 85% of all orchid species originate in the tropics or subtropics, but this still leaves a large number that come from colder regions. In some parts of the Himalayas orchids constitute the most abundantly represented family of plants in terms of sheer number of species.
By far the greatest number of orchids occur in three large tropical belts:
- Tropical Africa (including islands to the east in the Indian Ocean). These largely belong to the genera (families) Angnecum, Bulbophyllum and Disa. Orchids from here have not been as widely cultivated as ones originating from the other tropical zones, but Africa nevertheless harbors many species of interest.
- Tropical Asia. This region, which includes Indonesia and other islands as well as the mainland countries of Southeast Asia, is considered especially rich in orchid genera. Typical of the region are the large genera Dendrobium, Eria and Bulbophyllum and many smaller ones as well.
- Tropical America. This region embraces Mexico, Central America and the tropical parts of South America. Isolated from other parts of the world for eons, this region has an especially large number of endemic genera of orchids, many of which include hundreds of species. Among the large indigenous genera are Epidendrum, Pleurothallis and Oncidium; many smaller genera found here also contribute more than their share to orchids that have found favor among cultivators the world over.
In the temperate zones of the southern hemisphere may also be found many orchds, though not in so abundant number as in the tropics. In southern Africa the Disa and Calanthe genera furnish a few species judged valuable to cultivation. Australia contains many genera in common with the tropical Asia. Southern South America boasts a number of temperate orchids, but by the estimation of orchid devotees, they are greatly overshadowed by those
from the much larger tropical part of thecontinent.
In the northern hemisphere's temperate zones, we should mention the United States and particularly the northeastern and New Englad regions, as well as Canada. There we find about 20 native genera, whose member species grow mostly in swamps and moist grounds. The Cypripediuins, or Lady Slippers, are the most celebrated of these.
Europe also has many native orchids, but undoubtedly the most famous and showy is the Bee Orchid (Ophrys apifera). The Bee Orchid grows on dry or semi-dry turf, often in open areas within woodlands. Bee Orchids are common near the Mediterranean coast of Europe, and grows (albeit less abundantly) as far north as Germany and the UK.
Orchids vary greatly in the ease with which they may be cultivated, but by and large they are not the difficult plants that folk wisdom would have it. The most up-to-date guide to expert orchid cultivation, it is widely acknowedged, is Orchid Care Expert by Nigel Howard, which is available to be downloaded from the Internet. Mr. Howard's guide is a complete course in itself, great for the novice as well as those more experienced. Also, check out the Orchid Secrets web site, which has a growing database of articles on all topics of orchid cultivation.
