Around the World with Orchids

Of the incredible array of flowering plants on our earth, orchids easily exercise the greatest fascination. Not only are they beautiful to look at, but they often bring a bit of wonder and mystery with them. Although widespread in distribution, many of them can only be found in isolated, nearly inaccessible places--volcanic mountainsides, dense jungles, boggy swamps, etc.

Beginning most earnestly in the nineteenth century, orchid enthusiasts have devoted years and lifetimes to ferreting out as well as growing new varieties of these flowering wonders. Although most orchids are acquired nowadays from nurseries that specialize in cultivating the plants, many of them being produced through hybridization, it is advantageous to learn a little of their natural history.

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 in practically every part of the earth -- the exceptions being the deserts and the polar regions. 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 mostly belong to the genera (families) Angnecum, Bulbophyllum and Disa. Orchids from this region are not so widely cultivated as ones coming originating in other tropical lands, but Africa nonetheless has many interesting species.
• 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.

The temperate zones of the southern hemisphere also furnish many orchids, though not nearly so abundantly as do 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. Southernmost South America boasts many temperate-zone orchids, but they are unfortunately overshadowed by those
from the vaster tropical-zone part of the continent.

in the norhern hemisphere's temperate areas, we should take note of the United States, particularly the New England/norhteastern region, as well as Canada. There we find about 20 native genera, whose member species grow mostly in swamps and moist grounds. The most reknowned of these are the Cypripediuins or Lady Slippers.

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 can be cultivated, although in general they are not the difficult plants that folk wisdom would have it. The most thorough guide to modern orchid cultivation, in the opinion of many, is Orchid Care Expert by Nigel Howard, which may be downloaded from the web. Mr. Howard's guide is a thorough course, useful for novices and the more experienced fanciers alike. Also, check out the Orchid Secrets web site, which has an ever-growing database of articles on many aspects of orchid cultivation.