This week I’ve chosen an orchid native to South Africa, in honor of the World Cup currently taking place there. The orchid is the Disa cardinalis, and it’s a bright, cheerful beauty:
Image credit: orchid.unibas.ch
It’s pretty clear where the “cardinalis” part of this orchid’s name comes from, with its cardinal red petals. The blooms look like Little Red Riding Hood, am I right?!
Photo credit: Radnhild & Neil Crawford, Flickr
I’m pretty busy this week with my upcoming move (from one Brooklyn neighborhood to another!) so I don’t have much to say about this week’s orchid. I promise I’ll do better after my move in a couple weeks!
The orchid I’ve chosen to feature this week is super interesting in terms of its contribution to science, courtesy of one Mr. Charles Darwin.
Charles Darwinis best known for his theory of evolution; many biology classes educate students about his work with finches and tortoises on the Galapagos Islands. Less widely known is Darwin’s work with orchids, though when you consider the vast array of evolutionary variety in the orchid family, it’s not surprising that he took an interest in them. Darwin is most often associated with the Angraecum sesquipedale, AKA Darwin’s orchid, Christmas orchid, and Star of Bethlehem orchid.
The blooms are waxy and each has a long spur containing the plant’s nectar. The spur is the green tubular part next to the stem (you can kinda see it in the pics below). The New York Botanical Garden has some Darwin’s orchids on display:
Darwin’s orchid at the NYBG Orchid Show 2010
Considering the hard-to-reach pollen inside the spur, Darwin wondered how fertilization could possibly take place. He experimented with pollinating these flowers and theorized that a (then-undiscovered) moth must have evolved a proboscis long enough to reach the nectar in the bottom of the spur. The moth would trigger the release of pollen while withdrawing its proboscis, which would allow it to fertilize another flower by inserting its pollen-coated proboscis to get to more nectar. Years after Darwin’s death, this very moth, a ‘hawk moth‘, was discovered in the same region where the Angraecum sesquipedale lives. Darwin FTW!
Photo credit: Quimbaya, Flickr
And there’s my attempt at writing about something scientific. Gotta love science! Evolution: it’s real. 🙂
Did you know that vanilla comes from the “fruit” of an orchid called Vanilla planifolia? This orchid plant with relatively Plain Jane blooms provides growers with seed pods that, when dried, make a delicious flavoring. The vanilla orchid is native to Africa, Asia, and the Americas (particularly Central America); major vanilla exporting countries include Madagascar, Mexico, and Tahiti.
My choice for this week’s orchid sort of looks like a cross between a Phalaenopsis(see the white bloom in my blog header) and a Cymbidium. The Chysis aurea is a beautiful orchid that is native to Mexico, Central America, and the northern parts of South America. Just take a look at these gorgeous blooms:
Image credit: rednaturaleza.com.ar
Photo credit: amortize, Flickr
I love the waxy, peachy tone of the bloom in the first image. It almost (but not quite) makes me want to take a bite out of it. That said, the spotted center of the blooms makes me think of strep throat. I would post a photo here for comparison but strep is a little gross-looking; if you’re interested, check out (Warning! icky medical pics!) these imageson Google.
Despite the fact that this orchid reminds me of a bacterial infection, I still think it’s pretty. What exactly that says about me, I’m not sure. 😛
In honor of the final episode of Lost (which airs this upcoming Sunday night…*sniff*), the orchid I’ve chosen for this week is the Dendrobium Sonia, which is commonly used in Hawaiian leis:
Photo credit: alohaflowersleis.com
Here you can see this hybrid beauty in its natural, non-lei’d state:
Image credit: bluenanta.com
Gorgeous! Just looking at these blooms takes me away to a tropical paradise.
The Dendrobium Sonia is a type of Dendrobium Phalaenopsis, which, as you may deduce from its name, is a plant similar in habitat and appearance to the Phalaenopsis orchid. In addition to leis, you’ll often see these dens in cut flower arrangements and sometimes as a plate garnish at Asian restaurants (particularly Thai). Supposedly the blooms are edible but I don’t know how I feel about eating flowers. Personally, I’d much rather just grow them and enjoy their beauty in my home.
