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ORCHIDS
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by The Orchid Enthusiast Team
The orchid family (ORCHIDACEAE) is considered the
largest family of the flowering plants. It has over
150,000 hybrids and 30,000 species recorded
throughout the world, excluding the ones that are
yet to be discovered.
Orchids are found in many parts of the world, from
the Arctic region to the Tropics, but most of them
are found in the warmer regions of the earth. Though
found from sea level to 14,000 feet, they are found
most abundant between elevations of 1,500 to 7,000
feet. Habitats of orchids vary, from dry sandy areas
to aquatic habitats to tree tops in clouded forests.
Some are confined to a particular environment
(endemic) while others are found over a wide range
of localities.
Orchids belong to the Monocots, seed plants having a
single cotyledon and leaves which have parallel
veins and floral parts in threes. The floral
structure of orchids helps us to distinguish it from
the rest of the plant families. An orchid flower
normally has 3 sepals on the outer floral whorl and
3 petals on the inner whorl. One of the petals, the
lip or labellum, is different from the other two. It
is often larger, highly modified in terms of shape,
colour and structure and also showier. The flower is
oddly twisted to let the lip be at the lowest
segment for pollination. Coupled with fragrance,
orchid flowers can attract pollinators such as bees,
butterflies, moths, flies, and birds to help in its
successful pollination. There is also another
modification commonly found in orchids. It is the
fusion of its flower parts. Emerging from the centre
of the flower is a club-shaped column on which sits
the anther with masses of pollen grains (pollinia).
Below the anther, we find the female portion of the
column, the stigma. It has a sticky depressed
surface where the pollinia are deposited during
pollination. Below the stigma is the ovary. Upon
fertilisation, the ovary develops into a seed
capsule which contains enormous amount of minute,
dustlike seeds.
Orchids vary in size – from a fraction of an inch in
height with flowers the size of a pinhead to tall
ones which have eight foot stems and whose flower
stalks are twelve feet high and flowers, five inches
across.
Orchids have two main growth habits, namely
monopodial and sympodial. Sympodial orchids like
Arundina and Spathoglottis have
pseudobulbs which mature and produce flowers at
their terminal end. The pseudobulbs store water and
nutrients for the plant. A new pseudobulb grows from
the base of the earlier one, forming a rhizome in
the long run. Monopodial orchids like Arachnis
and Renanthera, on the other hand, have main
stems which grow continuously. The main stems
produce flower spikes or inflorescences from or
opposite the leaf axil.
In Malaysia, a small percentage of the orchid
species, which are selected according to their
horticultural and aesthetic value, is cultivated in
specialist nurseries, botanical gardens, and in
private collections. The major part of the orchid
species population is still in the field, which is
in the pristine tropical rainforests. This state of
affair is rather risky due to the present indiscreet
collection by orchid collectors and traders and the
deforestation programme in the name of economic
development. This action and development policy
threatens the orchid species survival in its natural
environment. In a short span of time, they will be
depleted. The less attractive and unpopular
miniatures or botanicals will subsequently suffer
the same fate. The future generations of Malaysians
will also lose out by not having the opportunity to
see and know them. It is at this point that we find
a real need to conserve the orchid species that is
in situ and ex situ conservation. A holistic
approach is deemed necessary and timely to overcome
this situation and also to prevent further
deterioration.
Copyright © June 2006 The Orchid Enthusiast Team - www.orchidenthusia.com. |
