Blooming orchid can decorate any home. She adds color to the interior, creates a feeling of freshness and comfort. But everyone knows that the orchid was not always a houseplant, in nature there are many types of this beauty. Where do orchids grow in the wild? Which country should you go to enjoy the natural beauty of the plant? These questions are worth looking for detailed answers.
What are these plants
Our favorite orchids are some of the oldest plants. Their existence was confirmed in the Late Cretaceous era. According to the scientific classification, the Orchid family belongs to the department of Tsvetkovy, the class of Monocotyledons, the order of Asparagus plants. The Latin name is Orchidáceae.
In total, more than 35 thousand names of orchids are known. In fact, these plants make up one seventh of all the colors of the Earth. But at the same time they are surprisingly different in form and color, and in size. So who is she, the beautiful orchid? Where does it grow (countries, continents)? What conditions does it require? How long have people known about her?
First mention
In Verona, at the excavations of Monte Bolsa, the oldest fragments of an orchid were found. And the name was invented by the Greek philosopher Theophrastus, who lived in the 6-5th centuries BC. The philosopher included a beautiful plant in a systematic treatise on pharmaceutical botany, which was called De Historia Plantarum. It seemed to the ancient scientist that 2 tubercles at the base of the roots look like human testicles, so he called the plant "orchis" (in ancient Greek it means "testicle"). In scientific circles, this name is still used, plants are called Orchidaceae, or Orchis.
The scientist Dioscrid, whose life time fell on the first century of our era, mentions orchids in his writings. He claims that the plant was known to the Aztecs (Mexico), and they used one of them, in particular vanilla, to create aromatic drinks.
But the first treatise on the cultivation of orchids was written in China in the eleventh century. There was not much information about where orchids grow, the emphasis was on how to decorate your house with a flowering plant and protect yourself from evil spirits.
Division into groups
Since the family of these plants is huge, it was further divided into groups:
- a group of epiphytic orchids that live on trees;
- a group of saprophytic plants living underground;
- a group of ground orchids.
And now, knowing that orchids in nature can grow under different conditions, we can talk about their distribution.
Orchid Spread
Orchid plants are found on all continents. Only Antarctica was unlucky, but it’s generally a little taut with plants. Most representatives can be found in tropical latitudes. This is due to the most favorable environment for growth. In the tropics, the largest number of epiphytic orchid species.
In temperate latitudes, terrestrial herbaceous perennials are most often found. They can be rhizome and tuberous. However, orchids are much smaller than in the tropics. If we consider the Northern Hemisphere, then in temperate latitudes, where orchids of the ground group grow, no more than 75 genera can be found. This is approximately 10%. And in the temperate latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere, only 40 genera are represented.
In the post-Soviet space, you can find up to 49 genera of Orchids.
Scientists have conditionally divided orchids into climatic provinces:
- The first includes Central America, South America, the coast of Africa and other zones located on the same parallel. It is warm and humid, just what epiphytic orchids love. In the first zone there are representatives of all groups.
- The second zone includes mountainous regions, that is, the Andes, the mountains of Brazil, New Guinea, Malaysia, Indonesia. The temperature here is slightly lower, but the humidity is high. In the second zone, almost all representatives of the Orchidaceae can exist.
- The third zone includes plateaus and the steppe. For orchids, the conditions are unfavorable, but they are present in difficult conditions. Epiphytic species and terrestrial species are found in small numbers.
- The fourth climate zone is characterized by a temperate climate. Orchids are few. Only terrestrial species.
Epiphytic orchids
Epiphytic orchids do not need land for growth and nutrition. The trees and rocks where orchids grow give them only support. The roots are in the air, from which they receive both moisture and nutrition. But many thought that orchids parasitize on trees. Most epiphytic species have tuber-like thickenings. These are false bulbs (pseudobulbs) in which nutrients and moisture accumulate.
A subspecies of epiphytic orchid plants growing on rocks is called lithophytes. On stones, those species usually grow that do not have enough light in the surrounding forests. Naturally, lithophytic orchids in nature also have aerial roots.
Saprophytic Orchids
This is a rather large group of plants consisting of a simple shoot without leaves, but with scales. The end of the shoot is a brush of flowers (in indoor plants this is usually a single flower).
Saprophytic underground plant does not have chlorophyll. Organic matter comes from humus substrate. The underground rhizome usually resembles coral. Its feature is the inability to produce new roots. Rhizomes actively absorb water throughout the surface in which nutrients are dissolved. Mycotic fungus produces organic substances for the growth and nutrition of saprophytic orchids.
Ground orchids
A group of terrestrial orchids combined plants that have ordinary green leaves, underground bulbs or roots and root cones. Such species are widespread in the United States and Europe. Here, their height is about 50 cm. But in the tropics, where wild orchids grow, terrestrial species can be much higher. Very often they look like a flowering spreading bush.
Terrestrial orchids have a common underground root system or root cones. After wintering, new shoots grow from young cones.
Familiar Stranger - Phalaenopsis
Such plants are often sold in flower shops around the world. Phalaenopsis orchid is very popular among flower growers . Where this species grows in natural conditions, not everyone knows. But there’s more than enough information about home care for a beautiful woman. Let's fill in the gaps in knowledge and deal with wild phalaenopsis.
The species is common in Southeast Asia and China. It occurs in the Himalayas, Indochina, the Malay Archipelago, and the Philippines. Covers the territory of Taiwan, New Guinea and Australia. In Sumatra and the Andaman Islands, near-water phalaenopsis is found. The species prefers monsoon forests, as well as mountain and tropical forests. Phalaenopsis belong to the epiphytic group.
Dendrobium nobile - noble orchid
What does the noble orchid dendrobium nobile look like? Where do these flowers grow in nature? Most often they can be found in the Himalayas, southern China, on the territory of North India, Vietnam and Indonesia. The distribution area includes the southern part of Eurasia. Plants belong to the epiphytic and lithophytic groups, but some varieties are terrestrial. The appearance of dendrobiums is very attractive. Shoots grow from pseudobulbs, and each can produce 10-20 flowers. The plant has a pleasant delicate aroma.
Cattleya - Fragrant American
The beautiful Cattleya came to Europe quite by accident. Its leaves were used as packaging material for shipping tropical lichens. A parcel of plants was sent to William Cattley, who forgot to throw out the “packaging”. And then a miracle happened - beautiful flowers appeared on a pile of green garbage! Since then, the study of the exotic species of orchids. To date, more than 60 subspecies of orchids of this genus are known.
Different types of Cattleya require different climatic conditions. Central and South America, where orchids of this type grow, has territories with different percentages of humidity and temperature conditions. Some species live in the Amazon, where humidity can reach up to 100%. Some require drier and sunnier places. A few species of Cattleya grow in the mountains of Brazil, where the winter temperature is about 5 ° C. The genus Cattleya also consists of epiphytic and lithophytic plants.
Despite the huge number of species, orchid plants in the wild need protection. This is especially true of Eurasia orchids. For example, in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, there are almost 130 species of terrestrial orchids, and all of them are endangered.