Introduction
to Orchids
The
orchid family, orchidaceae, is the second largest
among all flowering plants. The orchid family
has about 600-800 genera and 25,000 to 35,000
species and over time new species are being
discovered occasionally.
Orchids
occur in most parts of the world, growing in
a diverse range of habitats and terrains. They
grow on trees as epiphytes, on forest floor
as terrestrial and sometimes in-between rock
crevices as lithophytes.
Orchids
we see usually appear in 2 different growth
structures, monopodial and sympodial.
Monopodial
orchids usually have a main stem with new leaves
emerging continuously from the crown and roots
from the side for anchorage and to retrieve
nutrients and water. They also produce offshoots
from the side of the main stem which sometimes
people trim off to propagate into a new plant.
Sympodial
orchids usually have a succession of pseudobulbs,
stem that looks like a bulb, growing in a chain.
New shoots and roots will emerge from base and
sometimes producing long rhizome which spaces
up the pseudobulbs. They can be propagated by
cutting the rhizome.