Orchids, Those Mysterious Flowers

—Michael Penziner, FRNC Docent

Most orchid species are epiphytic, living on other plants. Photo: orchidplantcare.info

But wait. Maybe not so mysterious after all. We think of them as growing in a hot, steamy, jungle, with exotic shapes and colors. OK, some of them actually do grow like that, but many of them don't. In fact, loads of them don't, like the orchids that grow in New York, perhaps 60 or 70 different species of them. And just to shock you, guess which of our 50 states is home to the largest number of native orchids. No, not Hawaii, and not Florida. Can't guess? How about Alaska!!! No kidding, it really is Alaska.
Most of the orchids we think of, or have seen or heard about, are from the tropics. They are epiphytic, meaning that they grow on top of other plants, usually trees, clinging to their branches. The roots hang down and absorb moisture and nutrients from the rain and high humidity. But here in the temperate zone, they are terrestrial, with roots growing in the soil, as most other plants do. If you remember learning about plant reproduction in a basic biology course, you know that plants have stamens (the male part) and/or pistils (the female part). Orchids don't. They have a single column with the anthers, which produce the balls of pollen, on top, then the stigma which has a sticky surface, then finally the ovary. This column is the thing that distinguishes the orchid from the other flowers. Orchids have three sepals and three petals, but most of them have one modified petal which forms an enlarged lip called the labellum, or two fused petals which form a sac, and a topmost sepal which sometimes forms a cap shape.
Orchids are a diverse group of plants, not surprising given that there are approximately 30,000 species of orchids, which makes it the largest of the plant families. With that number, nature has had a chance to be inventive. They come in virtually every shade and combination of colors and patterns. They range in size from plants an inch high with the teeniest of flowers to a 50 foot long vine with flowers one foot across. One species grows entirely submerged except for holding its blooms above water, while at least two others grow and bloom entirely underground, never seeing the light of day. There is even one orchid which we regularly use as food. And that one is the vanilla orchid. Just think, when you're having a scoop of delicious vanilla ice cream you're really eating part of an orchid.
While orchids aren't extremely rare, they aren't exactly all over the place. We have found only one at the Rye Nature Center. It is the helleborine, but that's not too surprising. It is the only orchid growing in the northeastern woods which isn't native, having been brought over from Europe. It is, in fact, quite weedy, which would explain why we found one here. What is more surprising, is that we haven't found some of the more common native orchids. But we'll keep looking. If you'd like to see a dazzling display of orchids, we suggest you visit the NY Botanical Garden's orchid show next March and April. There will be approximately 6000 orchids in the show. We guarantee you'll gasp at the beauty of it.

Nodding ladies’-tresses orchid, a rare orchid native to New York. Photo: dec.ny.gov