AboutOrchids

Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden is my idea of orchid heaven. A few years ago, Dave and I discovered it by accident as we took a detour onto a scenic road on the Big Island of Hawaii. Now it’s one of our favorite destinations, and a glance at these photos will tell you why.

Located in a [...]

A new discovery from a jungle high in the Andes wins the title for the world’s smallest orchid. Noted American botanist Lou Jost has found a new species of Platystele whose flowers are just over 1/16 inch (2.1 mm) wide. The flowers are so small that the petals are only one cell thick, and [...]

Britain’s Prince Charles has called for urgent protection for British wildflowers, including native British orchids. His call comes after release of a report by the conservation charity Plantlife, titled “The Ghost Orchid Declaration.” (By the way, the ghost orchid in Britain shares a common name with the ghost orchid I’ve written about in Florida, but [...]

Orchid Conservation International (OCI) is an independent, non-profit organization that promotes preservation of rare and endangered orchids and their habitats. Orchids have not had a central conservation organization like many endangered animal groups have. OCI was established in the UK to provide a base for worldwide orchid conservation activities. These efforts include public education about [...]

Good news is always welcome in the battle for orchid conservation. I was happy to see a story in a Virginia newspaper about changes made in a hospital’s construction to save a native orchid found on the grounds. The Small Whorled Pogonia is one of the rarest orchids in North America, ranging from Ontario and [...]

The Orchid Conservation Coalition (OCC) is a grassroots organization devoted to raising awareness and money for orchid conservation. The OCC directs donations to conservation groups all over the world, including those working in the Amazon and other orchid hotspots. As a coalition of individuals, orchid societies, businesses, and non-profits, the OCC provides vital support for [...]

It’s always a pleasant surprise to find stories in the news about orchids, and lately I’ve seen a handful about native orchids blooming in Britain and North America. This recent article from the Times of London provides a great account of how native British orchids are thriving this year. Although less well-known than their tropical [...]

Here are some more photos from the tropical rainforest exhibit at the California Academy of Sciences. The first set shows 2 kinds of Epidendrums. With fragrant green, white, and purple flowers, Epidendrum paniculatum is a common species found from Mexico and Belize south to Brazil and Argentina. There are several color varieties of this species [...]

The California Academy of Sciences, located in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, is one of the world’s largest natural history museums. Among the many exhibits, the museum contains a remarkable 4-story rainforest housed in a dome. Inside the glass sphere, a spiral ramp allows visitors to explore the rainforest, starting on the ground and heading [...]

It’s not too late to register for the Native Orchid Conference, held June 12 – 16 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Run by an organization of the same name, the Native Orchid Conference highlights orchids from the USA and Canada. There are over 200 species of orchids native to North America, from California to Newfoundland, from [...]