 |
| Swaddled babies orchid - Anguloa uniflora |
It was discovered during a ten year expedition (1777 to 1788) to Peru and Chile by botanists Hipólito Ruiz López and José Antonio Pavón Jiménez. However it wasn't formally classified until 1798 when it was named in honor of Don Francisco de Angulo, Director-General of Mines, in Peru.
Anguloa uniflora is only about 18 to 24 inches tall with thin pleated leaves above conical pseudobulbs. The most outstanding feature of this plant are its complex flowers which at a certain stage of opening look uncannily like a baby wrapped in swaddling cloth - be it a rather ugly one. These large, fragrant, creamy-white, waxy flowers usually bloom in the spring and in the summer and are overwhelmingly fragrant. Each bloom develops from a single stem that rises from the base of the pseudobulbs.
The lip of the flower is hinged so when pollinating insects enter the flower in search for nectar, they are pushed against the column where a packet of pollen (called a pollinium) is secured to them, generally on the head or abdomen. When the insect enters another flower of the same species, the pollinium will stick to the stigma of the second flower.
In its natural habitat Anguloa uniflora is found at elevations of 1400 to 2500 meters, so it is no surprise that when growing it at home you will need to create conditions of intermediate to cold temperatures and shade. The growing medium should be kept evenly moist although it will require less water in winter. To encourage flowering, watering should be decreased after it has finished its growth.
For related articles click onto the following links:
CHARLES DARWIN'S FAVOURITE ORCHID - Catasetum species
HOW TO GROW THE HYACINTH ORCHID - Bletilla striata
HOW TO GROW MONKEY FACE ORCHIDS FROM SEED
HOW TO GROW THE WHITE EGRET FLOWER - Pecteilis radiata
HOW TO FEED ORCHIDS
HOW TO REPOT AN ORCHID
HOW TO WATER ORCHIDS
MONKEY FACE ORCHIDS
SCHOMBURGKIA EXALTATA
The Amazing Monkey Orchid
THE ANGEL ORCHID - Habenaria Grandifloriformis
THE BEE ORCHIDS
THE BUTTERFLY ORCHID - Psychopsis papilio
CHRISTMAS STAR ORCHID - Angraecum sesquipedale
THE FLYING DUCK ORCHID
THE MOTH ORCHID - Phalaenopsis species and cultivars
NAKED MAN ORCHID - Orchis Italica
THE ORCHID MANTIS
THE ORCHID CACTUS - Disocactus ackermannii
THE SWADDLED BABIES ORCHID - Anguloa Uniflora
THE VAMPIRE ORCHID - Catasetum macrocarpum
THE WHITE EGRET FLOWER - Pecteilis radiata
WHAT IS AN ORCHID?
No comments:
Post a Comment