Lycaste skinneri

Last updated

Lycaste skinneri
Lycaste skinneri - Warner, Williams - Select orch. plants 1, pl. 10 (1862-1865).jpg
Illustration of Lycaste skinneri by Walter Hood Fitch
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Epidendroideae
Genus: Lycaste
Species:
L. skinneri
Binomial name
Lycaste skinneri
Synonyms

Lycaste skinneri, also known as Lycaste virginalis, is a species of epiphyte orchid that resides in the south of Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras, at an average altitude of 1650 meters above sea level.

Contents

Description

Long leaves grow from its thick pseudobulbs. [1] The flowers of this species -generally individual- are triangular and grow from the base of the youngest pseudo-bulb and measure between 10 and 15 centimeters. They can vary from being completely white in the Alba variety, passing from different tones of pink to lavender. [2] This purity in color makes them the best candidate as a starting point for Lycaste hybrid formation. [3] The flower's blooming period is between November and April, with its peak being in the end of January and the beginning of February. A mature plant can produce between 4 and 12 flowers during its blooming lasting between 6 and 8 weeks.

It is a hermaphrodite plant capable of producing millions of seeds inside of fruit in the form of a capsule. Nevertheless, the necessary conditions for germination include the presence of a specific fungus, which results in the plant being very scarce whose commercialization is prohibited in Guatemala. [4] [5]

Habitat

Lycaste skinneri is found in humid forests of Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras, being the most abundant and indigenous in Guatemala. It resides at an average altitude of 1,650 meters above sea level, where it doesn't suffer from the high temperatures during the summer or the low temperatures during the winter. Abundant cloud cover at ground level, elevates the relative humidity during the day and the dry season. It inhabits the branches of woody trees at heights where the lighting conditions are appropriate. It is very sensitive to changes in temperature which range from 27 °C to 18 °C at night and the ideal humidity for its development is between 50 and 70 percent.

Guatemala's patriotic symbol

This orchid, also known as the monja blanca (white nun), is the national flower [6] of the Republic of Guatemala. This flower was revered and known by the Mayas and now is known as Sak Ijixby the q'eqchi'.

In 1933, Leticia M. de Southerland, president of the International Exhibition of Flowers, celebrated in Miami Beach, Florida, sent a suggestion to the government of Guatemala that the specimen known as the Lycaste skinneri alba be designated as the national flower. This suggestion was consulted by the president of the Republic, General Jorge Ubico, with various specialists, among them was Ulises Rojas and Mariano Pacheco H. and entities like the National Library and the Society of Geography and History. The Experts took into account the beauty and the rarity of the flower and agreed with the suggestion, so that on the February 11th, 1934, the presidency of the Republic issued a decree giving the monja blanca, the denomination of national flower.

On August 9, 1946, during the governance Juan Jose Arevalo, with the purpose of protecting the species from extinction in Guatemala, a government decree was issued that prohibited the collection and export of the species. The same agreement was modified on June 4, 1947 to extend the ban on pseudobulbs and flowers, as well as to include the rest of the species of this botanical family. In 1997, when they began to make 50 cent coins, the monja blanca was used as one of the faces on the new coin. [7]

Evolution, phylogeny and taxonomy

It was first introduced by George Ure Skinner [8] in Guatemala, where the alba variety is commonly known as the monja blanca and is the national flower of said country.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orchid</span> Family of flowering plants in the order Asparagales

Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae, a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Orchids are cosmopolitan plants that are found in almost every habitat on Earth except glaciers. The world's richest diversity of orchid genera and species is found in the tropics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barbuda</span> Island in Antigua and Barbuda

Barbuda is an island located in the eastern Caribbean forming part of the twin-island state of Antigua and Barbuda as an autonomous entity. Barbuda is located approximately 30 miles (48 km) north of Antigua. The sole settlements on the island are Codrington and its surrounding localities. Barbuda is a flat island with the western portion being dominated by Codrington Lagoon, and the eastern portion being dominated by the low-lying Barbuda Highlands, with salty ponds and scrubland spread throughout the island. The climate is classified as tropical marine.

<i>Bulbophyllum</i> Genus of orchids

Bulbophyllum is a genus of mostly epiphytic and lithophytic orchids in the family Orchidaceae. It is the largest genus in the orchid family and one of the largest genera of flowering plants with more than 2,000 species, exceeded in number only by Astragalus. These orchids are found in diverse habitats throughout most of the warmer parts of the world including Africa, southern Asia, Latin America, the West Indies, and various islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Orchids in this genus have thread-like or fibrous roots that creep over the surface of trees or rocks or hang from branches. The stem is divided into a rhizome and a pseudobulb, a feature that distinguished this genus from Dendrobium. There is usually only a single leaf at the top of the pseudobulb and from one to many flowers are arranged along an unbranched flowering stem that arises from the base of the pseudobulb. Several attempts have been made to separate Bulbophyllum into smaller genera, but most have not been accepted by the World Checklist of Selected Plant Families.

<i>Laelia</i> Genus of orchids

Laelia is a small genus of 25 species in the orchid family (Orchidaceae). Laelia species are found in areas of subtropical or temperate climate in Central and South America, but mostly in Mexico. Laelia is abbreviated L. in the horticultural trade.

<i>Anguloa</i> Species of plant

Anguloa, commonly known as tulip orchids, is a small orchid genus closely related to Lycaste. Its abbreviation in horticulture is Ang. This genus was described by José Antonio Pavón and Hipólito Ruiz López in 1798. They named it in honor of Francisco de Angulo, Director-General of Mines of Spain.

Omidiyeh is a city in the Central District of Omidiyeh County, Khuzestan province, Iran, and serves as both capital of the county and of the district.

<i>Miltonia</i> Genus of orchids

Miltonia, abbreviated Milt. in the horticultural trade, is an orchid genus comprising twelve epiphyte species and eight natural hybrids. The miltonias are exclusively inhabitants of Brazil, except for one species whose range extends from Brazil into the northeast of Argentina and the east of Paraguay.

The National Film Award for Best Direction is an honour presented annually at India's National Film Awards ceremony by the Directorate of Film Festivals (DFF), an organisation set up by the Indian Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. Since 1967, the award is given by a national panel appointed annually by the DFF to a director for their work within Indian cinema. It is presented by the president of India at a ceremony held in New Delhi.

<i>Bulbophyllum fletcherianum</i> Species of orchid

Bulbophyllum fletcherianum, the tongue orchid, Fletcher's bulbophyllum or Spies' bulbophyllum, is a rare orchid native to southern New Guinea. It prefers sunny rock outcrops or mossy tree branches, but besides being lithophytic or epiphytic, it can also be pseudo-terrestrial. The tongue orchid requires high humidity and moist roots.

<i>Laelia speciosa</i> Species of orchid

Laelia speciosa, commonly known as the Mayflower orchid, is a species of showy orchid found in area of Mexico with high elevation of 1,400 m (4,593 ft) to 2,400 m (7,874 ft). The plant is very drought resistant and can tolerate cool to warm conditions. It blooms from summer to fall, producing fragrant flowers. There are usually three to four flowers on an inflorescence.

<i>Lycaste</i> Genus of orchids

Lycaste, abbreviated as Lyc. in horticultural trade, is a genus of orchids that contains about 30 species with egg-shaped pseudobulbs and thin, plicate (pleated) leaves.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sirri Island</span> Lighthouse

Sirri Island, is an island in the Persian Gulf belonging to Iran.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shahdad</span> City in Kerman province, Iran

Shahdad is a city in, and the capital of, Shahdad District of Kerman County, Kerman province, Iran.

<i>Necronomicon: The Dawning of Darkness</i> 2000 video game

Necronomicon: The Dawning of Darkness, also known as Necronomicon: The Gateway to Beyond, is a 2000 video game developed by Wanadoo Edition and released for Windows and the PlayStation video game console.

<i>Lycaste aromatica</i> Species of orchid

Lycaste aromatica, common name the sweet scented lycaste, is a species of flowering plant in the genus Lycaste of the family Orchidaceae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012 ASEAN University Games</span>

The 2012 ASEAN University Games officially known as the 16th ASEAN University Games was a Southeast Asian university multi-sports event held in Vientiane, Laos. This was the first time Laos hosted the games. Laos is the eighth nation to host the ASEAN University Games after Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Philippines and Vietnam.

References

  1. "Lycaste Culture: Growing and Flowering Lycastes".
  2. "Lycaste Skinneri". Archived from the original on 2007-09-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  3. "Some Cultural Notes on Lycaste skinneri". Archived from the original on 2001-10-30.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  4. "Simbolos Patrios". Archived from the original on 2010-01-26.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  5. "Lycaste". Archived from the original on 2007-07-07.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  6. McNally, Shelagh (2006). Guatemala. NJ: Hunter Publishing. p. 8. ISBN   9781588435286 via EBSCO.
  7. "Monja Blanca". Archived from the original on 2010-06-20.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  8. "Easy Orchids - Lycaste Skinneri".