Dendrobium

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Dendrobium
Dendrobium-kingianum.jpg
Dendrobium kingianum
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Order: Asparagales
Family: Orchidaceae
Subfamily: Epidendroideae
Tribe: Malaxideae
Subtribe: Dendrobiinae
Genus: Dendrobium
Sw. [1]
Type species
Dendrobium moniliforme
(L.) Sw.
Species

About 1,800; see List of Dendrobium species

Synonyms [2]
List
    • AbaxianthusM.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • AcliniaGriff.
    • AmblyantheRauschert
    • Amblyanthus(Schltr.) Brieger
    • Anisopetala(Kraenzl.) M.A.Clem.
    • Aporopsis(Schltr.) M.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • AporumBlume
    • AsarumArchila
    • AustralorchisBrieger
    • BolbodiumBrieger
    • BouletiaM.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • CadetiaGaudich.
    • CallistaLour.
    • CannaeorchisM.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • CepobaculumM.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • CeraiaLour.
    • Ceratobium(Lindl.) M.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • ChromatotriccumM.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • CoelandriaFitzg.
    • Conostalix(Kraenzl.) Brieger
    • DavejonesiaM.A.Clem.
    • DendrobatesM.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • Dendrocoryne(Lindl.) Brieger
    • DesmotrichumBlume
    • DichopusBlume
    • Diplocaulobium(Rchb.f.) Kraenzl.
    • DistichorchisM.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • DitulimaRaf.
    • DockrilliaBrieger
    • × DockrilobiumJ.M.H.Shaw
    • Dolichocentrum(Schltr.) Brieger
    • DurabaculumM.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • Eleutheroglossum(Schltr.) M.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • EndeisaRaf.
    • EphemeranthaP.F.Hunt & Summerh.
    • EpigeneiumGagnep.
    • Eriopexis(Schltr.) Brieger
    • Euphlebium(Kraenzl.) Brieger
    • EurycaulisM.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • ExochanthusM.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • FlickingeriaA.D.Hawkes
    • FrosculaRaf.
    • GersiniaNéraud
    • GoldschmidtiaDammer
    • GrastidiumBlume
    • Herpetophytum(Schltr.) Brieger
    • HibiscorchisArchila & Vinc.Bertolini
    • InobulbonSchltr. & Kraenzl.
    • KeranthusLour. ex Endl.
    • Kinetochilus(Schltr.) Brieger
    • LatoureaBlume
    • LatourorchisBrieger
    • LeioanthumM.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • MaccraitheaM.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • MacrostomiumBlume
    • Microphytanthe(Schltr.) Brieger
    • Monanthos(Schltr.) Brieger
    • OnychiumBlume
    • OrmostemaRaf.
    • OrthoglottisBreda
    • OxyglossellumM.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • PedilonumBlume
    • PierardiaRaf.
    • Sarcocadetia(Schltr.) M.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • SayeriaKraenzl.
    • SchismocerasC.Presl
    • StachyobiumRchb.f.
    • StelbophyllumD.L.Jones & M.A.Clem.
    • StilbophyllumD.L.Jones & M.A.Clem.
    • TetrabaculumM.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • Tetrodon(Kraenzl.) M.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • ThelychitonEndl.
    • ThicuaniaRaf.
    • Trachyrhizum(Schltr.) Brieger
    • TropilisRaf.
    • × VappaculumM.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • VappodesM.A.Clem. & D.L.Jones
    • WinikaM.A.Clem., D.L.Jones & Molloy

Dendrobium is a genus of mostly epiphytic and lithophytic orchids in the family Orchidaceae. It is a very large genus, containing more than 1,800 species that are found in diverse habitats throughout much of south, east and southeast Asia, including China, Japan, India, the Philippines, Indonesia, Australia, New Guinea, Vietnam and many of the islands of the Pacific. Orchids in this genus have roots that creep over the surface of trees or rocks, rarely having their roots in soil. Up to six leaves develop in a tuft at the tip of a shoot and from one to a large number of flowers are arranged along an unbranched flowering stem. Several attempts have been made to separate Dendrobium into smaller genera, but most have not been accepted by the World Checklist of Selected Plant Families.

Contents

Labelled diagram of Dendrobium kingianum Dendrobium kingianum (labelled).jpg
Labelled diagram of Dendrobium kingianum

Description

Dendrobium species are mostly epiphytic, or lithophytic although a few species are terrestrial. They are sympodial herbs with cylindrical roots usually arising from the base of a pseudobulb. The pseudobulbs, when present, are hard, sometimes cane-like, cylindrical or cone-shaped and more or less covered with the bases of the leaves. There are from one to many leaves arranged in two ranks, the leaves varying in shape from linear to oblong, sometimes cylindrical but never channelled or grooved. They are usually much longer than wide and last for only a single season. [3] [4] [5]

Between one and a large number of resupinate or non-resupinate flowers are arranged along an unbranched flowering stem and may be short or long-lived. The flowers may be white, green, yellow, or pink to purple, often with contrasting colours in the labellum. The sepals and petals are usually free from and more or less similar to each other but markedly different from the labellum. The labellum is more or less egg-shaped, with the narrower end towards the base and flanks the column. There is often a callus consisting of narrow, parallel ridges, in the centre of the labellum. [3] [4] [5]

Taxonomy and naming

The genus Dendrobium was first formally described in 1799 by Olof Swartz and the description was published in Nova Acta Regiae Societatis Scientiarum Upsaliensis. [1] [6] The name Dendrobium is derived from the ancient Greek words dendron meaning "tree" and bios meaning "life", referring to the epiphytic habit of most species. [6] [7]

In 1981, Friedrich Brieger reclassified all terete-leaved dendrobiums from Australia and New Guinea into a new genus, Dockrillia and in 2002 David Jones and Mark Clements separated the genus into smaller genera, including Thelychiton, Tropilis, Vappodes and Winika but all of these genera are regarded as synonyms by the World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. [1]

Sections

In 2009, the online Flora of China divided the genus into the following sections: [8]

Distribution and habitat

Orchids in the genus Dendrobium have adapted to a wide variety of habitats, from the high altitudes in the Himalayan mountains to lowland tropical forests and even to the dry climate of the Australian desert.[ citation needed ]

Uses

Use in horticulture

Dendrobium is abbreviated as Den. by the Royal Horticultural Society. [9] Some species are in great demand by orchid lovers. This has resulted in numerous varieties and hybrids, such as the noble dendrobium (Den. nobile) breeds, which have greatly extended the range of colors of the original plant from the Himalayas. The flowers of Cuthbertson's dendrobium (Den. cuthbertsonii) have been reported to last up to ten months each.[ citation needed ]

Many Dendrobium species are known to vigorously remove toluene and xylene from the air. [10]

Several hybrids in this genus have been registered and named after notable persons and institutions:

The grex Dendrobium Berry gx [12] has received the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

Medicinal uses

A nobile-type cultivar or hybrid. Dendrobium nobile has been extensively bred in the horticultural industry, resulting in cultivars and hybrids with exceptional flower count and various patterning. Dendrobium nobile - Larssen.jpg
A nobile-type cultivar or hybrid. Dendrobium nobile has been extensively bred in the horticultural industry, resulting in cultivars and hybrids with exceptional flower count and various patterning.

Some Dendrobium species are cultivated as medicinal plants. [13] The noble dendrobium (D. nobile) for example is one of the 50 fundamental herbs used in traditional Chinese medicine, where it is known as shí hú ( ) or shí hú lán ( ).

The 1889 book 'The Useful Native Plants of Australia records that Dendrobium canaliculatum was called "yamberin" by the Indigenous People of Queensland, Australia and that "The bulbous stems, after being deprived of the old leaves are edible (Thozet)." [14]

In culture

Many species and cultivars of this genus are well-known floral emblems and have been figured in artwork. Among the former are:

The Cooktown orchid was figured on Australian stamps in 1968 and 1998, and flowers of several Dendrobium greges are depicted on the obverse side of the Singapore Orchid Series currency notes issued between 1967 and 1976:

The golden-bow dendrobium ( D. chrysotoxum ), colloquially called fried-egg orchid was one of the species grown by the fictional private detective and orchid fancier Nero Wolfe, and plays a role in The Final Deduction .

Related Research Articles

<i>Cymbidium</i> Genus of flowering plants in the orchid family Orchidaceae

Cymbidium, commonly known as boat orchids, is a genus of evergreen flowering plants in the orchid family Orchidaceae. Orchids in this genus are epiphytic, lithophytic, terrestrial or rarely leafless saprophytic herbs usually with pseudobulbs. There are usually between three and twelve leaves arranged in two ranks on each pseudobulb or shoot and lasting for several years. From one to a large number of flowers are arranged on an unbranched flowering stem arising from the base of the pseudobulb. The sepals and petals are all free from and similar to each other. The labellum is significantly different from the other petals and the sepals and has three lobes. There are about fifty-five species and sixteen further natural hybrids occurring in the wild from tropical and subtropical Asia to Australia. Cymbidiums are well known in horticulture and many cultivars have been developed.

<i>Dendrobium nobile</i> Species of orchid from Asia

Dendrobium nobile, commonly known as the noble dendrobium, is a member of the family Orchidaceae. It has become a popular cultivated decorative house plant, because it produces colourful blooms in winter and spring, at a time when little else is in flower. It is also one of the 50 fundamental herbs used in traditional Chinese medicine, known as shí hú or shí hú lán. Dendrobium nobile is one of the most widespread ornamental members of the orchid family. Its blooms are variegated in colour, shading from white through pink and purple, and the many different cultivated varieties produce different sized and coloured blooms.

<i>Dendrobium bigibbum</i> Species of orchid from Australia and New Guinea

Dendrobium bigibbum, commonly known as the Cooktown orchid or mauve butterfly orchid, is an epiphytic or lithophytic orchid in the family Orchidaceae. It has cylindrical pseudobulbs, each with between three and five green or purplish leaves and arching flowering stems with up to twenty, usually lilac-purple flowers. It occurs in tropical North Queensland, Australia and New Guinea.

<i>Dendrobium discolor</i> Species of orchid

Dendrobium discolor, commonly known as antler orchid or golden orchid, is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid in the family Orchidaceae, and are native to northern Australia, New Guinea, and part of Indonesia. It has cylindrical pseudobulbs, each with between ten and thirty five leathery leaves, and flowering stems with up to forty mostly brownish or greenish flowers with wavy and twisted sepals and petals.

<i>Dendrobium tetragonum</i> Species of orchid

Dendrobium tetragonum, commonly known as the tree spider orchid, is a variable species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid endemic to eastern Australia. Tree spider orchids are unusual in having pendulous pseudobulbs that are thin and wiry near the base then expand into a fleshy, four-sided upper section before tapering at the tip. There are only a few thin but leathery leaves at the end of the pseudobulbs and up to five flowers on relatively short flowering stems. To allow for the variations in the species there are five subspecies and a variety, some with a unique common name.

<i>Dendrobium johannis</i> Species of orchid

Dendrobium johannis, commonly known as the chocolate tea tree orchid, is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid native to Australia and New Guinea. It has spindle-shaped pseudobulbs, between five and ten dark green leaves with purplish markings and flowering stems with up to fifteen chocolate brown flowers with a yellow labellum.

<i>Taeniophyllum</i> Genus of orchids

Taeniophyllum, commonly known as ribbon roots or 带叶兰属 is a genus of about 240 species of epiphytic or lithophytic plants from the orchid family, Orchidaceae. Plants in this genus are more or less leafless with a very short stem and roots that are often flat, green and photosynthetic. The flowers are small, short-lived, flat or tube-shaped and arranged on short, thin flowering stems. Orchids in this genus are found in Africa, tropical and subtropical Asia, New Guinea, Australia and some Western Pacific Islands. It is extinct in Malawi.

<i>Oberonia</i> Genus of orchids

Oberonia, commonly known as fairy orchids, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Orchidaceae. Orchids in this genus are epiphytic or lithophytic plants with the leaves arranged fan-like, overlapping at the base and spreading near the tips. Large numbers of tiny, short-lived, cup-shaped, non-resupinate flowers are arranged on an arching flowering stem that emerges from the base of the uppermost leaf. There are about 270 species occurring from tropical and southern Africa to the Pacific.

<i>Plectorrhiza</i> Genus of orchids

Plectorrhiza, commonly known as tangle orchids, is a genus of three species of flowering plants from the orchid family, Orchidaceae and is endemic to Australia. Orchids in the genus Plectorrhiza are epiphytic or lithophytic herbs with short stems, long, tangled roots, short leathery leaves and small flowers on a short, thin flowering stem. Two species occur in eastern Australia and one is endemic to Lord Howe Island.

<i>Dendrobium moorei</i> Species of orchid

Dendrobium moorei, commonly known as the drooping cane orchid, is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid in the family Orchidaceae and is endemic to Lord Howe Island. It has cylindrical pseudobulbs, leathery, dark green leaves and between two and fifteen small, white drooping flowers that do not open widely.

Dendrobium macropus, commonly known as the Norfolk Island cane orchid, is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid in the family Orchidaceae and is endemic to Norfolk Island. It has cylindrical pseudobulbs, thin, dark green leaves and between five and ten yellowish green flowers that do not open widely.

Dendrobium brachypus, commonly known as the dwarf cane orchid, is an epiphytic or lithophytic orchid in the family Orchidaceae. It has crowded, yellowish green pseudobulbs, dark green leaves and two or three cream-coloured to whitish or greenish flowers which often do not open fully. It grows on trees and rocks on one mountain on Norfolk Island.

Dendrobium brevicaudum, commonly known as the Mount Finnigan pencil orchid, is an epiphytic or lithophytic orchid in the family Orchidaceae and is endemic to Queensland. It has hanging stems, cylindrical leaves and groups of about six yellowish or orange-brown flowers with red streaks and a white labellum. It is only known from two mountainous areas north of Cairns.

<i>Dendrobium baileyi</i> Species of orchid

Dendrobium baileyi, commonly known as the blotched gemini orchid, is an epiphytic or lithophytic orchid in the family Orchidaceae and has arching stems and flowering stems with one or two spidery, yellow flowers with dark purple spots emerging from leaf axis. It grows in tropical North Queensland, New Guinea and the Solomon Islands.

<i>Dendrobium densiflorum</i> Species of orchid

Dendrobium densiflorum is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid, native to Asia. It has club-shaped stems, three or four leathery leaves and densely flowered, hanging bunches of relatively large pale yellow and golden yellow flowers.

<i>Dendrobium bowmanii</i> Species of orchid

Dendrobium bowmanii, commonly known as the straggly pencil orchid, is an epiphytic or lithophytic orchid in the family Orchidaceae. It has thin wiry, straggly stems with a small number of small leaves and up to four greenish or brownish flowers with a conspicuous white labellum. It grows in drier rainforests and coastal scrub in New South Wales, southern Queensland and New Caledonia.

<i>Dendrobium canaliculatum</i> Species of orchid

Dendrobium canaliculatum, commonly known as the brown tea tree orchid or thin tea tree orchid, is an epiphytic or lithophytic orchid in the family Orchidaceae. It has cone-shaped or onion-shaped pseudobulbs, up to six deeply channelled, dark green leaves and up to thirty star-shaped, light brown to caramel-coloured white or greenish to apricot-coloured flowers with darker tips. It grows in tropical North Queensland and New Guinea.

<i>Dendrobium fleckeri</i> Species of orchid

Dendrobium fleckeri, commonly known as the apricot cane orchid, is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid endemic to far north Queensland, Australia. It has cylindrical pseudobulbs with two or three dark green leaves and up to four apricot-coloured or yellowish green flowers with tangled white hairs on the edge of the labellum.

<i>Dendrobium lichenastrum</i> Species of orchid

Dendrobium lichenastrum, commonly known as the common button orchid, is a species of epiphytic or lithophytic orchid endemic to far north Queensland. It has a creeping, branching rhizome surrounded by papery bracts, small egg-shaped to round, fleshy, dark green leaves and a single white, cream-coloured or pink flower with red stripes and an orange labellum.

<i>Dendrobium nindii</i> Species of orchid

Dendrobium nindii, commonly known as the blue antler orchid, is an epiphytic or lithophytic orchid in the family Orchidaceae. It has erect, cylindrical, leafy pseudobulbs with leathery, dark green leaves and up to twenty mauve or violet flowers with darker veins on the labellum. This antler orchid occurs in tropical North Queensland and New Guinea.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Dendrobium". World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP). Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
  2. "Dendrobium Sw". Plants of the World Online. Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 2017. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
  3. 1 2 Zhu, Guanghua; Ji, Zhanhe; Wood, Jeffrey J.; Wood, Howard P. "Dendrobium (石斛属 shi hu shu)". Flora of China. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  4. 1 2 "Genus Dendrobium". Orchids of New Guinea. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
  5. 1 2 "Dendrobium". Australian National Botanic Gardens. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
  6. 1 2 Swartz, Olof (1799). "Dianome Epidendri Generis Linn". Nova Acta Regiae Societatis Scientiarum Upsaliensis. 6: 82. Retrieved 9 November 2018.
  7. Quattrocchi, Umberto (2012). CRC World Dictionary of Medicinal and Poisonous Plants: Common Names, Scientific Names, Eponyms, synonyms, and Etymology. Boca Raton, Florida: CRC Press. p. 1350. ISBN   9781482250640.
  8. "Dendrobium in Flora of China @ efloras.org". eFloras.org Home. Retrieved 2 April 2022.
  9. "Alphabetical list of standard abbreviations of all generic names occurring in current use in orchid hybrid registration as at 31st December 2007" (PDF). Royal Horticultural Society.
  10. Wolverton (1996)
  11. "新品种胡姬花以马国首相名字命名" (in Chinese). 8视界.
  12. "Dendrobium Berry gx". RHS. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
  13. "Dendrobium (PROSEA) - PlantUse English".
  14. J. H. Maiden (1889). The useful native plants of Australia : Including Tasmania. Turner and Henderson, Sydney.
  15. Soediono, Noes, Arditti, Joseph and Soediono, Rubismo. Kimilsungia: How an Indonesian Orchid Became a Revered Symbol in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea After Its Name was Changed. Plant Science Bulletin 75 3 pp. 103-113
  16. "Dendrobium utile J.J.Sm". Plants of the World Online.
  17. "MAS: Orchid Series - $10". Archived from the original on 24 November 2008. Retrieved 29 November 2008.
  18. "MAS: Orchid Series - $500". Archived from the original on 24 November 2008. Retrieved 29 November 2008.
  19. "MAS: Orchid Series - $1000". Archived from the original on 25 November 2008. Retrieved 29 November 2008.