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.
Anacamptis pyramidalis, the pyramidal orchid, is a perennial herbaceous plant belonging to the genus Anacamptis of the family Orchidaceae. The scientific name Anacamptis derives from Greek ανακάμτειν 'anakamptein' meaning 'bend forward', while the Latin name pyramidalis refers to the pyramidal form of the inflorescence.
Dactylorhiza fuchsii, the common spotted orchid, is a species of flowering plant in the orchid family Orchidaceae.
Cypripedium is a genus of 58 species and nothospecies of hardy orchids; it is one of five genera that together compose the subfamily of lady's slipper orchids (Cypripedioideae). They are widespread across much of the Northern Hemisphere, including most of Europe and Africa (Algeria), Russia, China, Central Asia, Canada the United States, Mexico, and Central America. They are most commonly known as slipper orchids, lady's slipper orchids, or ladyslippers; other common names include moccasin flower, camel's foot, squirrel foot, steeple cap, Venus' shoes, and whippoorwill shoe. An abbreviation used in trade journals is "Cyp." The genus name is derived from Ancient Greek Κύπρις (Kúpris), an early reference in Greek myth to Aphrodite, and πέδιλον (pédilon), meaning "sandal".
Mexipedium is a monotypic genus of the Orchid family Orchidaceae, subfamily Cypripedioideae, consisting of only one species, Mexipedium xerophyticum. It is also the single genus of tribe Mexipedieae and subtribe Mexipediinae.
Aerides, known commonly as cat's-tail orchids and fox brush orchids, is a genus belonging to the orchid family. It is a group of tropical epiphyte orchids that grow mainly in the warm lowlands of tropical Asia from India to southern China to New Guinea. They are valued in horticulture for their racemes of showy, fragrant, colorful flowers.
Acanthophippium is a genus of orchid with thirteen species. The name of this genus is derived from the Greek words acanthos ("spiny") and ephippion ("saddle"), referring to the saddle-like labellum of the plants.
Ancistrochilus is a genus of the orchid family (Orchidaceae), comprising only 2 species.
Prosthechea is a genus of flowering plants in the orchid family (Orchidaceae). The name is derived from the Greek word prostheke (appendix), referring to the appendage on the back of the column. Appendage orchid is a common name for this genus. Prosthechea is abbreviated Psh. in the horticultural trade.
Holcoglossum (Holc.) is a genus of orchids, in the family Orchidaceae. It is native from Assam through mainland China to Taiwan and Indo-China.
Dactylorhiza maculata, known as the heath spotted-orchid or moorland spotted orchid, is an herbaceous perennial plant of the family Orchidaceae. It is widespread in mountainous regions across much of Europe from Portugal and Iceland east to Russia. It is also found in Algeria, Morocco, and western Siberia.
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.
Rhynchostylis retusa is an orchid, belonging to the Vanda alliance. The inflorescence is a pendant raceme, consisting of more than 100 pink-spotted white flowers. The plant has a short, stout, creeping stem carrying up to 12, curved, fleshy, deeply channeled, keeled, retuse apically leaves and blooms on an axillary pendant to 60 cm (24 in) long, racemose, densely flowered, cylindrical inflorescence that occurs in the winter and early spring. It is famous for its use as a hair-ornament worn by Assamese women during folk dance Bihu on the onset of spring.
Cryptostylis, commonly known as tongue orchids, is a genus of flowering plants from the orchid family. Tongue orchids are terrestrial herbs with one to a few stalked leaves at the base of the flowering stem, or leafless. One to a few dull coloured flowers are borne on an erect flowering stem. The most conspicuous part of the flower is the labellum, compared to the much reduced sepals and petals. At least some species are pollinated by wasps when they attempt to mate with the flower. There are about twenty five species found in South Asia, Southeast Asia and the South Pacific.
Geodorum, commonly known as shepherds' crooks or 地宝兰属 , is a genus of eight species of flowering plants in the orchid family, Orchidaceae. They are deciduous, terrestrial herbs with underground pseudobulbs, broad, pleated leaves and small to medium-sized, tube-shaped or bell-shaped flowers on a flowering stem with a drooping end. Species in this genus are found in southern Japan, tropical Asia, Australia and islands of the southwest Pacific Ocean.
Thelasis, commonly known as fly orchids, is a genus of flowering plants from the orchid family, Orchidaceae. Plants in this genus are usually epiphytes, sometimes lithophytes or rarely terrestrials. Some species have pseudobulbs with up to three leaves, whilst others have several leaves in two ranks. A large number of small, white or greenish yellow flowers are borne on a thin, arching flowering stem. There are about thirty species, distributed from tropical and subtropical Asia to the southwest Pacific.
Micropera, commonly known as dismal orchids or 小囊兰属 is a genus of about twenty species of flowering plants from the orchid family, Orchidaceae. Plants in this genus are large epiphytes with thick roots, long, fibrous stems, linear leaves and whitish or yellow, non-resupinate flowers. The sepals and petals are similar to each other and the labellum is shoe-shaped or sac-like and has three lobes. It is found from Tibet to tropical Asia and the western Pacific Ocean.
Schoenorchis, commonly known as flea orchids, or 匙唇兰属 in Chinese, is a genus of flowering plants from the orchid family, Orchidaceae. Plants in this genus are small epiphytes with thin roots, thin leafy stems with leaves in two ranks and tiny fragrant, almost tube-shaped flowers with a prominently spurred labellum. There are about twenty five species found from tropical and subtropical Asia to the Western Pacific.
Pinalia xanthocheila is a species in the plant family Orchidaceae.
Trachoma, commonly known as spectral orchids, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Orchidaceae. Orchids in this genus are epiphytic plants with leafy stems, crowded, leathery leaves arranged in two ranks and a large number of relatively small, short-lived flowers that often open in successive clusters. The sepals and petals are free from and more or less similar to each other, except that the petals are often smaller. The labellum is rigidly fixed to the column and is more or less sac-shaped. There are about 17 species distributed from Assam to the Western Pacific Ocean. Most species grow in rainforests, often on emergent trees such as hoop pine.
