Monday, August 11, 2008

Upside-down orchid....or is it ?


A common orchid from Malaysia, Borneo, PNG, Thailand and some say Singapore.

Most orchid flowers are oriented differently, having a lip at the lowest part of the flower which serves as a landing pad for the pollinator (see for example a Cirrhopetalum) . So when someone told me flowers of Bulbophyllum macranthum are upside-down, with lips situated at the top (oscillating through a notch between the two sepals), I could not but agree. But as I later learned, a standard orchid flower is resupinate - which means that the flowers twist 180 degree about the flower stalk during growth so in effect, most orchid flowers are upside-down.

Which also means, a non-resupinate orchid flower like this, is, as a matter of fact, right-side up.

Seems rather trivial, but it means that they have a rather different pollinating mechanism....

7 comments:

Lavender and Vanilla Friends of the Gardens said...

Well I think for an Orchid grower or a connoisseur this might be important. I am only a admirer and this orchid is spectacular.

Hermes said...

Never seen this before - amazing. And so beautiful.

Sunita Mohan said...

Great blog! I've been browsing here for the last half hour or so and your photos are really fantastic... almost jewel-like.
I envy your access to so many orchids in Singapore. Here in India, most nurseries dont keep them, except in a few places which cater to the cut-flower industry. But then, they're all of the hybrid phal-type Dendrobium variety or once in a while, maybe a hybrid Phalaenopsis. If I see a Cattleya somewhere I can count myself really lucky. Such a waste of our tropical climate!
What curcumas do you have growing for you? Are they like the ones in my post? Yes, I think they may need a change of seasons. My climate sees a swing from 36*C in May to 25*C in June once the monsoons set in. But in Kerala where Curcuma longa is cultivated extensively, there isnt that much of a weather swing inspite of it receiving even heavier rains than Mumbai does.
I'm so glad you stopped by my blog. Do visit again. Its great talking to a fellow tropical plant-lover.

Lavender and Vanilla Friends of the Gardens said...

I am back;) thank you for your message and your interest. Yes, it is the same rose oil as for aromatherapy. Make sure you get the pure oil from a reputable distiller.) If you want to make your own face cream, try first different oils which will suit your skin; or use wheatgerm which should be all right for any skin type. My bought base cream has macademia oil. I have used this cream, also with different bases for many years. I get also lots of scratches on my arms in my garden from dividing certain Bromeliads. They are quite nasty. My cream soothes and heals them in a few days.
Here are the url for websites to make base creams for the percentage of ingredients you might like to use. I hope this helps you.
http://www.natural-skin-care-info.com/natural_skin_care_moisturizer.html
www.glenbrookfarm.com/face_creams.
htm

Hort Log said...

Trudi, thanks for your information. I am a chemist by training so I like doing these things ...

Sunita, only my C. gracillima appears to be fairly reliable bloomer, but then only once a year .... will search for a pic.

Anonymous said...

mine does not flower sigh ....want to trade ???

A. N. Sringeswara said...

Even the flowers of Satyrium nepalense is non-resupinate.

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