Orchid

(CC) Photo: Per Verdonk
Showy Lady Slipper (Cypripedium reginae).

There are literally tens of thousands of species, cultivars and varieties in the orchid family, the largest family of flowering plants. The word orchid may refer to any of the botanical family orchidaceae, or, more commonly among lay persons, any of thousands of flowers called "orchids".

Orchids are ancient, and have been cultivated for centuries. They range from rare and recent discoveries such as the tiny Tallong Midge Orchid to the large, showy orchids which are featured in bouquets and corsages, to food orchids such as vanilla. A few orchids have insignificant flowers and are grown for their foliage.

Orchids seemed to be fascinating: every developed nation has many orchid societies, and this fascination extends beyond form and beauty. Because of their biological importance (some orchids have developed extraordinary systems of pollination, for example, "Lady's Slipper" traps insects and so forces them to pollinate the flower; one Australian orchid exists underground and is pollinated by ants; many give off attractive odours), orchids hold just as much interest for scientists. Famed biologist Ernst Mayr discovered and named 38 new species of orchid.