The wonder of wild orchids By Doris Ames
The western prairie-fringed orchid (Platanthera praeclara). M
anitoba’s 39 varieties of native orchids range from the ethereal, three-inch-high fairy slipper (Calypso bulbosa) to the grandly, pristine western
prairie-fringed orchid (Platanthera praeclara), and include the many insignificant “little green jobs” such as Hook- er’s orchid (Platanthera hookeri). All have their points of interest. Many are beautiful and some are extremely rare. Orchids show great structural variety, especially in their
modified petals or lips. They use intriguing mechanisms to attract insects and display endless ingenuity in ensuring these creatures do the job of pollinating them. Grass pink (Calopogon tuberosus), for example, has its lip uppermost and sports a “beard” of golden hairs to conceal a spring- loaded trap from its confused pollinator. He’s been used,
60 • Fall 2016
and he’s out of there — without a taste of nectar — before he knows what hit him. An orchid’s subtle or sometimes heady scent is geared
to a very specific insect. For example, the western prairie fringed orchid (P. praeclara) has a powerful scent at night, and markings visible only under ultra-violet light. This combined with its long spur, might lead you to believe that its natural pollinator is a night-flying moth but in this case the pollinator eventually proved to be a small sphinx moth with a long tongue. With orchids appear- ances can be deceptive. Some orchids are self-pollinating and one, Loesel's twayblade, is actually pollinated by raindrops! Orchids constitute one of the planet's largest plant
localgardener.net
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80