Tropical orchid hybrid diversity, Thailand
In the wild, orchid species rarely form natural hybrids in zones of overlap. The integrity of species is maintained by differences in flowering times, floral morphology, visual and olfactory cues, as well as by genetic incompatibility or inability of the hybrid to establish and reproduce. Once one or more of these barriers or isolating mechanisms are removed, though, for example when orchids are pollinated by hand in the greenhouse, two different species will often produce viable hybrids quite readily. Artificial hybrids are common between species in the same genus, between species of different genera in the same subtribe, more rarely between species in different subtribes (but within the same tribe). In fact, the genes from as many as six different genera are present in some hybrids, leading to the perception of orchids as most promiscuous plants indeed. The first orchid hybrid to flower (1856) was Calanthe Dominyi ( triplicata x sylvatica back then known as furcata x masuca), a cross made by John Dominy, head grower for the English firm of Veitch & hybrida Shortly thereafter, a showier hybrid, Cattleya Hybrida (guttata x loddigesii) flowered, and a new era in orchid cultivation had dawned. Relatively few hybrids were produced in the last half of the nineteenth century, however, because growers were still unaware of the specific relationships between orchids and mycorrhizal fungi that governed the germination of seeds and establishment of seedlings. At the turn of the century, Frenchman Noel Bernard effectively demonstrated that the presence of such fungi was necessary for germination.
Size: 3617px × 4692px
Photo credit: © Scenics & Science / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: arandas, arantheras, cattleyas, cymbidiums, dendrobiums, diversity, dominy, fungus, genes, hybrid, hybridization, john, mokaras, mycorrhizal, oncidiums, orchid, phalenopsis, pollination, thailand, tropical, vandas, veitch
