Survey
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
AustralianDendrobiumOrchidSpecies-overview Introduction Australiahasover56nativeDendrobium‘species’althoughrecently analternativenamingsystemhasbeenproposedthathas reclassifiedDendrobiumspeciesintoothergeneraandspecies.The newGeneraincludeCadetia,Cepobaculum,Ceratobium,Coelandria, Davejonesia,Dockdrillia,Durabaculum,Flickingeria,Tetrabaculum, Thelychiton,TropilisandVappodes.Asthisrenamingisnot universallyacceptedorresolved,forthepurposeofthisoverview theoriginalnameswillbeusedaswellasthenewproposednames. Refertothespeciesarticlesonthiswebsiteformoredetailed growingguidesforthedifferentspecies. DendrobiumspeciosumcomplexorThelychitonspecies Thelychitonspp.orsyn. Dendobiumspeciosum Commonlyknownasrockorchidsorrockliliestheycanbefoundalongtheeastcoastof Australia(seemapsbelow). ThereareagreatvarietyofvegetativeformswithinDen.speciosumthatvaryinstature fromshorttoverytall.IthasbeenproposedthattheDen.speciosumcomplexbedivided into6Thelychitonspeciesalthoughthisisnotuniversallyacceptedatthissatgesoboth namesareused.The6species(orDendrobiumvarieties)aresummarisedbelowbasedon theirnaturaldistributionstartingwithmostnortherlyspeciesfirstandprogressivelymoving south. Thelychitonpedunculatus(syn.Den.speciosumvar. pedunculatum). Thisspecieshasarestricteddistributionofabout100kmonthe westoftheAthertonTablelandsinQueensland(10)inanarea thathasalongdrywinterperiod.Itisadwarfformwith pseudobulbsusuallynotexceeding25cmlong.Ithasthick uprightleaves.Theplantmusttolerateadrywinterperiod lastingseveralmonths.Itgetsitsnamefromtheverylong pedunclebetweentheleafaxilandthestartoftheflowerson theraceme.Overhalftheracemelengthwillhavenoflowers. Racemescanbeupto75cmlongbutareusuallymuchshorter.Flowercolourismostly white,creamorpaleyellow(10).Breedershaveusedthisspeciesextensivelyto incorporateitsdwarfcharacter. Thelychitoncurvicaulis(syn.Den.speciosumvar.curvicaule). ThisspecieshasalimitedrangeandgrowsfrommidwaybetweenRockhamptonand MackaynorthtoAirlieBeach(10)atelevationsof20to1200m.Pseudobulbsarevery longandthickandmeasureupto85cmtothefirstleafanditusuallyonlyhas2or3 thickleatheryleaves.Plantsfromhigherelevationshavethelargestpseudobulbsand longerracemes.Thisspeciesdoesnotproduceaerialroots.Flowercolouriswhite throughtopaleyellow.Selectionsinclude“EungellaDawn”,“Fab”and“Eungella Queen”. Thelychitoncapricornicus(syn.Den.speciosumvar.capricornicum). ThisspeciesisfoundnorthofRockhamptonincentral QueenslandaroundtheTropicofCapricorn,belowwhichT. rexismorecommon(10).Itismorecommonlyfoundon rocksratherthantrees(10).Pseudobulbsvaryfrom15to 35cmlongandarenotverythickwithrelativelysmallleaves. ThecloneBigBoyishighlyawardedbutthisspeciesisnot widelygrown.Flowercolourrangesfrompaleyellowtooff whitewithracemesupto60cmlong. Thelychitonrex(syn.Den.speciosumvar.grandiflorum) ThisformissimilarinappearancetoT.tarberi(seebelow).It andT.tarberiaretheonlyvarsofspeciosumtohaveaerial roots(10).ItscommonnameistheGoldenKingOrchid. Flowercolourismidtodarkyellowandflowersarelarger thanfoundonT.tarberi.Racemescanbeupto75cmlongby 15cmindia(10).Itgrowsonrocksandtreesandis predominantlyfoundaroundKingaroyandGympienorthto RockhamptoninQldatelevationsof100to600m(10). Thelychitontarberi(syn.Denspeciosumvar.hillii). Thisspecies,sometimesreferredtoastheTreeKingOrchid orthePaleKingOrchid,isfound200kmnorthofSydney anditsnorthernlimitisnearNambour100kmnorthof BrisbaneinQueensland(10).Itgrowsatelevationsof50to 1200masanepiphyteinrainforestsorhumidforests(11) ontreesorrocks.Pseudobulbsarethin,longandtapered andupto1mlongwithmanyaerialroots.Racemescanbe upto60cmlongwithupto400flowersperraceme. Flowersareabout25mmwideandtypicallypalecreamor whitewithnoyellowflowersknown(10).Itisnotas popularasotherspeciosumspecieswithgrowers. Thelychitonspeciosus(syn.Den.speciosum) Thisisthemostsoutherlyspeciesandiscommonlycalled theNSWRockLilyandgrowsfromVictoriatothecentral coastofNSWfromsealeveltoaround900m(10).It predominantlygrowsonrocksandveryoccasionallyon trees(10).Pseudobulbsrangeinlengthfrom15to75cm with2to5leavesupto30cmlongand8cmwide.Racemes canbeupto60cmlongwithflowercolourrangingfrom whitetostrongyellow(10).ItflowersfromSeptemberto November.Notallplantsflowereachyear.Twowellknown cultivarsare“Windemere”and“NationalWhite” Thelychitonepiphyticus Thisepiphyte,commonlyknownastheIllawarrarockorchid,isonlyfoundinsouthern NSWintheNowradistrict.Itonlygrowsontreesandhasupto50creamflowersper racemecomparedtoT.specioususwhichhasupto100flowersperraceme(13). Generalcomments Manyplantsonlyflowerwelleverysecondyearandrequiregoodexposuretosunlightto flower.Flowerscanbeverystronglyperfumed.Floweringisconcentratedinlatewinterspring.Theycanbloomoffthesamepseudobulbsforanumberofseasons(2).T.speciosus hasbeenusedinextensivecrossingandselectionprogramstoproduceawidevarietyin flowercoloursandstrongthickpseudobulbs.Seedlingscantakeupto10yearstoflower(4). HybridsofD.speciosumwitheitherD.falcorostrumorD.kingianumintheirparentage flowermorereliablyeachyearonsmalleryoungerplants(4). Asalithophyte,itcanproducelargespreadingclumpsonrocksandclifffaces,ofteninfull sun,withitsrootsformingadensematacrosstherock. TobetterunderstandthenaturaldistributionofDendrobiumspeciosumvarieties(orsyn. Thelychitons),themapbelowdescribesthedistributionofthevarious9varietiesbasedon theoriginalDendrobiumspeciosumclassification(12).These9speciosumvarietieshave nowbeenrenamedasuniqueThelychitonspeciesintheproposedreclassification. Mapshowingdistributionof9Dendrobiumspeciosumvarietiesbasedontheolder classification(FromAdamsetal.2006) OtherThelychitonsorsynDendrobiums Thelychitonfalcorostrusorsyn.Dendrobiumfalcorostrum Awhitefloweringepiphyticspeciesoriginatingintherainforestsof QueenslandandNewSouthWalesandtoleratestemperaturesdown tofreezing.AlsoknownastheAntarcticBeechOrchid.Stemsgrowup to50cmlong.GrowsonBeechtreesincooltemperaterainforestnorthof BardoRose BarringtonTopsinNSW.Thewhiteflowersarestronglyperfumed. ‘BardoRose’isverypopularfragrantprimaryhybridofDen. falcorostrumandDen.kingianum. Thelychitonfleckeriorsyn.Dendrobiumfleckeri Thisspeciesknownastheapricotcaneorchidhasapricotcoloured flowers.Manyhybridshavebeenmadewiththisspecies.Pseudobulbs areupto40cmlong.Foundgrowingincloudforestsontreesand boulders,oftenamongstmoss.FlowersAugusttoJanuary. Thelychitonfleckeri Thelychitonkingianusorsyn.Dendrobiumkingianum Averyhardyorchidwithcoloursrangingfromdarkpurpletopalepink. ItcanbefoundfromcentralNSWtotheCarnarvonGorgein Queensland.Canesareshorterinthemoresouthernformsandmore elongatedinmorenortherlywarmerclimateforms.Ithasbeenwidely usedincrossingprogramstodevelophybridswithovera1000 registeredforms.Coloursrangefromwhitetopinkanddarkpurple. Somecultivarscarry2racemespercane.Itismorepronetofrostthan otherDendrobiumsandalsomorelikelytoproducekeikisifgiventoo muchnitrogenfertilizer. Thelychitonkingianus Dendrobiumdelicatum ThiseasytogrowlithophyticspeciesisanaturalhybridofD. kingianumandD.tarberifoundineasternNSWtonorth Queensland(2).Itspseudobulbscanbeupto35cmlongwith2to5 leavesatthetop.Itrequiresplentyofsuntoflowerandadry winter.Itflowersfromlatewintertospring.Flowercoloursrange fromwhitetopinkwithalargerangeofcultivarsavailable(seeSanta BarbaraOrchidEstatewebsite)(6). Den.delicatum Tetrabaculum ThisgenuscontainsspeciesfromtheoldDendrobiumtetragonumcomplex.Commonly knownasthespiderorchid.Thereare4varietiesofDen.tetragonum(5), Var.melaleucaphilumwiththecommonname“SpiderOrchid”isfoundfromtheBlue MountainsinNSWtocentralQueensland.ItisanepiphytethatgrowsmainlyonMelaleuca trees. Var.tetragonum,growsfromtheIllawarraregioninNSWtotheFitzroy Den.tetragonum RiverinQueenslandandisknownasthe‘blotchedtreespiderorchid’ duetotheshapeoftheflowers.Itisfoundataltitudesof500to1200m. Var.cacatuaisatropicalformthatisfoundbetweentheFitzroyandAnnanRiversin Queensland.Itscommonnameis“Yellowtreespiderorchid”andiscommonlyfoundin denserainforestsontreesinshadyareasbesidestreams.ItflowersfromJulytoSeptember. Pseudobulbsarenarrow,pendulousandupto50cmlongwith2-5leaves. Var.giganteumisatropicalformfoundfromtheFitzroyRivernorthtotheCapeYork PeninsulainQueenslandatelevationsfromsealevelto900minshadylocationsontrees besidestreams.Thisvarietyhaslargerflowersupto12cmacrosswhichareyellowwith whitelipblotchedwithred(9). Afurther2varietiesoftetrabaculumhavebeenrecentlyclassified,varserpentisand subsppcataractarum. Flowersarespideryinappearancewithapseudobulbproducingflowersformanyyears. Theseepiphytesarebestgrownonmountswithmossovertheirrootsunderhighhumidity. HybridsproducedfromDen.tetragonuminclude; D.speciosumxD.tetragonum=D.HildaPoxon D.falcorostrumxD.tetragonum=D.StarofGold D.kingianumxD.tetragonum=D.Ellen SeethearticlebyIssyKleinlistedbelowforafullerdescriptionofthehybrids(5). Vappodes Australianspeciesinthisgroupcomefromwarmermorenorthern regionsofQueenslandandgenerallyrequirewarmertemperatures withminimumnighttemperaturesof15°C,dailywateringin summerbutadrywinterperiod.Theyarebestgrownonamountin aglasshouse.Thebetterknownspeciesinclude: Vappodesbigibbasyn.Den.bigibbum.Thisspecies,alsoknownas theMauveButterflyOrchid,occursfromnorthernQueenslandto theTorresStraightIslands(8).Pseudobulbscanbeverylongupto 120cmlongwith3-5leaves.ItflowersfromFebruarytoJuly.This CooktownOrchid speciesisagrandparentinthebreedingofDen.Anne’sRainbow surpriseandDen.Jonathan’sGlorywhichhavebothbeenhighlyawarded(4). Vappodeslithocolasyn,Den.bigibbumvar.compactum.Thisspeciesoccursbetweenthe DaintreeandCairnsinNEQueenslandandiscommonlycalledtheDwarfButterflyOrchid.It occursat250to800maslinhighrainfallareas(7).Pseudobulbscanbeupto25cmlong with3-4terminalleaves.Racemeshave2-20flowers.Plantsareoftenfoundexposedtofull sunonrocksandclifffacesandhotdryconditionswhentheycompletelydefoliate.They flowerfromMarchtoOctober.Flowerscanbelilacpurple,white,bluishorpink(7). Vappodesphalaenopsis,syn.Den.bigibbumvar.superbum.AlsoknownastheCooktown Orchid(seefactsheetonthiswebsiteformoregrowinghints). Hot-coldhybrids Newhybridshavebeenproducedtogivelargerandmorecolourful flowers.ThesetypicallyarecrossesusingD.kingianum,D. speciosum,D.tetragonumandVappodesspecies. Iftropicalspecieshavebeenusedintheparentage,morewarmth willneedtobegiveninwinter,otherwisetheywilltoleratesimilar coolconditionsasspeciosus. HybridDendrobium OtherDendrobium/Thelychitonspecies. AmoredetaileddescriptionoftheseandotherAustralianDendrobium(Thelychiton) speciesandtheirculturalrequirementscanbefoundinthereferenceslistedbelow. Furtherreading Thesenotesarebasedoninformationprovidedbylocalgrowersandthereferenceslisted below. 1. GrowingOrchidsinCoolClimateAustralia(secondedition)byMJFraser,JWright, WFerris(2013). 2. GardeningAustraliaFlora’sOrchids.ABCBooks(2005). 3. AustralianDendrobiumsandtheirCultivation.byAHope. http://www.oscov.asn.au/articles/austden.htm 4. HowIGrowAustralianDendrobiums(andDockrillias)byBMilligan. http://www.oscov.asn.au/articles2/dend.htm 5. TheinfluenceofDendrobiumtetragonuminAustralianNativeDendrobium HybridisingbyIssyKlein.http://www.oscov.asn.au/articles/tetrainfl.htm 6. SantaBarbaraOrchidEstate. http://www.sborchid.com/sboe_collection.php?collection_genus=Dendrobiums&co llection_short_name=Aussie%20hybrids&collection_name=Australian%20dendrobiu m%20hybrids 7. AustraliantropicalrainforestOrchids.VappodeslithocolabyMAClementsandDL Jones.http://keys.trin.org.au/key-server/data/08090a09-0d0e-410b-860c020705070e0e/media/Html/Vappodes_lithocola.htm 8. AustralianTropicalRainforestOrchids.Vappodesbigibba.ByMAClementsandDL Jones.http://keys.trin.org.au/key-server/data/08090a09-0d0e-410b-860c020705070e0e/media/Html/Vappodes_bigibba.htm 9. Dendrobiumtetragonum.http://www.orchidspecies.com/dentetragonum.htm 10. TheRockLilyMan.http://www.therocklilyman.com/index.php?p=1_39 11. Dendrobiumtarberi.MClementsandDJones. http://www.orchidspecies.com/dentarberi.htm 12. PB.Adams,JM.BurkeandSD.Lawson(2006).Areviewofthetaxonomyand relationshipsoftheDendrobiumspeciosumcomplex(Orchidaceae),andrecognition oftwonewtaxa.Telopea. 13. OrchidspeciesoftheShoalhavenbyAlanStephenson.(2011). Yourcommentsandsuggestionsonculturalguidearewelcome.Emailyourcommentsto [email protected] Updated29/12/15 Thesenotesareintendedasaguideonlyandarecomposedfromavailableinformationandlocal experience.TheWaggaWaggaOrchidSocietyanditsmembersarenotresponsibleforanylossordamage.