274 THE PRINCIPLES OF FLORICULTURE 



358. Habitat. The family is widely distributed, but 

 the principal orchids come from Mexico, Central and 

 Northern South America, the Philippines, China and 

 Japan. A few are natives of the temperate zones, and are 

 all terrestrial. 



359. Habit of growth. The habit of growth of orchid 

 plants is almost as varied as the flowers themselves. 

 They are divided into three groups: saprophytes, epi- 

 phytes and terrestrial. The first form has no distinct 

 root system, but the underground stem or rhizome con- 

 sists of a twisted and coiled mass. This absorbs food 

 from the organic matter in the soil or from the roots of 

 other plants. They prepare little or no food of their own, 

 and are mostly destitute of coloring matter. None is 

 cultivated; therefore they are of little interest to the 

 florist. Epiphytes inhabit the branches or trunks of trees 

 and even barren rocks in exposed locations. They are 

 native in tropical countries, where a part of the year is 

 unfavorable for growth. Because of their habit of growth, 

 many orchids have a well-developed pseudobulb, which 

 functions as a storage place for reserve food. Practically 

 all of the species are imported. They are often lacking 

 in graceful foliage, and in some species the plants are 

 entirely devoid of leaves at the flowering season. This 

 is true of Calanthe. In Coelogyne and Miltonia, the 

 pseudobulbs are less conspicuous, and the foliage is re- 

 tained during the flowering season, making a more attrac- 

 tive plant. The terrestrial orchids include some of the 

 largest species. They are widely distributed throughout 

 the temperate and subtropical countries. In some species, 

 the foliage is pleasing even when not in flower. 



360. Popularity of orchids. The orchid is rapidly 

 becoming more and more popular. People are coming to 



