Bulbophyllum fletcherianum
Species of orchid
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bulbophyllum fletcherianum, the tongue orchid, Fletcher's bulbophyllum or Spies' bulbophyllum, is a rare orchid native to southern New Guinea. It prefers sunny rock outcrops or mossy tree branches, but besides being lithophytic or epiphytic, it can also be pseudo-terrestrial. The tongue orchid requires high humidity and moist roots.
| Tongue orchid | |
|---|---|
| |
| Bulbophyllum fletcherianum at Melbourne Royal Botanic Gardens. | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Monocots |
| Order: | Asparagales |
| Family: | Orchidaceae |
| Subfamily: | Epidendroideae |
| Genus: | Bulbophyllum |
| Species: | B. fletcherianum |
| Binomial name | |
| Bulbophyllum fletcherianum | |
| Synonyms | |
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It is one of the largest species of orchid in the world, with leaves growing to almost 1.8 metres (5 ft 11 in) or even 2.1 m (6 ft 11 in) with a width of up to 30 cm (12 in)[1] from a pseudobulb that is "often larger than tennis balls".[2] The leaf is pendant and can be green, or purple with green edges,[3] and is the largest leaf of any known orchid. It is allied to other large orchid species such as B. phalaenopsis and B. macrobulbon.
The flowers are maroon and spike-shaped, and release an overpowering aroma which attracts blowflies and carrion beetles for pollination. The fragrance of these flowers, like those of B. beccarii, have been compared to a whole herd of dead elephants.[4]
Melbourne Royal Botanic Gardens
The specimen at the Tropical House, Melbourne Royal Botanic Gardens was collected in Papua New Guinea in the early 1970s by a local orchid collector, and is mounted on cork oak. As of 2006, it had flowered just three times: in 1980, 2002, and 2005.[citation needed]