Angraecum sesquipedale

[Bud]

Thank You, Josh...the spur is for pollination...theres a moth with a 12 to 15 inches proboscis that can pollinate this kind of plant...Darwin was laughed upon when he said there is such a moth...but 25 yrs after his death they found out that there is really such a moth...
its for looks as well...it gives it like a tailike accessory as like the star of bethlehem and its rays....it is also filled with sugar (tho I never attempred to taste it)

[bballr4567]

Ahh, I didnt know that there was nectar (I assume you can call it there) in the spur. Obviously.

Very cool.

[Discus]

the moth is Xanthopan morgani praedicta if memory serves

[Bud]

Thanks for the info, Discus!

[CTB]

Very nice, a special flower!

[Bud]

Thank You, Carol !

[Tindomul]

A classic beauty!! Congratulations on getting it to bloom.

[smweaver]

Is this the same plant that was giving you problems recently, Bud, or did you acquire another one that was in spike? Glad you got to experience the flowers firsthand--and you LIKE the scent, which is another plus.

Steve

[gerneveyn]

Very nice! Good growing! I haven't been as good with them.

[Discus]

I've had one sitting about doing very little for a year. It's just decided to put out a new root in the last couple of weeks. Pondering a move from CHC to hydroton!

Somewhere recently I read a hypothesis that the long spur on orchids may have come about through an "arms race" between the moths and the orchids - because of spiders! Theory goes that moths originally evolved long(er) proboscis not for sipping long nectaries, but so they didn't have to get too close to flowers and risk being munched by spiders that lie in wait there. The orchids weren't too happy about the moths being so far away and never pollinating them, so the long spurs came about as a way of drawing the little buggers in closer! (I paraphrase of course, but that's the gist).