Guarianthe Guatemalensis - Some curiosities

[dougbraz]

Well at least to me - inexperienced as I am - I find these things curious and interesting:

1) The blooms last at least a month; they start off pinkish and finish off purple. Here you can see the old and new clearly:

_DSC7086 by dougbraz, on Flickr

2) At the end of the stems of each bloom, there appears a blob of resin - I'm guessing that it could be to keep ants off the flowers?


Photo1 by dougbraz, on Flickr

Anyway, just some observations..
Have a good day - we are starting spring now down in the tropics - yay!
Doug

[tucker85]

That's very interesting the way the flowers change colors. It's a beautiful orchid. Both phases of color are very pretty. And I love the fact that the blooms last for a month. Excellent!

[isurus79]

Color change in orchid flowers over time is pretty normal, though I'm sure of the exact chemical reason for this. As for the resin, you will find that ants are not only not repelled, but they LOVE to eat the stuff. If you put some on your finger and lick it, you will find out why. Its delicious!!!