Quote:
Originally Posted by DeaC
Not sure where to post this but here goes. Are seed pods all the same shape on all orchids? I'm not into propagating but I recognize a pod on Epidendrum nocturnum and on a Thrixspermum a pencil-shaped growth has come from end of a spike that bloomed but seems to have more buds at tip. I haven't a camera but any info or interest would be great!
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I know this is 10 years later, and likely the OP or others have learned the answer or something else, but the short answer is YES. I have been breeding orchids for about 5 years now, and every genera has very distinct fruit formation, and even within a single genus, there can be wildly different forms taken by the fruit while it is both maturing and approaching dehiscence.
In fact, there are even some species that can be identified by their fruits more easily than any other characteristics (outside of DNA analysis).
Of some of the most common genera, there are some cosistencies:
- Brassavola: Varies slightly from species to species, but usually "straightens" after pollination and swells almost perfectly centered between the column tip and point of attachment to peduncle. Stays "slim" and only puffs out closer toward end of maturation when filled with seed.
- Catasetum: Large, balloon-like fruits with copius seeds. Hard as rock, just like their female flowers, and appearing similar to iris fruit (a distant relative).
- Cattleya: Large, straight fruit with very prominent "wings" in a trimerous organization along the length of the capsule.
- Epidendrum: My experiences are limited to just a handful of reed-stems of the 1200+ species, but they usually produce comically large fruit for the size of the flower (sometimes 15-20 times larger in my collection, though still small overall.
- Habenaria: No appreciable change in size from just before pollination to harvest, as most terrestrials. Heavily ridged in most cases and slender. Produces seeds usually within 1-2 months, rarely longer.
- Ludisia/jewels: The unfertilized capsules are roughly the size they will be if pollinated and brought to harvest. Spindly, soft, and thinly-walled, they are filled with air for most of the maturation time and can be mistaken for "duds" until right before they are ready for harvest, which can be as little as a month.
- Phalaenopsis: Another, highly-diverse genus, lending toward variation between sections/subgenera. Polychilos is the most notable, as not only do they get much larger than the original ovary compared to other sections, they generally don't wilt their sepals/petals and instead revert those tissues back into leaf-like, photosynthetic structures!
- Zygopetalum: These fruits also won't get too much larger compared to the pre-pollination size, but are very "juicy" and succulent, making them quite prone to snapping if handled improperly.
Hope this helps someone in the future!
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