''Grammatophyllum'', sometimes abbreviated in horticultural trade as Gram, is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

of 13 currently known

orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of floweri ...

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriat ...

. The name is derived from the Greek words 'gramma' (a line or streak or mark) and 'phyllon' (leaf), referring to the parallel leaf veins or the markings of the perianth.A Manual or Orchidaceous Plants Cultivated under Glass, Part IX This epiphytic genus occurs in dense

rainforest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...

from Indo-China, to

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...

, the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torres ...

, and the Southwest Pacific islands.Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
/ref> The species produce several racemes, arising from the base of the

pseudobulb The pseudobulb is a storage organ found in many epiphytic and terrestrial sympodial orchids. It is derived from a thickening of the part of a stem between leaf nodes and may be composed of just one internode or several, termed heteroblastic and ...

, with many yellow-green to olive-green, waxy

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

s with dark purplish-red marks. The pseudobulbs are enveloped by sheaths. These are medium-sized to very large orchids, including the giant orchid (''

Grammatophyllum speciosum ''Grammatophyllum speciosum'', also called giant orchid, tiger orchid, sugar cane orchid or queen of the orchids, is a species of orchid native to Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Borneo, Indonesia (Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi) and Malaysia. It has ...

''), believed to be the largest orchid species in existence. Its

s can grow to a length of 2.5 m. Plants can develop into gigantic clusters weighing from several hundred kilograms to one ton. The

root In vascular plants, the roots are the organs of a plant that are modified to provide anchorage for the plant and take in water and nutrients into the plant body, which allows plants to grow taller and faster. They are most often below the su ...

s form spectacular bundles. The more modest bell orchid (''Grammatophyllum scriptum'') is another well-known species, with pseudobulbs of 20 cm, from which originate 3 to 4 stout leaves with a length of 1 m. '' Grammatophyllum multiflorum'' is one of the longest-blooming orchids in existence: it can be in bloom for nine months. See also '' Dendrobium cuthbertsonii'', whose flowers have been reported to last up to ten months each. ''Grammatophyllum'' 'Tiger's paw' is a hybrid from ''G. elegans'' and ''G. fenzlianum''.

Species

# '' Grammatophyllum elegans'' (Fiji and Philippines). # '' Grammatophyllum kinabaluense'' (Sabah). # '' Grammatophyllum martae'' (Philippines ) # '' Grammatophyllum measuresianum'' (Philippines, Borneo) # '' Grammatophyllum multiflorum'' (Philippines) # '' Grammatophyllum pantherinum'' (Borneo, Maluku, Philippines, New Guinea, Solomons, Bismarcks) # '' Grammatophyllum ravanii'' (Philippines) # '' Grammatophyllum rumphianum'' (Borneo, Maluku). # '' Grammatophyllum schmidtianum'' (Marianas). # '' Grammatophyllum scriptum'' : Bell orchid (Malaysia to SW. Pacific). # ''

'' : Giant orchid, tiger orchid, Queen of Orchids (Indo-China to Solomon Is.) - type species # ''

Grammatophyllum stapeliiflorum ''Grammatophyllum'', sometimes abbreviated in horticultural trade as Gram, is a genus of 13 currently known orchid species. The name is derived from the Greek words 'gramma' (a line or streak or mark) and 'phyllon' (leaf), referring to the parall ...

'' (Malaysia, Philippines to New Guinea). # '' Grammatophyllum wallisii'' (Philippines )

References

External links

Photos of ''Grammatophyllum stapeliaeflorum''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2372901 Cymbidieae genera