:''Encyclia'' is also a Greek term for the Codex Encyclius ''Encyclia'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

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 flowering ...

s. The genus name comes from Greek ''enkykleomai'' ("to encircle"), referring to the lateral lobes of the lip which encircle the column. It is abbreviated as ''E.'' in the horticultural trade.Alphabetical List of Standard Abbreviations for Natural and Hybrid Generic Names, Royal Horticultural Society, 2017. https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/pdfs/plant-registration-forms/orchid-name-abbreviations-list.pdf

Biology

The

epiphytic An epiphyte is an organism that grows on the surface of a plant and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain, water (in marine environments) or from debris accumulating around it. The plants on which epiphytes grow are called phoroph ...

genus ''Encyclia'' occurs in

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, and other regions of the tropical Americas. It grows in lowland forests at altitudes up to 1000 meters. The distribution of the species is more or less evenly spread throughout this area. Most of these species are found in seasonally dry forests where the humidity tends to remain high throughout the year, though precipitation is infrequent, sometimes lacking for months. They are most common in dry

oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...

forests. Most species have stiff, drought-resistant leaves and large onion-shaped pseudobulbs.Dressler, R. L. ''The Orchids, Natural History and Classification''. The flowers arise from an apical inflorescence. This genus is pollinated by bees and birds. There are normally eight pollinia, but in some subgroups this is reduced to four. One species, ''

Encyclia cyperifolia ''Encyclia cyperifolia'' is a species of 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, th ...

'', produces cylindrical, terete leaves.''Illustrated Encyclopedia of Orchids''.

Cultivation

Many species in this genus are cultivated as

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that i ...

s. The flowers may last over a month. They are easily overwatered and require only a periodic misting during the winter. Some species are fragrant; ''

Encyclia fragrans :''Encyclia'' is also a Greek term for the Codex Encyclius ''Encyclia'' is a genus of orchids. The genus name comes from Greek ''enkykleomai'' ("to encircle"), referring to the lateral lobes of the lip which encircle the column. It is abbreviated ...

'' produces vanilla-scented flowers. The plants have continuously growing rhizomes that eventually create a large mass. In the wild the plants shed the older pseudobulbs. In cultivation they may fail to split, so growers will divide them by hand to prevent the plants from forming unwieldy mounds. An exception is '' Encyclia tampensis'', which does well in a mounded form and does not need to be divided.

Taxonomy

Cladistic research has shown that ''Encyclia'' ''sensu stricto'' is

monophyletic In cladistics for a group of organisms, monophyly is the condition of being a clade—that is, a group of taxa composed only of a common ancestor (or more precisely an ancestral population) and all of its lineal descendants. Monophyletic gro ...

. This genus was originally included in '' Epidendrum'' until

William Jackson Hooker Sir William Jackson Hooker (6 July 178512 August 1865) was an English botanist and botanical illustrator, who became the first director of Kew when in 1841 it was recommended to be placed under state ownership as a botanic garden. At Kew he ...

separated it in 1828. The genera '' Euchile'', ''

Prosthechea ''Prosthechea'' is a genus of flowering plants in the orchid family (Orchidaceae). The name is derived from the Greek word ''prostheke'' (appendix), referring to the appendage on the back of the column. Appendage orchid is a common name for this g ...

'' and ''

Dinema ''Dinema'' is a genus of orchids. It is represented by a single currently accepted species, ''Dinema polybulbon'', native to Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean. Description They are epiphytes or lithophytes; with pseudobulbs 10 mm l ...

'' were separated from ''Encyclia'' based on morphological analysis.Higgins, W. E. (1997). A combined molecular phylogeny of ''Encyclia'' (Orchidaceae) and relationships within Laeliinae. ''Selbyana'' 24(2) 165–79. ''Sulpitia'' Raf. is a

synonym A synonym is a word, morpheme, or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word, morpheme, or phrase in a given language. For example, in the English language, the words ''begin'', ''start'', ''commence'', and ''initiate'' are all ...

of ''Encyclia''. ''Encyclia'' can

hybridize Hybridization (or hybridisation) may refer to: *Hybridization (biology), the process of combining different varieties of organisms to create a hybrid *Orbital hybridization, in chemistry, the mixing of atomic orbitals into new hybrid orbitals *Nu ...

with related genera. ''E. tampensis'' is often bred for its attractive hybrids.

Species

See List of ''Encyclia'' species.

References

External links