''Aganisia cyanea'' (formerly ''Acacallis cyanea'') is a showy 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, they are one of the two largest families of flowerin ...

native to Colombia,

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

and

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

and widely cultivated elsewhere as an ornamental.id=4384, Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
/ref> It is remarkable because some cultivars of this species produce blue flowers, the color blue being quite rare among the orchids. They are considered difficult to maintain in cultivation without a controlled growing environment.''Illustrated Encyclopedia of Orchids''

Biology

''Aganisia cyanea'' is found in very wet, lowland rain forests in northern South America growing on lower sections of the trunks of large trees. The plants can be submerged under water during monsoons for several weeks due to flooding in habitat with no apparent harm.''The Orchids, Natural History and Classification'', Robert L. Dressler. The plants grow from a creeping rhizome with inter-spaced

pseudobulbs 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 h ...

with one apical, usually pleated leaf. These plants bloom from the base of the pseudobulbs, and produce a raceme of up to 10 flowers. The flowers of these plants have a metallic, almost surreal appearance and appear to be made of bluish metal. This is very striking. The flowers take on a more bluish cast when not exposed to direct sunlight.

Cultivation

In cultivation, they are best accommodated on tree fern or cork bark slabs mounted bare root and given high humidity and abundant water and feeding year round, and moderate shade. They prefer moderate to warm temperatures. The species is much sought after in cultivation because of its blue metallic flowers. These plants are protected under CITES II and local and regional laws and should not be removed or disturbed in habitat. The plants are available commercially from flasked seedlings of varieties that are amenable to cultivation and these plants are easily obtainable.

Flora and flowers

File:Aganisia cyanea Orchi 01.jpg, ''Aganisia cyanea'' File:Aganisia cyanea Orchi 02.jpg, ''Aganisia cyanea'' File:Aganisia cyanea Orchi 03.jpg, ''Aganisia cyanea'' File:Aganisia cyanea Orchi 04.jpg, ''Aganisia cyanea''

Illustrations

File:Warrea cyanea (1845).jpg, ''Aganisia cyanea''
Illustration in:
Charles Lemaire and others:
"''Flore des serres et des jardins de l’Europe''",
volume 1
(1845) File:Aganisia cyanea (as Kochiophyton negrense) - Fl.Br.3-6-119.jpg, ''Aganisia cyanea''
(as syn.
''Kochiophyton negrense'')
Illustration in:
''Flora Brasiliensis'' vol. 3 pt. 6 tab. 119
(1904-1906) File:Acacallis cyanea 142-8678.jpg

References

External links

* * {{Taxonbar, from=Q962059 cyanea Orchids of Brazil Orchids of Colombia Orchids of Venezuela Orchids of Peru Epiphytic orchids Plants described in 1853