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Angraecum sesquipedale
Also called Darwin's Orchid
Darwin's orchid is an epiphytic orchid from Madagascar, famous for its very long nectar spur and its link to Darwin's prediction of a long-tongued pollinator moth. It is grown as a specialist orchid, best kept warm and bright without scorching the leaves.
Angraecum sesquipedale (), also known as Darwin's orchid, Christmas orchid, Star of Bethlehem orchid, and king of the angraecums, is an epiphytic orchid in the genus Angraecum endemic to Madagascar. The orchid was first discovered by the French botanist Louis-Marie Aubert du Petit-Thouars in 1798, but was not described until 1822. It is noteworthy for its long spur and its association with the naturalist Charles Darwin, who surmised that the flower was pollinated by a then undiscovered moth with a proboscis whose length was unprecedented at the time. Darwin's prediction went unverified for 21 years after his death, until just such a moth was discovered and his conjecture vindicated. The story of its postulated pollinator has come to be seen as one of the celebrated predictions of the theory of evolution.
Angraecum sesquipedale was first brought to the United Kingdom in 1855 to be grown outside of its natural environment by William Ellis. Subsequently, Ellis achieved the first flowering of the plant in cultivation in 1857. Angraecum sesquipedale has been attributed as having a nicer appearance when grown in cultivation than when found in the wild, since wild specimens appear as a long stem surrounded by a few struggling leaves. Additionally, A. sesquipedale is seldom grown in private collections, despite its enormous importance to Darwin's concept of coevolution and subsequently the fields of botany and evolutionary biology.
It is often recommended that A. sesquipedale be grown under warm to intermediate conditions and given as much light as possible without burning the leaves. The choice of growing the plant in intermediate or warm housing conditions can affect the timing of the flowering. In order to stimulate heavy flower production it is important that the light intensity be greatest between September and November.
It is often found in lowlands in Madagascar at altitudes below 400–500 feet (120–150 m), near the east coast of the island, and on trees that are at the edge of forests. Usually it is attached to trees with fewer leaves and to areas of the branch or trunk that are driest. This allows the plant to obtain a great deal of light and air movement. Larger plants are usually found growing within 12–20 ft from the ground, whereas smaller plants are often found higher up in the canopy. Rarely A. sesquipedale is also found growing as a lithophyte and sometimes even as a semi-terrestrial. The orchid lives in an environment with heavy rainfall, up to 150 in (380 cm) per year. There is no dry season so the growing season is continuous.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Angraecum sesquipedale by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
