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Dancing-lady orchids

Oncidium

Also called Dancing Lady Orchid

Dancing-lady orchids
Photo: W. J. H. (= William Jackson Hooker) (1785-1865) del., Swan sc., Public domain

Oncidium is a genus of about 370 orchid species, commonly called dancing-lady orchids, mostly epiphytic (growing on trees) from tropical and subtropical America. Grow them as bright, humid, well-drained orchids that dislike waterlogged roots.

Family
Orchidaceae (Orchid family)
Grows as
Orchid
Light
Bright indirect
Water
Water thoroughly when the potting medium is nearly dry, and let excess drain away; avoid soggy roots.
Soil
Fast-draining orchid bark mix.
Temperature
15–29 °C; protect below 10 °C
How easy
Moderate

About

Oncidium is a genus of about 370 species of orchid in the family Orchidaceae. It is distributed across tropical and subtropical America from Mexico, Central America and the West Indies to northern Argentina, with one species (O. ensatum) extending into Florida. Common names for plants in this genus include dancing-lady orchid.

A molecular phylogenetic study published in 2009 labeled the Oncidium alliance "grossly polyphyletic." In the same year, the American Orchid Society labeled the genus a "dumping ground". A consensus announced in April 2013 resulted in major taxonomic changes to Oncidium, Gomesa, Odontoglossum, Miltonia, and others. Much of this debate and subsequent housekeeping was initiated by significant research for the scientific publication Genera Orchidacearum Volume 5.

Other Oncidium plants

Dancing Lady Orchid · Curled Oncidium

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Oncidium 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.

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