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Vanilla
Vanilla is a genus of about 110 climbing orchid species, best known for the flat-leaved vanilla (V. planifolia) that gives commercial vanilla flavoring. Growing them means giving them a support to climb and a warm, humid, shaded spot, since they are vines that cling with aerial roots.
Vanilla orchids form the flowering plant genus Vanilla made of about 110 species in the orchid family (Orchidaceae). These orchids are found in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide, from tropical America to tropical Asia, New Guinea and West Africa. Five species are known from the contiguous United States, all limited to southern Florida.
The most widely known member is the flat-leaved vanilla (V. planifolia), native to Mexico and Belize, from which commercial vanilla flavoring is derived. It is the only orchid widely used for industrial purposes in flavoring such products as foods, beverages and cosmetics, and is recognized as the most popular aroma and flavor. The key constituent imparting its flavour is the phenolic aldehyde vanillin.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Vanilla (genus) 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.
