Nature is an amazing thing. The life that exists in the natural world can be beautiful, strange, and interesting all wrapped into one package, and that just about perfectly describes these orchids. First, it should be known that there are thousands and thousands of varieties of orchid, so it’s not surprising that something this unique could be found among this species, and there are a lot of well-known plants and flowers that resemble animals in nature, like birds or even skulls. In this instance, this flower recently posted to Instagram looks like another animal found in nature, a monkey- it’s face to be exact.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bz0ySnYgrg4/
The official name of this monkey flower is actually Dracula Simia, which when translated means “little dragon monkey”, though it is more commonly known simply as the Monkey Orchid since it comes from the orchid family. Orchids are one of the largest families of flower, and have over 30,000 different species derived from it. With that many varieties on top of this plant’s picky growing conditions, good luck finding these out in nature. Not to mention you may have to hike quite a ways up for these rare plants since they mostly thrive about 1000-2000 meters above sea level in what is called cloud forests in areas like Southeastern Ecuador and Peru. A cloud forest has a damp and moist climate with a lot of cloud cover, usually hanging around the tops of trees.
This flower was found and christened in 1978 by a botanist by the name of Carlyle A. Lueren. He gave the plant its name originally based on the long fang-like petals that reminded him of simians, or the ape-like looks it posses, but that’s about where the similarities stop. Standing only about 2 feet tall, the unique blooms are what catches your attention. These flowers aren’t just beautiful to look at, they also give off a curious citrusy scent, similar to ripe oranges, when they are in full bloom.
The other great thing about the Monkey Orchid is that it doesn’t have a season. These small 2 foot tall plants grow year-round in an ideal climate. The flowers are very hard to grow in captivity or on your own due to their high maintenance needs. If you want to plant them despite the difficulty, it’s best to plant them in sphagnum moss, also known as peat moss, just because it helps retain moisture more than soil. Don’t put them in direct sunlight (to mimic the lighting in a cloud forest), and they also prefer 70-100% humidity with cooler temperatures. So if you can manage all that, you too can have small, orange smelling monkey faces taking over your backyard garden.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BvENyjZlPCU/
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