Rainbeau Orchids
Orchids are the largest genus of flowering plants, with at least one-third, and perhaps as many as one-half of all the flowering plants on earth belonging to this genus. There are, by best estimates, 25,000-30,000 orchid species and more are discovered in remote spots every year even now. Orchids are found in drawings from ancient Asian societies and have been a revered plant for thousands of years. Most orchids are found in tropical or sub-tropical areas, but they also inhabit inhospitable areas like Alaska. Every state in the U. S. has orchids native to it, with Florida naturally having the largest number. Most of these orchids are deciduous, dropping their foliage in fall and springing back to life when warmer temperatures return. It may surprise that Alaska has more indigenous orchids than Hawaii because Hawaii is a group of volcanic islands and was therefore cut off from the genetic interplay of the rest of the world.