When Do Ghost Orchids Bloom?

When

• The bloom period for ghost orchids is summer, typically May through August, with July being the flowers' peak month. Even during the ghost orchid's heaviest blooming times, the plant usually produces one or two flowers at a time, though it sometimes displays as many as 10 blossoms at once. Finding ghost orchids in full bloom during any other month is not unheard of, but it is considered a truly rare find in the wild. Orchid seekers are to keep in mind that the ghost orchid is an infrequent bloomer, often not flowering for years.

Where

• The ghost orchid is native to the humid swamplands of southwest Florida, Cuba and Haiti. In south Florida, the ghost orchid is found in localized populations throughout Big Cypress, Corkscrew, Collier, Hendry and Fakahatchee counties. In the wild, ghost orchids prefer host trees in sloughs, cypress domes and hardwood hammocks, such as oaks, maples, bald cypress and, most commonly, the pop ash and pond apple trees. Ghost orchids are considered an endangered species, and flowers illegally removed from the wild rarely survive. It is a rare treat to view this flower in full bloom, as commercially grown ghost orchids take up to seven years to mature.

Bloom

• The flowers of the ghost orchid bloom in succession, usually one or two at a time, in shades ranging from pure white to a creamy green color. The blooms are nocturnally fragrant, remain open for about two weeks and are typically between 4 1/2 to 5 inches in length. Ghost orchids appear as a tangled web of gray, green and white roots and stems growing on host trees, and its lack of leaves make it easy to overlook. Like all orchids, the ghost orchid has three sepals and three true petals. One of its petals is modified, called a labellum, to give the flower its unique shape of a jumping frog with two long, twisted legs.

History

• The ghost orchid is one of the most exotic looking and revered orchids in the world. First discovered in the forests of Nimanima and Sague, St. Jaio de Cuba, by Belgian plant collector John Jules Linden in 1844. The ghost orchid was found in Collier County, Florida, in 1880 by A.H. Curtiss. Since its discovery, Dendrophylax lindenii has changed genus classification several times, also being called Agraecum lindenii, Aeranthes lindenii, Polyrrhiza lindee and Polyradicion lindenii. Other common names of Dendrophylax lindenii include Palm Polly and White Frog Orchid.