Orchid cultivation is so widespread in our time that it is diffcult to picture a world without these wonderful flowers. But, not so long ago, the inhabitantspopulace of the so-called civilized world were entirely in the dark about the overwhelming majority of species of orchids.

Europeans of course knew about their local orchid types, such as the extravagant Bee Orchid. But knowledge of the thousands of wonderful tropical orchids had to await the results of explorations of the jungles and mountains of South America and the East Indies. Even then, specimens only slowly wended their way to England and the rest of Europe.

Perhaps the first living orchid to be taken from the tropics to England was an Epidendrum cochleatum, one of the more showy of its genus. It flowered in London in 1787. Another species from the same family was imported in to England in the year 1778. It took ten years for its caretakers to bring forth flowers from it.

Admiral Bligh, of Bounty fame, took 15 species of epiphytal orchids to England from the West Indies around the early 1790s. These were put on display at the famous Kew Gardens in London. For many years thereafter the West Indies, along with India, were the main sources of tropical orchids in Europe. In 1793, though, a species of Oncidium was taken to England from Panama, followed several years later by some orchids from Uruguay.

By 1818, Brazil in partcular was contributing to what was becoming a steady flow of orchids back to England and other European countries. By 1830 the Royal Horticultural Society had sent representatives traveling throughout Brazil looking for unusual species.

The orchid exchange very soon turned into a serious moneymaking endeavor, with businessmen in Brazil negotiating contracts with their counterparts in London to ship plants to England to be resold there. William Harrison, a merchant living in Rio de Janeiro in the 1830s and 1840s, shipped many gorgeous orchids to his brother Richard in Liverpool. Richard’s house soon became a magnet for orchid fanatics who journeyed there to see the latest arrivals.

Introducing orchids to Europe was one thing, but cultivating them successfully proved quite another. For more than half a century, England indeed was the graveyard for tropical orchids. The plants that survived did so in spite of rather than because of the treatment they received. Growers continuing experimenting and making mistakes until, by about 1850, they had mostly worked out the art of orchid cultivation. That’s when the orchid craze really exploded, because now the knowledge was available by which even non-botanists could grow these stunning plants.

Knowledge of successfully growing orchids has increased during the intervening years and today we know so much more than did those Victorian enthusiasts. We also have, of course, better technology to assist us in the greenhouse and garden.

The most up-to-date guide to today’s orchid growing, many growers agree, is Orchid Care Expert by Nigel Howard, which is available to be downloaded from the web. Howard’s wonderful guide constitutes a thorough education all by itself. And, you will find it suitable for novices as well as more seasoned orchid growers. Also, be sure to visit the Orchid Secrets web site, which has an ever-growing library of postings on many facets of orchid cultivation.