4 September 2007

Discover the hidden world of Wellington’s wild orchids

Wellingtonians are being asked to keep their eyes peeled for their extraordinary, diverse and often cryptic native orchids when they venture into the outdoors.

Acknowledging the Wellington region as one of New Zealand’s “orchid hotspots”, the Department of Conservation has produced a field guide identifying 72 species of wild orchids in the lower North Island.

A decade in the making, Wild orchids of the lower North Island features photographs and descriptions, encouraging people to make spotting our elusive orchids a feature of their forays into the wild - to help prevent some of our rarest species from going extinct, and enhance knowledge of orchid distribution. The book is being launched this afternoon at Otari-Wilton’s Bush in Wellington by Conservation Minister Chris Carter.

“We want to inspire people to head out and explore the region’s parks and reserves while searching for orchids that, once found, can be left for others to enjoy,” said Department of Conservation botanist John Sawyer, who co-authored the book with Peter de Lange, one of New Zealand’s leading plant conservation scientists; photographer and botanist Jeremy Rolfe, and national orchid expert Ian St George.

DOC is interested in orchids because, while much of the global interest is in the cultivation of exotic forms and varieties, there is also the most important work of protecting wild populations, Mr Sawyer said.

“Wetlands, dunes and forests continue to be degraded through development, drainage and the effects of exotic animals and weeds so the need to protect wild orchids becomes ever more pressing.”

Mr Sawyer said Wellington was a hotspot for orchids because of its “huge” diversity of habitat types and ecosystems, ranging from the dry eastern Wairarapa terrain, to sub-alpine areas and wetlands, estuaries, and the coast.

“More than 70 percent of New Zealand’s orchids occur in Wellington and each of the species has its own character. Many species are so tiny few people would ever know there were there”.

Orchids have been revered for thousands of years and are often regarded as the world champions of flowers. Confucius called one Chinese orchid species King of fragrant plants and even Samurai were known to cultivate them and travel with their collections. Scholars in the middle ages suggested that orchids grew from the sperm of wild animals that had fallen to the ground. Some species of eastern Turkey are made into ice cream thought to be an aphrodisiac whilst the vanilla bean (from an orchid) has been used for hundreds of years as a perfume.

The exotic looking flowers come in such hues as pink, yellow, blue, green, purple and brown. Some sport beards, and others have sepals which resemble horns or spiders’ legs. There are species which cling to trees (epiphytes) and exude a pleasant scent. Others are bulbous, while some slender stems emerge from a single heart shaped leaf.

“If anyone’s under the impression that our native plants are boring they should see our orchids,” Mr Sawyer said.

“They come in an extraordinary array of colours and shapes, and internationally, they’re regarded as sexy. Because of this, orchid collectors pose a significant threat to some of our more uncommon orchids.

“We encourage the public to keep an eye out for wild orchids and let us know if they see anyone removing plants from the wild.

“Most of our native orchids require some sort of fungal association in the soil so the chance of them surviving in a garden is slim. They should be left in the wild for people to enjoy.”

DOC is working with landowners, councils, iwi and community groups to protect nationally threatened orchids at key sites

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