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This expedition covers orchids from Central and South America that you can find in the Kew Herbarium. Orchidaceae is a family of perennial herbs with its main diversity of genera thriving in the tropics, but they can be found in every habitat across the world except from glaciers! Orchids may be epiphytes, terrestrials or lithophytes, which means they can grow on the surface of other plants, on the ground or on stones. In this expedition you will come across the highly diverse tribe Epidendreae.

There are around 800 genera in the Orchidaceae family. A few of the interesting genera in this family include Stelis (Indian Mistletoe), Lepanthes (Baby boot orchids), Maxillaria (Spider, flame or tiger orchids), Habenaria (bog orchids), Elleanthus (Tiger orchids) and more. Orchids can be heavily scented and are often used in perfume. One popular species is Maxillaria tenuifolia, which is grown for its fragrant blooms.

Kew's Orchid Festival this year, which took place between 1st February and 2nd March 2025 celebrated the flora and fauna of Peru, highlighting its incredible biodiversity.

Discover more about the plants of Peru here: https://www.kew.org/read-and-watch/plants-of-peru

Want to learn how to take care of your orchids? Here are some tips from our experts:

https://www.kew.org/read-and-watch/orchid-care-expert-tips

 
Want to learn more about Kew's Digitisation Project? 
 
Digitising Kew's Collections