Maarten Christenhusz – författare

Orchids are elegant, exotic and mysterious. Discover 75 amazing examples in this beautiful little book.One in every seven flowering plants on earth is an orchid, and they have been around since the dinosaurs. These popular and fascinating plants have evolved to thrive in a wide variety of habitats, and come in a huge array of colours and designs – developed to ensure they are pollinated, and thus survive.Using beautifully coloured engravings, this book showcases a select few from this remarkable plant family. Featuring showy species, such as the Queen of Sheba and the spectacular big lip, as well as those with delicate petals, such as the royal butterfly and the felt orchid, this book illustrates the startling hues and striking forms that make orchids such popular plants. Ingenious flowers abound, with the vampire dragon, monkey-face and black fiddle orchids providing dramatic blooms, while several species, such as the bee orchid, are masters of mimicry, designed to fool insects into thinking they have found a mate.Get to know these fabulous flowers in this handy little book.