Artificial hybridisation

Within nearly hundred and thirty years which have elapsed since the first man-made hybrid made it appearance in the year 1852, the progress in the field of artificial hybridisation has been phenomenal . To date more than 45, 000 hybrids have been registered . This is indeed a commendable achievement , when we consider the fact that artificial hybridisation in orchids was started at a much later date than in other angiosperm families . Due to the complexity of flower structure in orchids, the method of pollination was not understood by breeders for a very long time. It is recorded that even before the time of John Dominy , Rev. William Hubert , Dean of Machester ,succeeded in producing pods out of a cross between Orchis and Ophrys , but the seedlings did not live beyond a few days (Lenz and Wimber , 1959). For almost twenty years after the flowering of the first artificial hybrid , Dominy was the only known operator in the field of hybridisation , during which time he successfully made 25 more crosses. After this more and more people entered this field and the tempo of production of new and varied combinations increased to such an extent that the number of hybrid produced in orchids alone today exceeds those from all the angiosperm families put together .

The important genera which have lent themselves for improvement in the handsof man are Cattleya ,Cymbidium , Paphiopedilum , Odonotoglossum , Vanda , Dendrobium and to a lesser degree Phalaenopsis . The breeding programmes are usually drawn out with the intention of achieving the following standards in the qualities of the flowers:

1. Large size

2. Heavy texture so that the flower may last longer

3. Round full form of sepals and petals with a minimum degree of fenestration and twists .

4. The pure quality of the colours ,and wherever there are more than one colour, the correct blending of them in sepals, petals and lip .

5. The correct mode of display of the flowers by the plant.

In recent years the emphasis has shifted from large size and brilliant colours to the element of the unusual for which orchid flowers are famous . Because of this many of the botanical species which have long been neglected , have come to be much sought after.