Ribbon orchid facts for kids

The ribbon orchid, also known as Tainia trinervis, is a cool plant that grows on the ground. It's an evergreen plant, which means it stays green all year round. It has special parts called pseudobulbs that look a bit like bulbs, and each one has a smooth, shiny leaf. This orchid can grow up to fourteen greenish or yellowish flowers. These flowers often have pretty red or purple stripes in the middle. You can find the ribbon orchid in warm, tropical places like Southeast Asia, New Guinea, and northern Australia.

What Does the Ribbon Orchid Look Like?

The ribbon orchid is an evergreen plant that grows on the ground. It has thin, dark green pseudobulbs that grow close together. Each pseudobulb is about 40–70 mm (2–3 in) long and 7–10 mm (0.3–0.4 in) wide.

Each pseudobulb has one smooth, shiny, dark green leaf. The leaf is about 100–160 mm (4–6 in) long and 40–60 mm (1.6–2.4 in) wide. It grows on a stalk that is about 30–50 mm (1–2 in) long.

The orchid produces between three and fourteen flowers. These flowers are greenish-white to yellowish and are spaced out along a thin stem. The stem can grow up to 200–300 mm (8–10 in) tall. Each flower is about 13–18 mm (0.5–0.7 in) long and 20–25 mm (0.8–1 in) wide.

The sepals (parts that protect the flower bud) are about 9–12 mm (0.4–0.5 in) long. Their tips curve backward. The petals are similar in size to the sepals but point forward. The labellum (a special lip-like petal) is about 7–8 mm (0.28–0.31 in) long and 5–6 mm (0.20–0.24 in) wide. It has three parts, or lobes. The middle lobe has three purple lines and a curved tip. The side lobes curve upwards. Ribbon orchids usually bloom from September to November.

How Did It Get Its Name?

The ribbon orchid was first officially described in 1856. A scientist named Carl Ludwig Blume gave it the name Mitopetalum trinerve. He wrote about it in a book called Museum Botanicum Lugduno-Batavum.

Then, in 1857, another scientist named Heinrich Gustav Reichenbach changed its name to Tainia trinervis. The second part of its scientific name, trinervis, comes from two Latin words. Tri- means "three", and nervus means "vein". So, trinervis means "three-veined", which likely refers to a feature of the plant.

Where Does It Live?

The Tainia trinervis orchid grows in rainforests. It likes to be near streams in warm, tropical areas. You can find it in far northern Queensland in Australia, New Guinea, and the Maluku Islands.