2018 ASHS Annual Conference

South Florida has an ever changing community and climate; however, with these changes comes a lot of pressure on the natural environment. With climate change, overpopulation, and invasive species our native orchids face the threat of extinction. In the Million Orchid Project at the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden, native and non-native orchid species are propagated in the tissue culture lab mostly from the seeds, transferred to the nursery, and eventually back into the South Florida Environment. This research analyzes the way these sprouting orchids begin to adapt into the environment as they are attached onto different tree species, orientations, and heights throughout the Garden. Encyclia tampensis, Bletia purpurea, Oncidium ensatum, and Cyrtopodium punctatum orchids ranging from natives to non-natives will be placed around the Garden. Different parameters such as root count, root length, number of the leaves, and the soil-plant analyses development non-destructive handheld sensor will be used in order to determine overall plant health to determine the plants adaptation. Once the orchids have begun to adapt to their new environments, the roots will be examined for fungi and it will be determined if the fungi affects development of the plant and seedlings. The species of beneficial fungi will also be determined in order to be able to use that strain to help the development of those orchid species in the lab for the future.