I agree for the most part when Karen Frederiksen say "Sorry, but I believe we are fooling ourselves if we believe our plants are in anyway part of preserving the species.. though if we share and make our plants available we might be able to take pressure of wild collection, and use them to educate others about the wonderful nature of orchids and why they should be preserved in the wild..."
I would like to add to the discussion some other problems or opportunities with ex-situ orchid conservation. 1. There is no survey or accounting of orchid species being grown ex-situ. This is especially important for lesser known and grown orchid species. 2. There is no organized species breeding program to maintain genetic diversity within a species. <>3. While some people may feel that species grown in our greenhouses or other growing situations would not survive if put back in their natural habitat, I would disagree. Orchid species have only been propagated ex situ for a relatively recent short period of time, about 150 years at the most, with most species being propagated well within the last 100 years or not at all. This relative short period of ex situ breeding does not compare to the amount of time dogs, cats, and other domesticated species that have been breed for thousands of years. I do think taking a look at plants that have been cultivated for a few thousand years may give us a clue as to where orchid breeding may end up. It is important to keep in mind that many cultivated plants have a very short reproductive cycle compared to orchids. Cabbage (Brassica oleracea) has been in cultivation for about 4000 years. To name a few of the well-known vegetables we whose origins are from wild cabbage: kale, collards, brussel sprouts, broccoli, and cauliflower. These are only varietals of Brassica oleracea. My guess is that many of the varieties of brassica oleracea would be hard pressed to survive in the wild (the natural habitat being along the coast of Europe and North Africa). A picture of wild cabbage http://www.fishing-in-wales.com/wildlife/plants/seaside/wildcabb.htm Lettuce (Lactuca sativa) is so thoroughly domesticated it is not found in the wild, and probably would not survive in the wild. In the far future an orchid species could be changed so much that the pollinator would have a hard time doing the job of helping in reproduction that reintroduced species would fail to survive in the wild. I just don't think we are there yet. 4. In ex situ, we do have an active though not totally organized orchid species breeding program to please the new pollinator in town -us. We have a number of active well-organized award programs to reinforce this breeding. All orchid flowers in the future will be large, round, flat, and of good substance. I am not against the current award system. I think that if it motivates people to enjoy this passion then overall it is a good thing. 5. Habitat destruction- in the future, there will be no wild to put orchids back in, or vital components to the orchid's natural habitat maybe missing. <> The future is so bright I have to wear shades, Mark Sullivan
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