Native orchids viewing opportunity: Yard Stop at the Wheelers
An exclusive member opportunity this Saturday.
Article and photos courtesy of Mark Kateli
Ray with Florida's native butterfly orchid (Encyclia tampensis). Chickenwire minimizes squirrel activity.
Cuplet Fern members are invited to an exclusive, brief yard stop at Ray Wheeler's this upcoming Saturday. Ray has graciously opened his garden to our members for a unique opportunity to witness some of Florida's most captivating native epiphytic orchids and a growing collection of native and non-native cycads.
Zamia angustifolia; native in the Caribbean basin
At this event, you can marvel at the delicate beauty of Florida's native butterfly (Encyclia tampensis) and greenfly orchids (Epidendrum conopseum, syn. Epidendrum magnoliae), flourishing in their natural habitat atop oak trees.
We hope you can join our group to explore Ray's diverse collection of cycads, showcasing both native Florida species and exotic varieties from around the world. Connect with fellow Cuplet Fern members and share your passion for Florida's unique flora.
Event Details:
Date: March 1st, 2025
Time: 10am. Brief visit, no more than 1 hour
Location: Ray Wheeler's Yard (Address will be provided to confirmed attendees)
Remember:
This is a brief visit, so please be mindful of time. Wear comfortable shoes and sun protection. Bring your camera to capture the beauty of Ray's garden. Respect Ray's property and plants. Park curbside without obstructing neighboring driveways.
An illustration of this species by Nikolaus Joseph Freiherr von Jacquin, botanist, circa 1750.
Additional Tidbit: Did you know: Epidendrum magnoliae or Epidendrum conopseum? The debate lingers…
Epidendrum magnoliae still persists as the botanical name of the greenfly orchid online. However, a procedural technicality prevents this name from being adopted by herbariums such as the one at the University of North Carolina.
E. magnoliae was listed by Gotthilf Heinrich Ernst Muhlenberg in a catalog without any physical description. Muhlenberg only provided an abbreviated description of the genus Epidendrum and added that E. magnoliae was from "Car." [Carolina] which is insufficient for valid publication thus making this name invalidly published and unusable. Back in 2000, nomenclature treatment author Eric Hágsater argued that Muhlenberg’s botanical designation took priority over Epidendrum conopseum. However, in 2018, Alan Franck rebutted it in favor of appropriate nomenclature procedure in the journal article ‘New Combinations, Rank Changes, and Nomenclatural and Taxonomic Comments in the Vascular Flora of the Southeastern United States’ published by the Botanical Research Institute of Texas. Epidendrum conopseum was effectively described by another botanist Robert Brown. Brown is the same botanist that defined the cell nucleus by pioneering the use of microscopes.
And little about Gotthilf Heinrich Ernst Muhlenberg…
Professionally trained as a minister and clergyman, Muhlenberg's interest in botany was sparked when he had to flee Philadelphia during the War of Independence. In Lancaster, he formed a network of correspondents and created an unpublished flora of the area. His later goal was a flora of the United States, but he found limited cooperation. Despite this, with the help of 28 correspondents, he published a catalog of North American plants in 1813.
Muhlenberg described many North American plants, with a particular focus on grasses. He experimented with their uses in his garden, and the grass section of his Lancaster flora was published posthumously. The genus Muhlenbergia and many specific epithets honor his contributions. He received degrees from the University of Pennsylvania and Princeton and was a member of the American Philosophical Society.
Sources:
Franck, A.R. 2018a. Epidendrum magnoliae is an invalid name and E. conopseum should be maintained in usage. In Weakley, A.S., D.B. Poindexter, R.J. LeBlond, B.A. Sorrie, E.L. Bridges, S.L. Orzell, A.R. Franck, M. Schori, B.R. Keener, A.R. Diamond, Jr., A.J. Floden, and R.D. Noyes. 2018a. New combinations, rank changes, and nomenclatural and taxonomic comments in the vascular flora of the southeastern United States. III. J. Bot. Res. Inst. Texas 12: 27-67. Google Scholar
Hágsater, E. 2002b. Epidendrum. In Flora of North America Editorial Committee. 2002a. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Volume 26, Magnoliophyta: Liliidae: Liliales and Orchidales. Oxford Univ. Press, New York, NY. 723 pp. Google Scholar
J.W. Harshberger, 1899, Botanists of Philadelphia: 92-97
A.A. Heller, 1908, "Muhlenberg and his work in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania", Muhlenbergia, 4: 70-73
H.B. Humphrey, 1961, The Makers of North American Botany: 185-186
