What's new
TerraForums Venus Flytrap, Nepenthes, Drosera and more talk

Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

World rarest plant species

Indigo

Learning How To Multiply
World rarest/bizarre plant species

the title explained it. the world most rare plant. can be an endanger species. or can be a plant species that is hard to find. can also be a species grow only in extreme place. also post a link to the picture of that plant :)

Edit: swords triger the bizarre plant idea. post plant source link and why you think this plant is cool or interesting in your opinion :D
 
There are tons of plants who can claim title of "rarest" due to environmental pressures or difficulty of cultivation. One I think is a fave rarity for me due to it's weirdness (not "prettiness") is the humongous succulent Welwitschia mirabilis which lives over 1000 years and only has two leaves in all that time. (that's only two wind shredded leaves)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welwitschia
mirabilis.jpg
 
There are tons of plants who can claim title of "rarest" due to environmental pressures or difficulty of cultivation. One I think is a fave rarity for me due to it's weirdness (not "prettiness") is the humongous succulent Welwitschia mirabilis which lives over 1000 years and only has two leaves in all that time. (that's only two wind shredded leaves)


nice plant didn't know theres a plant like that. thank you.
 
OOPS I must correct myself! This is a 'living fossil' Gymnosperm (conifer/cycad) which seems to live as a succulent in the Namibian desert.

There goes that Phd...
 
Western Prairie Fringed Orchid - Platanthera praeclara

platanthera_praeclara_jc2.jpg


Western prairie fringed orchid grows in tallgrass prairies and meadows. It is threatened primarily by wetland draining and the conversion of rich soil prairies to agricultural cropland. Overgrazing, improper use of pesticides, and collecting also threatens its survival in Missouri. Western prairie fringed orchid is listed ENDANGERED by the Missouri Department of Conservation and THREATENED by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

http://mdc.mo.gov/nathis/endangered/endanger/orchid/

Daren

---------- Post added at 02:27 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:25 PM ----------

http://www.plantzafrica.com/plantefg/encephwoodii.htm
 
There are some that are more rare, such as an African tree which there are no females still alive.. so extinction seems assured

but one that is available to collectors and a personal fav is the Wollemi Pine Tree. I have been to the area where it was found... but to be honest, I wouldn't have known it if I did see it at the time. All the local flora looked pretty weird to me LOLOLOL

http://www.ancientpine.com/about_front.htm

This is on my Christmas wish list by the way... hint hint hint LOL

:p
 
Doh.... my typing is slow :p

Still want the Wollemi Pine :)
 
  • #11
One of my D. capensis plants has slightly longer tentacles than the others. Therefore, it is a new species. That makes it the rarest species of plant in the world, since there's only one.
 
  • #12
Doh.... my typing is slow :p

Still want the Wollemi Pine :)

I got one the other year as a gift... sadly it succumbed to my previous roommates' cats. :( They're awesome - as soon as I have another $140 to drop on a houseplant, I'll be replacing it.
~Joe
 
  • #14
Titanum, spectacular, but not the rare-EST. Want one when I have goood size green house or two.

Swords I really want one of those crazy Welwitschia mirabilis. A plant that has only two leaves that continuously grow for nearly a century! They are a truly bizarre freak of nature. I can't help but love them!
 
  • #15
That would really suck if you accidentally ripped a leaf and had to deal with it for the next 100 years...
 
  • #16
I know about an extinct date palm species that was brought back from a 2000 year-old seed. so its not extinct, however theres only one, but they have more seeds and are hoping to achieve a pair of mates.

Was on discover quite interesting story!
 
  • #17
Titanum, spectacular, but not the rare-EST. Want one when I have goood size green house or two.

Swords I really want one of those crazy Welwitschia mirabilis. A plant that has only two leaves that continuously grow for nearly a century! They are a truly bizarre freak of nature. I can't help but love them!


I see those every so often on eBay. The leaves grow constantly, like your fingernails. It's green on one end, and ripped up and shredded on the other.
 
  • #18
Shucks, I can't find the article I'm thinking of... But there was a plant, a single HUGE individual that just propagated vegetatively and was actually the only living remnant of the species, if I'm recalling correctly. I believe the article was about successfully TCing it which people were excited about because there's always worry about losing the only remaining one to disease.

I'll have to take another look later. Fun topic, though. :)

I know about an extinct date palm species that was brought back from a 2000 year-old seed. so its not extinct, however theres only one, but they have more seeds and are hoping to achieve a pair of mates.

I remember hearing about that in a hort class a number of years back. Very cool!
 
  • #19
There are tons of plants who can claim title of "rarest" due to environmental pressures or difficulty of cultivation. One I think is a fave rarity for me due to it's weirdness (not "prettiness") is the humongous succulent Welwitschia mirabilis which lives over 1000 years and only has two leaves in all that time. (that's only two wind shredded leaves)

We had a specimen of one of these (not sure if it was the same species) in my botany class a couple of weeks ago when we were looking at the gymnosperms. Very unusual looking plant...
 
  • #20
My pick would be Hydnora africana the plant itself is so bizarre that you couldn;t even see it, but the flower had a bizarre looking. look like a fleshy eatting monster from underground. kinda like a vft but with 3 succulent.
No leaves or chlorophyll are visible on Hydnora africana plants. Plants only become visible when the flowers protrude through the soil after good rains have fallen. Under favourable conditions it takes at least one year for a bud to develop into a mature flower. does this means this plant doesn't need light? more information on the this link http://www.plantzafrica.com/planthij/hydnorafric.htm

Hydnora_africana-SC-6.jpg
 
Back
Top