The smallest. Plant records The smallest roots in the world

The flora is huge and incredibly diverse. At the beginning of 2010, botanists have studied and described about 320,000 plants, of which more than 280,000 are flowering plants. According to preliminary estimates of scientists, at least 500 thousand plants grow on our planet. various kinds plants! The article will tell about the smallest flower in the world. Below you will find its detailed description, characteristics.

Description

What is the smallest flower in the world? The name of this miracle is wolfia. This aquatic plant, belongs to the highest flowering monocots, belongs to the Aroid family, subfamily - Ryaskovye, has 11 species.

This smallest flower in the world has the shape of a ball, slightly flattened laterally, bright green or yellowish. Its length does not exceed 1-1.4 mm, width - 0.5-1 mm, the "heaviest" ball weighs no more than 200 micrograms. For comparison, about 30 named flowers can fit on one side of a match head!

Wolfia is a rootless plant, its body is a reduced stem, on which there are breathing stomata, only 12-14 microns long. With their help, gas exchange is carried out between tungsten and environment. On the stem during flowering, in July-August, a tiny flower appears, primitive in structure, but still having a pistil and a pair of stamens. It can only be seen under a microscope, it is not visible to the naked eye, it is so small.

Spreading

The smallest flower in the world is subtropical. All species of this plant grow in fresh water with a weak current in North and West Africa, South and Central America, as well as in Asia. In the southern latitudes of the Russian Federation, only the species Wolfia arrhiza grows.

The plant feels good and actively reproduces only if the water temperature is between +23°C and +29°C. With more high rates Wolffia rootless dries up. At the same time, it withstands temperatures down to 15°C.

reproduction

Wolffia reproduces mainly vegetatively. There are two ways to do this:

• the formation of a microscopic process on the maternal body, which, upon reaching full maturity, disappears and begins "adult" life;
• division of the maternal stem into several parts, most often into 2 or 3.

If the weather conditions are favorable, then the smallest flower in the world reproduces very quickly. In the tropics, the surface of almost any body of standing water is covered with a green carpet of these plants.

It has a wide distribution area. This is due to its structure: the surface of the balls is slightly sticky, due to which they are easily attached to any object that ends up in the water where the plant lives. The balls thus "move" to a new place.

Chemical composition: benefits and harms for wolfia

The smallest flower in the world is rich in vitamins A, C, group B, PP. Wolffian protein contains the same amount as soybeans, therefore natives eat it, and this flower is also readily eaten by aquarium fish.

Wolffia is a biopurifier, so scientists have found its use in industrial sedimentation tanks: green balls filter water, purifying it from salts of heavy metals.

However, it also often destroys rice plantations, so it is actively combated in the cultivation of rice.

Now it's easy for you to answer the question of what is the smallest flower in the world.

South American plant from the family of Compositae xevreuliya shoot-bearing (Chevreulia stolonifera) belongs to seed distance record. With air currents, they are able to cover a distance of more than 7.5 thousand km. km.

Not less than 12 thousand kilometers, the seeds of a tropical liana from the legume family, the giant entada (Entada scandens), floated. Large, up to 1 m long, beans of this plant able to spend more than a year in salty sea water without losing seed germination.

For about a year, air-filled leathery sac sacs can float in fresh water.

The most widespread weed plant, which has populated the territory of more than 100 countries, is a relative of sedges - round sedge (Cyperus rotundus). Fortunately, in Russia, except for the Caucasus, it practically does not occur.

The Brazilian plant water hyacinth, or Eichhornia crassipes, from the Pontederiaceae family, which does not have a Russian name, has spread in almost all major reservoirs, as well as rivers and lakes of the tropical Old and New Worlds, becoming malicious water weed.

One of the most salt-tolerant terrestrial plants is the saltwort (Salicornia europea, from the haze family). It grows on sea coasts and salt marshes with a salt concentration in groundwater of up to 6%. And ego seeds germinate even in 10% saline solution.

The second largest family of the class of monocots is cereals, it includes from 8 to 10 thousand species. Grasses are ubiquitous, they are found even at the extreme boundaries of the distribution of vegetation - in Antarctica and on the Arctic islands.

The green alga Dunaliella salina (Dunaliella salina) can exist in salt lakes with a salt concentration of 285 g/l.

In the class of dicots, the largest family- composite colors. It includes about 900 genera, including from 13 to 20 thousand species. Like cereals, composite flowers are ubiquitous - from the Arctic to the Antarctic, from the plains to the highlands.

The northernmost point on Earth where a flowering plant is found- Alpine yaskolka (Cerastium alpinum, from the clove family) - Lockwood Island, which is located in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago - 83o24 n.l. Further north, only some mosses and lichens are found.

The southernmost border of the distribution of flowering plants lies between 64o and 66o S. on the Antarctic continent and the Antarctic islands. Here, in the moss-lichen deserts of Antarctica, there are two types of flowering plants - thick-leaved colobanthus (Colobanthus crassifolius, from the clove family) and Antarctic pike grass (Deschampsia antarctica).

Has the highest growth rate one of the relatives of bamboo is the edible leaf-bearing grass (Phyllostachys edulis), which occurs wildly in southern China. The daily growth of the shoots of this plant reaches 40 cm, i.e. 1.7 cm per hour. In just a few months, the leaf-bearing plant grows to a height of 30 meters, reaching 50 cm in diameter.

There are plants distributed on all continents of the Earth. They received the name cosmopolitan. The five most widespread plants include: shepherd's purse (Capsella bursa-pastoris, from the cruciferous family), spurge, or bird's knotweed (Polygonum aviculare), from the buckwheat family), annual bluegrass (Poa annua from cereals), woodlouse or starworm ( Stellaria media, from the clove family) and stinging nettle (Urtica dioica, nettle family).

The most diverse in terms of the number of species hawkweed (Hieracium, Asteraceae family) is considered a genus of flowering plants. Species of hawks are very variable, in addition, there are many transitional forms. Therefore, the size of this genus is estimated by different botanists from 1 to 5 thousand years. types.

Sedges (Carex, sedge family) are also a very large genus. At present, according to the estimates of sedge specialists, there are from 1.5 to 2 thousand species.

The oldest tree on Earth it is also considered a gymnosperm plant - spinous pine (Pinus longaeva or P.aristata), growing in the mountains of Eastern Nevada. The radiocarbon method of analysis showed that the age of this tree is about 4900 years.

Blueberries (Vaccinum myrtyllus) and cranberries (Oxycoccus palustris) growing on sphagnum bogs from the lingonberry family (according to other views, from the heather family) able to tolerate very high soil acidity– pH around 3.5.

In a wide range of soil acidity, some cultivated plants. Thus, rye and sorghum are the most indifferent to soil acidity and survive in the pH range from 4.5 to 8.0. Cotton and carrots do not tolerate very acidic soil, but tolerate pH fluctuations from 5.0 to 8.5.

One of the "thickest" trees In the world, the African baobab (Adansonia digitata, from the Bombax family) is considered. The diameter of the trunk of the largest of the described baobabs was about 9 m. However, the diameter of the usual edible European chestnut (Castanea sativa, chestnut family), growing on Mount Etna in Sicily, in 1845 had a trunk of 64 m in girth, which was about 20 .4 m in diameter. The age of this giant was estimated at 3600–4000 years. In Mexico, giant water cypresses (Taxodium mucronatum) grow - gymnosperms from the cypress order, with a trunk diameter of 10.9 to 16.5 m.

The "longest" tree on Earth is a liana-shaped rattan palm (genus Calamus, palm family). Its total length, according to various sources, reaches from 150 to 300 m. It is interesting that the diameter of the trunk at the base does not exceed several centimeters in rattan. Rattan stalks stretch from tree to tree, holding on to prop plants with the help of strong spikes located on the middle veins of large pinnate leaves.

The total length of all roots of a four-month-old plant of winter rye is more than 619 km.

The largest leaves in the world have tedigera raffia palm (Raphia taedigera) growing in Brazil. With a 4–5-meter petiole, its pinnate leaf blade reaches a length of more than 20 m and a width of about 12 m.

The largest leaves with a whole blade has an Amazonian water lily - Amazonian Victoria (Victoria amazonica, synonym - V.regia, from the water lily family). Their diameter reaches 2 m, and the maximum "carrying capacity" with a uniform load is 80 kg.

One of the largest leaf buds(shortened future shoots) - a head of cabbage. The weight of a head of cabbage can reach more than 43 kg.

The smallest flowering plant on Earth- found in the fresh waters of Australia and the tropics of the Old World wolfia rootless (Wolffia arrhiza, from the family of ryakkovyx). A tiny wolfia leaf has a diameter of 0.5–2 mm. At the same time, the plant is able to form rather large aggregations, covering the surface of reservoirs with a continuous film, similar to ordinary duckweed.

Wolffia Beskorneva and her relative have small duckweed (Lemna minor) and the smallest flowers. Their diameter does not exceed 0.5 mm.

The largest inflorescences the umbrella corypha palm (Corypha umbraculifera), which grows in southeast Asia and on the island of Sri Lanka, has. The height of its inflorescence reaches 6 m, and the number of flowers in the inflorescence is half a million.

Record for the duration of flowering planted a burning palm tree, or kitul (Caryota urens). This tree, growing in southwestern Asia, blooms once in a lifetime, after which it dies. However, flowering lasts continuously for several years.

At a height of 6218 m above sea level, a squat plant, the mossy gerbil (Arenaria musciformis, from the clove family), rises into the mountains. A little lower, at an altitude of 6096 m, in the Himalayas, several species of edelweiss (Leontopodium) from the Compositae family grow.

Cultivated plants also rise high in the mountains. In Central Asia, the border of agriculture reaches 5 thousand meters above sea level. In Tibet, barley is grown at this height.

The largest fruits in the world grow on a herbaceous plant of an ordinary pumpkin (Cucurbita pepo) - they can weigh more than 92 kg.

About 45 species of flowering plants are so original that separate families were established for them - with a single genus and one species. Most of these plants are inhabitants of the tropics and subtropics. And in the temperate zone, there are musk adox (Adoxa moschatellina) and umbrella susak (Butomus umbellatus) - the only representatives of the families, respectively, adox and susak.

The largest tubers(modified underground shoots) forms an Asian yam plant (Dioscorea alata, from the Dioscorea family). Tubers of cultivated yams can reach a mass of 50 kg. They are eaten baked or boiled, and taste like potatoes.

In the leaves of stevia Rebo (Stevia rebaudiana) - plants from the Asteraceae family, originally from South America, - contains glycosides stevin and rebodin, which 300 times sweeter than sugar.

Most protein in seeds- 61% - contains the legume lupine (Lupinus genus). However, along with protein, lupine seeds contain poisonous alkaloids, which does not allow them to be used in nutrition.

Cuban bristly tree (Aeschynomene hispida, from the legume family) has the lightest wood in the world. Its density is only 0.044 g/cm3, which is 23 times less than the density of water and 3 times lighter than the famous balsa wood. The raft "Kon-Tiki" was made from the wood of a balsa tree, on which the famous traveler Thor Heyerdahl crossed the Pacific Ocean.

The largest flower in the world- in a parasitic plant of the tropical forests of western Sumatra, described in 1821 - Arnold's rafflesia (Rafflesia arnoldi, from the Rafflesiaceae family). Currently, its maximum dimensions are estimated at 45 cm in diameter with a weight of 7 kg.

The record holder for the area occupied by the crown, it is considered Indian banyan, or Bengal ficus (Ficus bengalensis, from the mulberry family,). This ficus forms a large number of aerial roots, which, reaching the ground, take root and turn into false trunks. As a result, the huge crown of the tree rests on root supports. The most famous of the banyans grows in the botanical garden of Calcutta. In 1929, when measurements were made, the circumference of its crown exceeded 300 m (slightly less than 100 m in diameter), and the number of "trunks" - air roots - reached 600.

Nut-bearing lotus seeds (Nelumbo nucifera, lotus family), discovered in 1951 in Japan, in a peat bog at a depth of 5.5 m, were in a boat that belonged to a Stone Age man. After removing them from the peat, they germinated, the lotuses developed normally and bloomed. The burial of these seeds in peat without access to oxygen contributed to the preservation of their viability. The radiocarbon method of analysis showed that this the seeds were at least 1040 years old.

The largest fertility characteristic of breadfruit from the mulberry family, more precisely, one of its species, jackfruit (Arctocarpus heterophyllus). The mass of one seed is about 40 kg, length - about 90 cm, width - up to 50 cm.

The largest pollen grains - their diameter is 250 microns - is possessed by the common pumpkin. BUT the finest pollen formed in the anthers of forget-me-not (Myosotis sylvatica) - 2–5 microns. It is interesting that both plants are insect pollinated. In wind pollinated plants, the average diameter of pollen grains is 20–50 microns.

At present, the evergreen sequoia (Sequoia sempervirens) Hyperion is considered. The largest tree reliably measured in the last century grew in national park sequoia USA, had a height of 120 m and was called the "Father of the Forests". Close in size to evergreen sequoia and sequoia dendron, or mammoth tree (Sequoiadendron giganteum). However, these plants belong to gymnosperms (cypress order), and the highest flowering plants on Earth are Australian eucalyptus trees (Eucalyptus, myrtle family). The tallest eucalyptus trees, existing now, are considered two trees related to the species of royal eucalyptus (Eucalyptus regnans). One of them has a height of 99.4 m, and the other - 98.1 m.

The most "heat-resistant" land plant is camel thorn (Alhagi camelorum, from the legume family). It tolerates temperatures up to +70 oC.

Shoots of trees of the genera birch (Betula, birch family), poplar (Populus, willow family) and - from gymnosperms - larch (Larix) have great cold tolerance. They are able to withstand cooling down to -196 °C. Black currant cuttings (Ribes nigrum, from the gooseberry family) are able to withstand cooling down to -253 ° C without losing the ability to root after thawing. However, this is the potential cold tolerance of plants, established under laboratory conditions. At the pole of cold in the northern hemisphere, birch and larch tolerate a drop in temperature to -71 ° C

And finally, a few more interesting facts related to other groups of plants and fungi.

The largest aquatic plant- brown water macrocystis (Macrocystis pyrifera). Its maximum length, according to various sources, ranges from 70 to 300 m.

Record-breaking dive into the water column is also a brown kelp kelp Podrigueca (Laminaria rodriguesii). In the Adriatic Sea, it was raised from a depth of about 200 m.

But the blue-green algae filiform oscillatoria (Oscillatoria filiformis) is fine lives and breeds in the water of hot springs, the temperature in which reaches +85.2 °C.

Fruticose lichens of the cladonia genus in the dried state remain alive after heating to +101 ° C. And the slender barbula moss (Barbula gracilis) remains viable even after keeping it at a temperature of +110–115 °C for 30 minutes.

The title of the most drought-resistant plant is claimed by sea brown algae - bubble fucus (Fucus vesiculosus). It endures a tenfold loss of moisture from the original content. By the way, this is the most frost-resistant among algae. Fukus withstands temperatures down to -60 °C.

The growth rate of the fruiting body of the fungus common oar (Phallus impudicus) is twice the growth rate of shoots of the leaf-bearing plant, reaching 5 mm per minute.

The most dense wood, which is 1.5 times heavier than water, has a piratinera (genus Piratinera, from the mulberry family), growing in Guyana. Almost the same dense wood has a guaiac, or bacout tree (Guajacium officinale, from the parnolistnikovye family). Its density is 1.42 g/cm3. In terms of strength, the wood of a bacout tree is almost as good as iron.

Rafflesia(Rafflesia; Indonesian bunga patma - lotus flower), corpse lily is the brightest symbol and rarity of the flora of Indonesia, and at the same time the largest (up to 9 kg in weight and up to a meter in diameter) flower in the world.

amorphophallus(lat. Amorphophallus - from other Greek ἄμορφος, "shapeless", and other Greek φαλλός, "phallus") - a genus of the Aroid family

The smallest flower in the world has petals that do not exceed 2.1 mm in diameter and are so transparent that you can see through them. This flower is orchid(belongs to the genus Platystele), discovered in the roots of an orchid of another species by the famous American botanist Lou Jost.

The smallest plant is wolfia flower. It consists of a tiny leaf and root submerged in water. Wolfia blooms so rarely that many botanists chase her flower all their lives, but they never manage to find it ... After all, the whole flower is the size of a pinhead.

The noisiest tree is the so-called cannon tree growing in Guiana. Its fruits are round balls up to 18 cm in diameter. They hang from the trunk on thick loops. The wind will blow, and the balls begin to beat against the barrel and against each other with a cannon roar.

The hardest tree is Schmidt birch. A bullet will not pierce it, and the sharpest ax will become dull without harming the tree. Schmidt's birch grows only in Russia, in Primorye, in the Kedrovaya Pad reserve.

This amazing water lily has been named after the most famous English queen for more than a century and a half. Nothing surprising. Victoria regia is the queen of flora, the world's largest aquatic plant. It is also called "Victoria Amazonian", as it can be found on the warm rivers and lakes of the Amazon basin.

Carnegia giant (Saguaro) another amazing plant. cactus family . The height of individual plants is about 14 meters, and the diameter is more than 3 meters! At the same time, the age of individual cacti reaches 150 years.

Nepenthes (Nepenthes). Most plants from this genus can be called "predators" without exaggeration, which obtain the necessary missing nutrients by "digesting" the caught insects. The surface of the "neck" of the jug is very slippery, so there is practically no chance for an insect walking along the neck not to slip down. The insect falls into the water (in some species, a jug can contain up to 2 liters of water) and drowns. Further, enzymes are produced that completely "digest" the insect. Sometimes not only insects are trapped, but even mice , rats, birds.

At first glance, it may seem that the photo above depicts a forest. In fact, it is one single tree. ficus bengal forms powerful branches to support which shoots grow, which, letting go down to the ground, take root, forming powerful columns-trunks.

Puya Raymonda of the Bromeliad family, native to the Bolivian and Peruvian Andes, has the largest inflorescence with a diameter of 2.5 meters and a height of about 12 meters, consisting of approximately 10,000 simple flowers. It is a pity that this amazing plant blooms only when it reaches the age of 150, and then dies.

Raulia extraordinary (Raoulia eximia), English name sounds like "vegetable sheep", which very accurately describes the appearance of the plant. Such a bush 1.5 m high really resembles a lamb. Growing in New Zealand.

Pachypodium namaquanum (Pachypodium namaquanum) The English name of the plant is translated as "elephant's trunk". This succulent has fleshy, collected in a large funnel, pointed towards the end of the leaves. The homeland of the pachypodium is Namibia, where the plant has to survive in this way in the heat, accumulating moisture in the leaf plates.

Cruciform collection (Colletia paradoxa)

Kirkazon giant (Aristolochia gigantea). Grows in a variety of climatic conditions. Kirkazon is significant primarily for its colors. In every possible way, flowers imitate .. rotting meat. This is facilitated by the appropriate smell and color.

Desmodium gyrans. Modern botanists call it either Desmodium gyrans or, more correctly, Codariocalyx Motorius. This plant surprises everyone with the movement of its leaves - the plant seems to be dancing, especially if there is a lot of sun.

Euphorbia obesa very similar to a ball . This plant is native to South Africa and has become famous for its original form. This plant is also known for its rarity - the fact is that Euphorbia obesa is endemic, that is, it grows strictly in a certain region, not found anywhere else.

New Zealand nettle tree. The most dangerous stinging plant is the New Zealand nettle tree. It can kill a dog and even a horse, vp prowling them under the skin of a mixture of strong poisons. Thin, stinging hairs on the leaves contain histamine and formic acid.

Common Aronnik (Dracunculus vulgaris)- plant up to 90 cm tall, leaves reach 20 cm in length.
The leaf stalks and fleshy stems are spotted with brown, giving them the appearance of snakeskin. An inflorescence appears at the top of each stem in early summer. The bedspread with a wavy edge reaches a length of 45 cm. Outside it is pale green, inside it is purple-crimson. A dark purple ear of the same length as the bedspread.

Amorphophallus (Amorphophallus)(from Latin its name translates as "shapeless penis") belongs to the lily family. Its flowers are huge leaves dissected in the middle, from which a large cob emerges. The aroma of amorphophallus is usually compared to the smell of rotten eggs, spoiled fish or meat, but it attracts insects that pollinate the plant. The plant lives for about 40 years and during this time it blooms only a couple of times.

BLOODY TOOTH (HYDNELLUM PECKII). This cute fungus looks like chewed gum, oozing blood and smelling like strawberries. But do not try to eat it, because it will be the last "delicacy" that you will taste in your life.

DOLL'S EYES / DOLL'S EYE. This unusual plant is called "puppet eyes". There is also a less telling name for this horror - a white raven. No features other than appearance this plant does not have

CEDAR-APPLE RUST FUNGUS. Cedar-apple rotting fungus is a fungal infection that transforms apple and cedar fruits beyond recognition. Horror films can be made about this abomination: infected fruits turn into disgusting monsters in just a few months. Here's how it happens: from a tiny spore of a fungus, an impressive spherical body develops - from 3.5 to 5 centimeters in diameter, when wet, this abomination exfoliates, forming vile antennae.

CHINESE RUNIC FLOWER / CHINESE FLEECEFLOWER. The fruits of the "runic flower" have frightening shapes that make them look like little potato people. The Chinese are uprooting these tiny underground inhabitants from the earth in order to use their naked defenseless bodies as a panacea for all diseases, including impotence, cancer, AIDS, dementia, etc., etc. ... Before turning into a life-giving powder, little men are subjected to all kinds of torture, including: boiling, skinning, soaking in moonshine and dismemberment.

There is an assumption that the Chinese simply grow these roots in a pot of the desired shape ...

PORCUPINE TOMATO / PORCUPINE TOMATO. Porcupine tomato is a one and a half meter monster growing in Madagascar, the leaves of which are covered with frightening-looking orange thorns. This spiky wonder-yuda has incredibly beautiful purple flowers, collected in clusters, with which it lures its victims to itself: and now you are already bending over to pick one of them and find yourself impaled on “deadly” spikes. In addition to being thorny and poisonous, the Porcupine tomato is almost impossible to kill: most chemicals are unaffected by it and it can survive severe cold and even severe drought. As you already understood, this creation of nature is a monstrous weed. In a short time, one plant can spawn a whole army of Porcupine tomatoes, which in a few weeks will turn into 1.5 meter giants, each of which will fight to the last and shed more than one liter of your blood before being uprooted from the ground.

Lithops. This unusual plant can be found in the deserts of South Africa. Lithops prefer extremely hot and dry habitats. The name of this plant, translated from Greek, means "stone"

Parachute flower (Ceropegia woodii) Petals joined together and something like a chupa chups covered with hair together form a hollow tube, covered from the inside with hairs directed inward. The smell of the plant attracts insects that fall into the trap.

cactus leaves

Most cacti don't have leaves, as we thought, but a new study by James Mauseth has found that all of these mostly thorny plants do indeed have ultra tiny leaves. The findings, published in the International Journal of Plant Sciences, are very exciting and may also help expand our knowledge of leaf functionality.

Be careful with your eyes

For curious cactus owners wishing to take a look at the leaves, caution is advised. "If people look closely at their cacti to see the leaves, they have to be careful about the thorns so they don't hurt their eyes," warns James Moset. A professor of biological sciences at the University of Austin in Texas explained that he recently discovered the leaves. They are best viewed under a microscope, they are at the base of the plant stem. These are really the smallest leaves in the world, so if you suddenly have a cactus, you can safely brag about it to your friends.

Cactus Research Results

The scientist made the discovery after collecting samples from 147 different types of cacti, most of which he obtained from the wild. Moset then made an extensive analysis of the plants and their tissues at high magnification.

As a result of the study, the scientist found that just over half of the leaves have tissues, and provide the cactus with water and nutrients. Their sizes are very small, only from 30 to 2310 microns. And one micron is about one millionth of a meter, or just 0.00003937 inches, which is why cactus leaves are documented to be the smallest in the world.

Instruction

wolfia rootless
The smallest flower on the planet is called wolfia rootless. The plant belongs to the duckweed family and grows in fresh water reservoirs. Wolffia is a very small elliptical plate, no more than 1 mm in size.

Leaf color is pale to bright green. Wolffia does not have a root system, but the plant receives nutrients from the water with its entire surface. Wolffia blooms quite rarely and only in summer when favorable.

A very small flower, which can only be seen through a magnifying glass, is located on the top of the plant. This is a recess in which there is one stamen and pistil. A feature of the plant is its incredibly fast, at a temperature of 22-26 ° C, green wolfia balls are constantly dividing. Young plants bud from the parent, while the mother plant dies.

Wolffia rootless is found naturally in the tropical forests of Africa and Asia, in the reservoirs of central Europe, the Mediterranean and India. The smallest flower also grows in Russia, it can be seen in the Lipetsk, Voronezh, Bryansk and Kursk regions.

A few years ago, American biologist Lou Jost discovered the smallest orchid in the rainforests of Ecuador in the Cerro Candelaria Reserve in the eastern Andes. It happened by accident, the botanist noticed an unusual plant when he studied the roots of another orchid.

The size of the flower of this miniature plant is only 2 mm. And the cream-colored petals are so transparent that they resemble glass or water drops. Subsequently, the researcher found out that the new species of orchids belongs to the genus Platystele genus, which includes miniature plants.

Before Jost's discovery, Platystele jungermannioides was considered the smallest orchid. In diameter, the flowers average only 2.5 mm, and the plant can be found in the tropical forests of Mexico, Guatemala, Costa Rica and Panama.