the.com/epiphyte
a plant that ditched the ground and lives rent-free on someone else's branches
means A plant that grows perched on another plant—usually a tree—for support, drawing its water and nutrients from the air, rain, and debris rather than from the host or the soil.
from From the Greek 'epi-' meaning 'upon' and 'phyton' meaning 'plant'—literally an 'upon-plant.' The same '-phyte' root grows through a whole garden of botanical words (neophyte, the 'newly planted' beginner; saprophyte, the rot-eater), all sprouting from 'phyein,' to bring forth or grow. So an epiphyte is, etymologically, exactly what it is: a thing growing upon something else.
- not parasites
- They steal space, not sap, from host trees
- air diet
- Water and nutrients harvested from rain and dust
- orchid royalty
- Most orchid species grow this way
- canopy cities
- They host entire ecosystems above the forest floor
- name origin
- Greek for upon and plant
spanish moss — tillandsia usneoides grows on oak trees across southeastern united states without harming them
bird's nest fern — asplenium nidus grows on tree branches in tropical rainforests of southeast asia and australia
staghorn fern — platycerium bifurcatum attaches to tree trunks in australian rainforests and grows without soil