Orchidaceae
7-Velamen covered roots
![[FMP-field: image]](../picts/Orchidaceae/07-Velamen%20covered%20roots.jpg)
| Epiphytic orchids often have coarse roots that hold them the plants in place, and these roots are covered with velamen. The velamen is layer of water- absorbing tissue that helps these ephiphytic plants obtain moisture high in the tree canopy of tropical rain forests. In this drawing, note these coarse, velamen-covered roots coming out of the pseudobulbs. The orchid is Laelia majalis, and this is a detail from a drawing in J. Bateman, The Orchidaceae of Mexico and Guatemala, published in London, 1843. |