Yes, indeed, there really is such a thing as an orchid that is native to Texas, and local conservation groups are working to conserve its habitat. In fact, there are several species native to this area. One of them, the Hexalectris warnockii, has been well-known here in the southwest for many years. It is named after botanist Barton Warnock, whose name appears on many botanical specimen samples in the herbarium at the Fort Worth’s Botanical Research Institute of Texas (BRIT).

Pop Quiz: What is the official orchid of our Southwest Regional Orchid Growers Association?  I bet you got it right!  The H. warnockii painted image is part of our Southwest Regional Orchid Growers’ (SWROGA) official logo, but you may be excused from knowing that if you have not yet seen our logo. Its usage is as hard to find these days as the actual orchid itself.

We in the Dallas area are lucky, however, to be able view this species locally.  Dr. Warnock discovered it in the Chisos mountains of the Big Bend National Park in 1937, but it was later found locally in Dallas County, and is viewed annually during the summer months since 2006 through the local survey of Hexalectris orchids led by the North Texas Master Naturalists’ Stephanie Varnum. 

Hexalectris warnockii benefits from a GoFundMe effort

The growing popularity and importance of this survey, coupled with the rarity of the H. warnockii, caused some very enterprising orchid lovers (Stephanie Varnum and Dana Wilson) here in North Texas to celebrate this orchid’s connection with North Texas through the powerful educational medium of Orchid-Gami. A creation of the Smithsonian North American Orchid Conservation Center, (NAOCC) the Hexalectris warnockii Orchid-Gami model will soon be made possible through the fundraising capabilities of GoFundMe.   

The genius of this arrangement is that we can all easily help sponsor our Texas orchid model. Orchid-Gami is a valuable educational tool for helping to raise public awareness of our native orchids. Children love working with paper and creating 3-D objects with paper, scissors and glue. Adults will also enjoy getting in on the act. Orchid-Gami sheets come with instructions, the pieces are die-cut, so they can be punched out (carefully!) and then assembled into a realistic model of the actual plant.

A contribution of any amount (even a single dollar) is easily accomplished on-line, and every dollar helps. This is the first Orchid-Gami to be funded through crowd sourcing so let’s all help it be successful.  Simply make a donation of any size, then be sure to spread the word by sharing with your social media friends!  

The key to the success is a “knock-out” project description. The GoFundMe lead-in to this funding project has been so thoughtfully written, that we are concluding with the text from the above website:  

Each summer, NORTH TEXAS ORCHID LOVERS venture into the woods in search of the rare Hexalectris orchids, leafless orchids that depend on fungi to survive. This survey is a great hands-on experience – being nose to nose with those gorgeous flowers, including the Texas Purple Spike (Hexalectris warnockii), as you count and measure them. Another great hands-on way to learn about orchids – those native to Texas as well as across North America – is to build your very own orchid-gami, a 3D orchid model created by the North American Orchid Conservation Center (NAOCC), based at the Smithsonian Institution’s Environmental Research Center (SERC).

What is orchid-gami? The North American Orchid Conservation Center (NAOCC), developed orchid-gami as a fun activity to raise awareness about the conservation and ecology of our native orchids. With a variety of shapes and colors, these realistic 3D models are a unique way for naturalists of all ages to learn about our native orchids and the challenges they face.

Designed by Dutch artist Maarten Janssens ( www.3eyedbear.com), orchid-gami made its international debut at the Kunstsommer Arts Festival in Germany and was the featured exhibit at the Conservation through Creativity orchid show in Hawai’i. Already popping up in classrooms and orchid shows across North America, we invite you to help us create a new orchid-gami – the Texas Purple Spike (Hexalectris warnockii)!

We – NORTH TEXAS ORCHID LOVERS – have the opportunity to celebrate this orchid we’ve come to love first-hand. Our campaign will enable NAOCC to design and produce the Texas Purple Spike (Hexalectris warnockii) as an orchid-gami model which will be used for educational outreach on both the national level by NAOCC and in our own orchid projects here in Texas. Our success will be recognized on each of the models: “The Texas Purple Spike was generously sponsored by North Texas Orchid Lovers”.

AND IN EXCITING NEWS, an anonymous donor (and talented orchid hunter) has offered to match the first $1,500 of donations to the campaign. Thank you, friend!

For more information about orchid-gami, click on the orchid-gami tab at the top of the NAOCC homepage. For information about this GoFundMe initiative and the annual orchid survey in north Texas, please contact Dana Wilson (danawilson59@yahoo.com) or Stephanie Varnum (sasvarnum@gmail.com).