Orchids are plants of a family of monocotyledonous plants distinguished by the complexity of their flowers and by their ecological interactions with pollinators and with the fungi with which they form mycorrhizae.
The family comprises approximately 25,000 species (some sources report 30,000), making it one of the families with the greatest specific richness among the angiosperms. In addition to this natural diversity, there are 60,000 hybrids and varieties produced by flower growers.