The Living Rainforest

Learning resources

orchid

Orchids

Thousands of species There are more than 25,000 documented orchid species throughout the world, with hundreds more being discovered each year. This means the number of orchid speci...

bromeliad

Bromeliads

Thousands of species Bromeliads originate from South and Central America, the Caribbean and West Africa. They grow in deserts, mountains and forests. The most well known bromeliad ...

Rosy periwinkle

This pretty plant from Madagascar gives us two very important cancer-fighting medicines: vinblastine and vincristine. Vincristine has helped increase the chance of surviving childh...

Giant taro

Giant taro has the largest un-split leaf in the world, reaching two metres long. The giant leaves are ideally adapted to absorbing the small amount of light that reaches the rainfo...

Philippines jade vine

The Philippines Jade Vine has some of the most extraordinary flowers of any plant. Enormous, metre-long spikes of brilliant turquoise blooms hang from the scrambling stems usually ...