Everyday magic: vanilla flowers in our life

Vanilla aroma accompanies us all life: from childhood we remember the smell of delicious vanilla rolls, youth is associated with us with the perfume of a girlfriend or with your own favorite aroma. The warmth and comfort breathes from each of these memories! Not so long ago, scientists have established that the aroma that exudes vanilla flowers, as well as the stronger odors derived from the fruits of this plant, have a calming and calming effect on the human nervous system. When did humanity learn about this plant, where does this flower grow and what conditions do they need? In this article, let's try to talk about such a flower as a vanilla orchid, the photo of which is presented below, and also answer all the questions posed.

A bit of history

The homeland of vanilla is Central America, where it was highly appreciated by the local residents - the Aztecs, who used it to improve the taste of the sacred drink - the prototype of modern chocolate.

The first European who tasted the taste of this spice was Christopher Columbus, who was treated with a chocolate drink by a local ruler. It was Columbus who brought vanilla to Europe, where her delicate taste was first appreciated in countries such as Spain, Austria and Italy. The Spanish, having grown fond of vanilla aroma and profit received from the sale of pods, took most of the tribute from the Mexican tribes most of the tribute formed after the vanilla flower had blossomed. More than three centuries, the Spanish kingdom was the only importer and seller of vanilla in the Old World. Because of the high cost and complexity of delivery, other countries have become acquainted with this spice a little later. Thus, at the beginning of the 17th century, vanilla was added to baked goods, as well as flavored with smoking compounds for pipes and alcoholic beverages.

Botanical features

Vanilla, more precisely - vanilla orchid - the only representative of the family of orchids (Orchidaceae), bearing fruits, which are actively used by man. The subspecies of this plant growing in tropical regions of both terrestrial hemispheres is about 100. To produce vanilla, only three types are grown on an industrial scale:

• Planifolia;
• Pompona;
• Tahitensis.

More details about each of them will be discussed later.

All vanilla - curly creepers, which in natural conditions can reach 40 meters. In nature, they parasitize on cocoa trees, and on the plantations they are placed with special supports or planted next to them are Drazen trees, which do not suffer from such a neighborhood. Vanilla lianas grow quite fast, the gain for a month can go up to a meter. The stem of the vanilla is herbaceous, forming in the process of growth a lot of air roots, which help the plant to cling and hold on to the trees. The leaves of these orchids are fleshy, oval-lanceolate.

Large and very nice smelling vanilla flowers, photos of which can be seen below, are collected in a brush and painted in yellowish green colors. The perianth consists of six petals, one of which is folded into a tube and forms a "lip" into which the pestle and the only stamen are hidden. Such a structure of the flower makes it difficult for it to be pollinated, which can be carried out only by local bees of one species and hummingbird.

Vanilla blooms for the third year of its life, with each flower living only one day. The ovaries that form the pollinated vanilla flowers develop very long: from 7 to 9 months - and form a narrow, elongated cylindrical fruit 10 to 30 cm long. Inside the brown single-chamber box there are a lot of brown-black small seeds. These plants bear fruit for a long time, from 20 to 50 years.

Kinds

Translated from Latin into Russian, Vanilla means "Pod", and today three species of this plant are grown to obtain a spice beloved by many. It should be noted that the vanilla flowers that were discovered in Central America served as the progenitors of all species used today.

Vanilla planifolia

So, the most widespread and possessing the strongest and sweetest aroma Vanilla planifolia grows in Central America, Indonesia, the Caribbean islands and Madagascar. Flowers of this species, which have an intense and delicate aroma, are pollinated artificially. The fruits of this plant, collected manually, are widely used in cooking and cosmetology.

Vanilla pompon

Less common and fragrant is the so-called vanilla vanilla - Vanilla pompona, grown in Mexico and Panama, as well as in other countries of Central America. This species is used in most cases as extracts in the food industry.

Tahitian Vanilla

Another type of orchid, the fruits of which are used in cooking, is the result of the crossing of Vanilla planifolia and pompona Tahitian vanilla - Vanilla tahitensis JWMoore. Grow this plant on the islands of French Polynesia, as well as in some other southern regions of the Pacific Ocean. Pods of this species contain less vanillin, but more than other fragrant component - heliotrope. Thanks to him, Vanilla tahitensis has a softer and delicate aroma with a predominance of fruit and floral notes. In addition to culinary uses, beautiful and fragrant vanilla tahitensis flowers are grown for flavoring and decorating various areas.

Where does it grow?

If initially vanilla grew only in some regions of Central America, today it is grown in many countries of the tropical belt. For normal growth and development, this plant needs a humid and hot climate. In this case, plants need a temperature of no higher than +30 ^° C and not lower than +15 ^° C, and a humidity of about 80% is desirable. All types of vanilla are quite demanding on the soil: it must be loose and enriched with organic substances, it is good to let in air and water.

Today vanilla is cultivated in many countries located in the regions from 10 to 20 degrees from the equator: in Mexico, Brazil, Paraguay, the USA, the states of West Africa and the islands of French Polynesia.