Vanilla planifolia Vanilla planifolia Vanilla planifolia is a species of vanilla orchid. It is native to Mexico and Central America, and is one of the primary sources for vanilla flavouring, due to its high vanillin content. Common names are flat-leaved vanilla, Tahitian vanilla, and West Indian vanilla (also used for the Pompona vanilla, "V. pompona"). Often, it is simply referred to as "the vanilla". It was first scientifically named in 1808. "Vanilla planifolia" is found in Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and northeastern South America. It prefers hot, wet, tropical climates. It is cultivated and harvested primarily in Veracruz, Mexico and in
The Reluctant Orchid Clarke's collection" Tales from the White Hart". The Reluctant Orchid "The Reluctant Orchid" is a science fiction short story by British writer Arthur C. Clarke, first published in 1956, and later anthologized in" Tales from the White Hart". Like the rest of the collection, it is a frame story set in the pub "White Hart", where the fictional Harry Purvis narrates the secondary tale. According to the American orchid biologist, Joseph Arditti, Clarke told him that the story was inspired by the H. G. Wells story "The Flowering of the Strange Orchid" (1894, "Pall Mall Budget"), which is mentioned in