× Brassidium is an artificial intergeneric hybrid orchid genus in the family Orchidaceae (order Asparagales), created by crossing species from the genera Brassia and Oncidium (abbreviated Brs × Onc in hybrid notation). The name × Brassidium is a portmanteau of its two parent genera, and the multiplication sign prefix follows the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants convention for nothogenera. The hybrid genus is abbreviated Brsdm in horticultural trade journals, where named grexes are registered and traded among orchid enthusiasts.
It was first published in 1948 in the Orchid Review, following the registration of the first hybrid, Brassidium Coronet, by O. Kirsch. That inaugural cross paired Brassia verrucosa (then known as Brassia brachiata) with Oncidium anthocrene, combining the spider-like Brassia with the diverse Oncidium lineage.
When the genera Cochlioda and Odontoglossum are subsumed into an expanded circumscription of Oncidium, three other orchid hybrid nothogenera — × Maclellanara (Mclna.), × Odontobrassia (Odbrs.), and × Sanderara (Sand.) — become taxonomic synonyms of × Brassidium. GBIF recognizes × Brassidium as an accepted genus with one recorded descendant. As an artificial hybrid, it exists solely in cultivation, with new grexes continuing to be named and circulated in the orchid trade.
Etymology
The name × Brassidium is a portmanteau combining the names of its two parent genera, Brassia and Oncidium, following the standard convention for naming intergeneric orchid hybrids (nothogenera). The multiplication sign (×) prefix denotes its hybrid origin.
Taxonomy
× Brassidium is a nothogenus (hybrid genus) in the orchid family Orchidaceae, formed by crossing Brassia and Oncidium species. It was first published in the Orchid Review in 1948. The first registered hybrid was Brassidium Coronet, a cross between Brassia verrucosa and Oncidium anthocrene, registered by O. Kirsch.
When modern taxonomic treatments sink the genera Cochlioda and Odontoglossum into Oncidium, three other nothogenera — × Maclellanara, × Odontobrassia, and × Sanderara — become synonyms of × Brassidium, as their parentage is subsumed under Brassia × Oncidium.
Cultivation
Brassidium hybrids are artificial intergeneric orchids produced by crossing Brassia and Oncidium species. They are registered under the abbreviation Brsdm in horticultural trade journals, where new grexes are published. As cultivated hybrids, they do not occur in the wild and are propagated vegetatively or through repeated crossing of the parent species.
Cultural Uses
× Brassidium hybrids are grown as ornamental orchids in the horticultural trade. The genus is abbreviated Brsdm in trade journals, and named grexes are registered and circulated among orchid growers and collectors internationally.
