Dryadella

{{Short description|Genus of orchids}}

{{More citations needed|type =plant|date=February 2022}}

{{Automatic taxobox

|image = Dryadella simula Orchi 02.jpg

|image_caption = Dryadella simula

|display_parents = 3

|taxon = Dryadella

|authority = Luer (1978)

|type_species = Dryadella elata

|type_species_authority = (Luer) Luer (1978)

}}

Dryadella is a genus of miniature orchids, formerly included in the genus Masdevallia. Plants are typically composed of a tuft of leaves from 3 to 6 cm long. The small (1–2 cm) flowers are often conspicuously spotted, and are borne at the base of the leaves. There are about 60 species,{{cite web |title=Dryadella Luer {{!}} Plants of the World Online {{!}} Kew Science |url=https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:298462-2 |website=Plants of the World Online |access-date=26 February 2022 |language=en}} distributed from southern Mexico to southern Brazil and northern Argentina. In cultivation many of the species seem to respond well to being grown on cork or treefern rather than in pots. The attractive species Dryadella edwallii, commonly known as 'Partridge in the Grass' can be easily grown into a spectacular specimen plant, full of flowers. The genus name of Dryadella refers to Dryad, a tree nymph or tree spirit in Greek mythology.{{cite book | last=Burkhardt | first=Lotte | title=Eine Enzyklopädie zu eponymischen Pflanzennamen |trans-title=Encyclopedia of eponymic plant names | publisher=Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum, Freie Universität Berlin | year=2022 | isbn=978-3-946292-41-8 | url=https://doi.org/10.3372/epolist2022|format=pdf |language=German |location=Berlin | doi=10.3372/epolist2022 |access-date=January 27, 2022}}