AboutOrchids

Download your free copy of A Guide to Building Ethical Orchid Collections and Societies. This digital book, which encourages conservation among orchid societies and individual orchid collectors, has been published in English, Chinese, Spanish, Portuguese, and Indonesian. It addresses one of the greatest crises in the orchid world, which is the harvest of wild plants. That’s already caused many extinctions, and can decimate rare species. This book offers guidelines for orchid societies to educate their members, discourage harmful practices, and promote conservation. Good practices include not buying or selling wild orchids, and only purchasing from legal, sustainable plant sources.

Learn more about how to be a responsible orchid collector in these previous posts:

• Is That Rare Plant Illegal?
• Wild Orchid Collectors: A Key Driver of Decline
• Poaching Orchids
• Good Practices and Bad Habits of Nature Photography

July brings big shows in Singapore, San Francisco, and Hilo, Hawaii. In addition to the dozens of listings below, orchid societies around the world have monthly meetings, speakers, and special events, so be sure to check with your local society for more.

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In honor of today’s solstice, enjoy these photos from a recent visit to a friend’s garden. The plants thriving outdoors in her backyard in San Francisco’s Mission District include lots of orchids. Cool-growing Cymbidiums, Dendrobiums, and Coelogynes put on a stunning show. Flowering maples, fuchsias, and a very happy orange clivia complement the orchids. Whether you’re celebrating the longest day of the year or the longest night of the year, have a happy solstice.

India is the most populous nation in the world, and also home to lots of orchids, from its tropical south to its mountainous north. As the country grows and develops, habitat destruction threatens biodiversity, including in the southern state of Kerala. Road construction results in trees being removed, with the loss of all the orchids attached to them. Fortunately, people are trying to save India’s orchids. With proper legal permission, scientists, farmers, and volunteers are working together with Kew Gardens,  and have salvaged 18,000 orchids from trees that were chopped down. Over two thirds were endemic species, occurring nowhere else. The rescues have been moved to a 200 acre (81 hectare) city park, where most have adapted nicely to their new home. Besides safeguarding the plants, they will help improve public awareness of conservation needs. In future years, it is hoped that they can imitate Singapore’s success conserving orchids in urban environments.

June offers events on six continents. They’re great opportunities to enjoy wonderful orchids, take photos, talk to experts, or buy plants. For those interested in Orchid Digest Speakers Day, there are both online and in-person options.

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It’s not just orchids in our garden. While I recently boasted about the orchids in bloom, the rest of the plants are springing up, too. They include succulents, Mediterranean-climate plants, and California natives. Some really stand out, like the adorable Fivespots in the first photo above, and the stunning blue Aristea in the second photo.

Other plants are unsung heroes. Pink Clover first arrived as a weed, but it was cute, so it stayed. Now it reappears annually as a ground cover, with a perpetual supply of cheery, pink pom-pom flowers. The bees love it, and it delightfully fills up the cracks in the concrete patio.

There are more plants which thrive on their own, and need very little care. Nasturtiums reseed each year. They wind across the patio and around flowerpots, with a kaleidoscope of orange, yellow, and red blossoms. Brilliant orange California Poppies proudly demonstrate why they’re the official state flower. Close to the coast, many have bright yellow on the ends of their petals. That variety doesn’t seem to occur inland. It’s a joy to have it among our spring blooms.

Our garden has been bursting with spring orchid color. With mild weather and regular rains, these cool growers are loving life on the Northern California coast. When I remember to fertilize, I use 20-20-20 orchid fertilizer, but also alternate with light sprinklings of worm castings or compost. The natural fertilizer often kicks them into flower within a few weeks.

Cymbidiums are reliable bloomers here, so it’s no surprise that this post includes lots of them. Many started blossoming over the winter, even before the worm castings. The nutritional boost extends their blooming period, and prompts additional flower spikes.

Orchids add a lot of life to our back garden. I’m spoiled that beautiful cool growing orchids love this climate.

Check out these links about the orchids pictured above:

• Zygo
• Coelogyne
• Epidendrum
• Masdevallia
• Cymbidium
• Dockrillia
• Sarcochilus
• Holcoglossum
• Giant Hyacinth Orchid

May’s orchid events span the globe. Each month, it’s a challenge to find as many as I can online. I know that I miss a lot, too, due to language barriers or imperfect search algorithms. But there are more than enough events listed here to demonstrate how much orchids are loved all over the world.

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In Virginia, orchid biologist Melissa McCormick searches for the Small Whorled Pogonia, Isotria medeoloides. This endangered orchid is native to eastern areas of the USA and Canada. It’s a small plant with green flowers, it resembles other plants, and it can go dormant underground for years. Humans have a difficult time finding it, but for dogs, it’s pretty easy. Labradors named Encore and Grand have learned to locate the Pogonias. With their powerful sense of smell, the dogs lead scientists to the orchids. So far, they’ve sniffed out previously unknown Pogonias, and areas where there may be dormant plants. Dog detectors like these usually come from shelters, and can be trained to find animals, plants, and even do search and rescue missions. When it’s time for them to retire, they’re adopted by their trainers, or by other dog lovers.

Check out this short video of an excited dog finding an orchid –

Look back at these previous posts about dogs helping with orchid conservation –

• Dogs Are Helping to Save Rare Orchids
• Dogs Are an Orchid’s Best Friend

Being an orchid geek, one of my favorite things is blooming a species for the first time. When this unusual Stenia pushed out a single flower bud, I was excited. Over several weeks, the bud fattened up, and finally opened to reveal a fascinating blossom. Stenia vasquezii has a spotted flower with a lip folded into a pouch. It’s one of the few orchids with a pouch-shaped lip that’s outside the Lady Slipper family.

Stenia qualifies as an orchid name that’s easy to pronounce. I bought this plant a year ago at an orchid show. It’s a Zygo relative, native to Bolivia and Peru. With thin leaves, it needs regular water, good humidity, and bright light. It can tolerate morning sun if temperatures aren’t too warm. The blooms hang from the base of the plant, so it should be potted to sit level with the top of the flower pot. If not, the buds may get stuck inside the pot rim. It could also be mounted.

These photos include flower views from varying angles to better appreciate that intriguing lip. I’m looking forward to coaxing more blooms from this attractive, uncommon orchid.