Earth Day
It’s true that orchids and volcanoes have coexisted for eons, but this tale of troubles for the Dutch orchid industry adds a new angle (the news story starts with similar woes in the salmon industry, and the orchids are a few paragraphs down.) With air traffic backlogged in Northern Europe, Cymbidiums grown in Holland may not make it to North America in time for May weddings. New Zealand’s orchid growers are happy to pick up the slack, so the bouquets and corsages are safe.
Whether or not you needed an Icelandic volcano to remind you that Mother Nature is fully in control of things, Earth Day gains urgency with each passing year. We can’t stop a volcano, but we can take action against human-caused threats to orchids, like habitat destruction, climate change, pollution, and theft of wild plants. Many orchid species go extinct every year, some completely unknown to science. Other may survive in cultivation, but disappear from the wild, more broken strands in the web of rainforest life. In honor of Earth Day, take action to save orchids. A few good places to start include:
- American Orchid Society
- Nature Conservancy
- Greenpeace
- European Orchid Council
- Orchid Conservation Coalition
To become involved locally, find a nearby orchid society or botanical garden. They’ll welcome any time, energy, or donation you can offer.
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April 30th, 2010 at 8:32 pm
I thoughtthe Dutch grow tulips. Are they also orchid growers?
May 2nd, 2010 at 6:51 pm
The Netherlands is a major exporter of flowers of all kinds, including orchids. I believe the Dutch recently surpassed Taiwan as the world’s largest orchid exporter.
May 12th, 2010 at 8:43 pm
Taiwan receive more orderes also because of iceland volcano.