Last Saturday’s Gold Coast Cymbidium Society Show in Redwood City wasn’t all Cymbidiums, but there were plenty to be found. Arriving at the event shortly after it began, Dave and I were warned at the front door that the sales area was almost bare, having been quickly bought out by eager shoppers. I didn’t mind, […]
Many orchids stop you in your tracks with their colors and patterns. This orchid stops you in your tracks with its shape and scent. Rhyncholaelia digbyana has fabulous fringe on its lip, and a rich citrus perfume at night. I bought this plant eight years ago, mistakenly believing that it could live outdoors on the […]
This Sobralia orchid has been a reliable cool-grower in our garden for over a decade. Its scientific name, Sobralia macrantha, means “big-flowered Sobralia” and it’s no lie. These large, purple blooms with their frilly lips can span 10 inches (25 cm,) but mine are usually a little smaller. A few years ago, I moved this […]
This little Lady Slipper is colorful, cute, and fuzzy! Phragmipedium schlimii is native to the slopes of the Andes in Colombia. It’s smaller than most other Phragmipediums, or Phrags, so when I spotted this one for sale at last winter’s Pacific Orchid Expo, I figured I could find room for it indoors. A few months […]
Orchids can help take the chill out of a gray winter, cold rains, and short days. Fortunately, I have a lot blooming indoors right now. First, there’s a fragrant Cattleya hybrid in the row of photos above. It’s been reliable for years, pumping out white blossoms with rich purple coloring. The ruffled petals and lips […]
This Caucaea was a great find at a San Francisco Orchid Society sale last year. It’s a cool-growing miniature with a strong, sweet fragrance. Caucaeas are in the Oncidium family, and they’re named after the Cauca region of the northern Andes. Caucaea is pronounced “kaw-KAY-uh.” This species is Caucaea phalaenopsis, named for its resemblance to […]
In Defense of Plants explains why Catasetum orchids really stand out. They have fascinating flowers, but unlike most orchids, these beauties have different male and female blooms. This puzzled botanists long ago, who thought that they were separate species. It was the famous scientist Charles Darwin who finally resolved the confusion. Darwin studied how the […]
My indoor orchid shelves don’t have much room to spare, so if I buy a warm grower, it’s got to be a miniature. At the 2020 Pacific Orchid Expo, I spotted this little charmer for sale. Leptotes pohlitinocoi has a name that I can’t pronounce, but this small Cattleya relative is definitely worth the shelf […]
Lots of orchids have been blooming in our late winter garden, eager for today’s change of season. My favorite purple Zygo reliably boasts stunning flowers, shown in the first row of photos above. Their beauty is surpassed by their sweet fragrance, which is one of my favorites. The second row features a wonderful Coelogyne, which […]
If we find life on Mars, will it be as strange as Australia’s Underground Orchids? These bizarre plants, also known as Rhizanthellas, live their whole lives below ground. They even bloom underground, and smell like vanilla. Known to science since 1928, there are now five identified species around the continent. All five are endangered, and […]
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