The California Academy of Sciences, located in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park, is one of the world’s largest natural history museums. Among the many exhibits, the museum contains a remarkable 4-story rainforest housed in a dome. Inside the glass sphere, a spiral ramp allows visitors to explore the rainforest, starting on the ground and heading […]
We recently enjoyed a visit to Mercer, Pennsylvania, where Dave’s parents live. Dave’s Mom (and my Mother-in-Law) Brenda has a beautiful garden, so we’re sending a virtual Mother’s Day card with some pictures we took during our trip. Happy Mother’s Day, Brenda! Mercer is in an area of western Pennsylvania that has a typical climate […]
Did you know that Mother’s Day was not started by a greeting card company, but by Julia Ward Howe in 1870 as an anti-war holiday? And speaking of Mother’s Day, there’s no better gift for mom than an orchid. Whatever the occasion for an orchid purchase, here are some tips on getting the most for […]
Dave and I took advantage of a nice spring day to enjoy nearby Mission Dolores Park, a green island between the Mission and Castro neighborhoods. We didn’t find any orchids, but there was so much in bloom that we barely noticed. These delightful cherry blossoms had us pulling out our cameras before we even got […]
Spring is in full swing with a heat wave here in San Francisco, setting record highs yesterday and today. While yesterday we reached 93F (34C,) today there are some high clouds than are keeping it down to a more manageable 87F (31C.) Since most people here, including me, don’t have air conditioning, stinking hot is […]
Happy equinox! Welcome to the first day of spring, unless you’re in the southern half of the planet. In that case, welcome to the first day of autumn. No matter where you are on earth, day and night last 12 hours each. Like all plants, orchids detect the lengthening days and increasing strength of the […]
In honor of Charles Darwin’s 200th birthday today (by the way, he was born the exact same day as Abraham Lincoln!) I have some remarkable pictures of “Darwin’s Orchid.” This stunning orchid has a long scientific name, Angraecum sesquipedale. Easier to pronounce is its nickname, Darwin’s Orchid, so named since it played an important role […]
In the town of Volcano on the road to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Akatsuka Orchid Garden has one of the aloha state’s largest orchid collections. We couldn’t resist a trip to their store and showroom, and found ourselves there with busloads of tourists who had just visited nearby Kilauea Volcano. Many of these spectacular hybrids […]
I can’t think of any better way to escape the winter doldrums than to head to a warm and beautiful tropical paradise. Dave and I just returned home from such a place, the Big Island of Hawaii. We stayed at Art & Orchids Bed and Breakfast in Kea’au, south of Hilo. True to their word, […]
San Francisco is often covered in chilly fog in the spring and summer, but warms up when the fog disappears in the fall. True to form, we’ve been having warm October days. Today the backyard thermometer reads 86 F (30 C.) The garden is enjoying this latest warm spell, and there are lots of orchids […]
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