AboutOrchids

Native to the Comoros Islands near Madagascar, this species of Jumellea is an easy grower with delightful flowers. It holds crystal white blooms on long stems, giving the appearance that they’re floating around the plant.

Nectar spurs are long, narrow tubes with a drop of nectar at the bottom, and they’re good clues that this orchid is fragrant. One arcs down behind each flower. During daytime, it has little scent, but starting in the evening, it puts out a strong fragrance that reminds me of tuberose.

Related to Darwin’s Orchid and Oeoniella, Jumelleas can grow into large, attractive plants. The leaves form a fan pattern, and healthy specimens can grow 2 ft. (0.6 m) tall. Jumelleas enjoy conditions like Dendrobiums, with bright light, regular water and fertilizer, and winter dormancy.

Ghost Orchids have been making news on both sides of the pond, and this time, it’s Florida’s turn. The same Ghost Orchid that I blogged about last year is up to it again. It’s bloomed unexpectedly early in the season, but that should be no surprise considering its other quirks. This particular Ghost Orchid grows unusually high off the ground, and it blooms profusely. Typically, they have just 1 or 2 flowers at a time, but this plant had 12 during last summer’s peak. Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary Director Ed Carlson said that cold winter weather may have caused the early bloom, but I wouldn’t rule out that this plant just really enjoys the attention.

In other news, a New York Times column on indoor gardening agrees with my opinion not to use ice cubes to water orchids:

Q: Someone who claimed he was a botanist, advised me to water my orchids by tossing a few ice cubes in them once a week. I am dubious — what do you think?
— Posted by Anna

A: The average temperature in the rain forest is about 77 degrees F. all year around. Dripping ice water on your orchid is not advisable, as is hanging around with a bartender who claims to be a botanist.

I’ll concede that some tough hybrids can handle ice water, but most orchid varieties cannot. Stick with room temperature water for indoor plants. The bartender can find a better use for the ice cubes.

With shows on every continent this month, it’s a great time to check one out. You’ll see lots of gorgeous flowers and meet local experts, growers, and vendors. You’ll bring home memories, photos, or plants, or maybe all three.

Even if you don’t see the flowers of this Maxillaria species, you’re definitely going to smell them. Maxillaria tenuifolia earns the nickname “Coconut Orchid” from its delicious scent. It’s native to tropical rainforests from Mexico south to Costa Rica.

Orchid beginners often grow easier hybrids instead of fussier species, but this species is easy to maintain and a reliable bloomer. Coconut Orchids are great transition orchids for beginners who may want to try their hand with some more advanced growing skills. Care for them like Cattleyas, with bright light, regular water & fertilizer, good humidity, and winter dormancy. Their rich red flowers, up to 2 inches (5.1 cm) wide, can last more than 2 months.

This orchid sports long, skinny, grass-like leaves that are deceptively sturdy. Maxillaria flowers bloom on short stems, so they’re often hidden in the foliage, but their fragrance gives them away. The final photo shows another plant with a color variation that’s more orange than red. No matter the hue, they smell just as sweet. Just don’t be surprised if they inspire cravings for Coconut Cream Pie.

As temperatures have warmed, and heavy winter rains have given way to light spring showers, our garden is coming alive. First, this bloom on an Abutilon, or Flowering Maple, looks like a brilliant red bell announcing the season. Next, this Iris is a California native we bought years ago at a Strybing Arboretum plant sale. The third photo shows purple blooms atop the variegated foliage of a Hebe. Named for the ancient Greek goddess of youth, the Hebe genus originates in New Zealand.

When I first moved into this apartment in the mid-90’s, I found a flower pot with a nearly-dead Cymbidium abandoned under the stairs of the back deck. I managed to save it, and for many years since, I’ve been rewarded with big, beautiful red blooms. As a terrestrial orchid, it’s growing in the ground very close to where I found it. Nearby there’s a great Sage with fuzzy, hot-pink flowers, and soft, pineapple-scented leaves.

Calla Lillies thrive here on the California coast. They’re native to South Africa. After these waist-high blooms fade, the plants will die back to dormant rootstocks for our summer dry season. Lastly, this tiny bloom descends from some Geraniums that drifted into the yard as weeds several years ago. Their charming light purple flowers earned them a place to stay. They’ve proven quite prolific, and they pop up in every shady spot and crevice at this time of year.

I’ll start today’s celebration of spring with a few nice photos. The first is a sweetly scented Iwanagara, a Cattleya hybrid. Next is a Paph species native to China, and then a Jasmine that’s bursting into bloom in our back garden.

Here in San Francisco, we set a record high of 80F (27C) yesterday, and although today is a more seasonal 65F (18C,) spring is definitely here. But even if winter is not releasing its grip in your neck of the woods, there’s one more reason to celebrate. This news article in The Independent of London describes the exciting rediscovery of the bizarre Ghost Orchid, long believed to be extinct in Great Britain.

Britain’s Ghost Orchid shares the same common name with the famous Ghost Orchid of Florida’s swamps in The Orchid Thief, but they’re two completely different species. However, Britain’s Ghost Orchid may be even more peculiar than Florida’s. Neither species has leaves, but the British species “behaves more like a fungus than a flower, according to the naturalist Peter Marren, author of Britain’s Rare Flowers.” It lives underground, and doesn’t depend on sunlight. Instead, it makes food in its roots with the help of a fungus. It only comes into view with small, ghostly white flowers when conditions are right. As the holy grail of British botany, it’s rediscovery certainly adds a boost to any spring celebration.

No matter how many vowels in its name, Oeoniella has plenty of charms. It’s an orchid species that’s easy to grow, with dainty flowers that produce a strong, sweet scent.

Pronounced “oh-ee-NEE-ella,” rhymes with “go see me, Ella,” its name comes from Greek words describing the flower’s resemblance to an eagle’s wings. Maybe the pointed tip on the flower lip also inspired thoughts of a bird’s beak.

Oeoniellas are native to Madagascar, the Seychelles, and other small islands of the Indian Ocean. They need high humidity, bright light, warm temperatures, and regular water. With good humidity, they can handle temps over 90F (32 C.) Flowers can last a month or more. Like many white orchids from Africa, they’re only fragrant at night when their moth pollinators are active.

Northern gardeners who are enduring a long and snowy winter may take some solace that spring is arriving in San Francisco. The old Japanese Maple in the back garden is leafing out, and the leaves of my Sobralia have turned light green, telling me that the sun is strengthening. We had to endure some chilly temps at the beginning of the season, but otherwise it’s been a mild and rainy winter here. After a stormy day yesterday, the sun is out today. With spring coming by calendar and thermometer on the California coast, it’s time for some orchid chores.

• Move orchids from their brighter winter locales to the shade needed for spring and summer. For most orchids, if leaves are a light green color, then the orchid is receiving enough light to bloom.
• Keep an eye out for new leaf and root growth, which often starts after flowers finish. This is a good time to repot, if necessary.
• For dormant orchids, increase watering and fertilizing gradually. With deciduous orchids like Bletilla and Cycnoches, water new growth sparingly for the first few weeks. Too much water can rot new leaves.
• As always, maintain high humidity and good air movement around plants. New growth is especially susceptible to pests when the air is dry or stagnant.
• For growers in colder climates, continue to watch for pests, keep plants in brighter light, and take heart that the long winter shall pass.

After enjoying the polished perfection of an orchid show, it’s an interesting contrast to see some wild orchids. In the wild, orchids endure damage from wind, rain, animals, and insects. Other plants grow over and around them. Jungle debris accumulates and rots away.

When you’re surviving in the wild, perfection is a luxury. These eaten and beaten orchids aren’t in a beauty pageant. They’re  just trying to bloom and reproduce like any plant, and they don’t worry about appearances. A few dead leaves or dried pseudobulbs won’t kill the deal.

The Law of the Jungle may seem brutal, but orchids have evolved to be tough enough to make it. Take these imperfect specimens as consolation that a beaten-up orchid can still have some life in it. Even if a judge won’t give a ribbon to a munched-up Phal, the orchid doesn’t care. It’s just trying to survive another day in the jungle.

There were so many remarkable orchids at this year’s Pacific Orchid Expo that it would be impossible to fit them into just one post. For example, these first two photos show stunning Phal hybrids. The third photo shows a smaller Phal species that’s native to the Philippines. It may be less showy, but it’s important in the Phal family tree as one of the original parents used to create hybrids.

Have you ever seen a leafless orchid? Like the famous Ghost Orchid, the small Chiloschista orchid in the next two shots has chlorophyll in its roots. In the third photo, an unusual Australian Pterostylis does have leaves, although you can’t see them here. It’s known as the King Greenhood, and it’s related to the smaller greenhood species I keep.

These Masdevallias were also among the show’s spectacular specimens. Also in the Masdevallia family, the frilly and colorful leaves of this tiny Lepanthes compensate for its minuscule flowers.

Finally, strange Gongora flowers give the impression of flying birds. With petals stretched back like wings, they fly around their flower spike. These sweetly scented flowers last less than a week, and like the annual orchid show, require patience for next year after they’re gone.