In Surrey, UK, RHS Garden Wisley features colorful tropical orchids for a month-long exhibit from April 2nd – May 1st. Enjoy blooming orchids in the Glasshouse, and then enjoy them from an artistic perspective. The Wisley Garden Library displays orchid portraits until May 2nd, including works by renowned botanical artist Nellie Roberts.
With such incredible diversity, the orchid family features flowers of every size. Some varieties have tiny flowers, each bloom smaller than a fingernail. These mini blooms may be less popular than their larger relatives, but they are just as interesting. Big, showy orchid flowers may steal the spotlight, especially if you need a magnifying lens to enjoy the smaller blooms. However, many of these tiny flowers have their own fascinating intricacies. Each diminutive bloom is a perfectly formed flower with all the requisite orchid parts, only in miniature.
With ubiquitous digital cameras, it’s easier than ever to enjoy these orchids. Simply take a picture, enlarge it on the screen, and look at the great details. Many of these varieties with small flowers are miniature plants, but sometimes even large plants can have minuscule flowers. Larger plants may have dozens, or even hundreds, of tiny blooms, creating very impressive displays. So orchids with tiny flowers can be just as amazing as their larger flowered cousins.
All of these photos are from last month’s Pacific Orchid Expo.
Despite its nickname, the Downy Rattlesnake Plantain has no venom. It’s a hardy orchid species native to eastern North America, with beautiful white veining patterns on its leaves.
There are always plenty of orchids to celebrate today’s spring equinox. Here are a few more of Dave’s photos from the recent Pacific Orchid Expo to mark the change of seasons.
Here on the California coast, today brings official end to a rainy winter. It hasn’t ended our drought yet, but many reservoirs are full, and the hills are green again. It’s a great springtime bonus. Happy equinox.
Orchids in Minnesota? In fact, the state has dozens of native species, one being the Small White Lady Slipper, Cypripedium candidum. This rare orchid already has an uncertain future, threatened by habitat destruction and invasive species. Now, a new study examines dangers from climate change.
One the world’s largest orchid shows is happening now in Taiwan, a center of the orchid industry. The event features Monkey Orchids to honor the Year of the Monkey, and is expected to generate over US$300 million in export orders.
Enjoy these photos from our recent visit to Puerto Vallarta. We really enjoyed getting out of the touristy areas and plunging into the jungle at Vallarta Botanical Gardens. It’s a great nature escape 30 minutes south of the busy city. In addition to orchids, the gardens feature lots of amazing bromeliads, succulents, and every color of bougainvillea.
Many of the tropical plants growing throughout the garden are Mexican natives. The new Conservatory of Native Plants (shown in the final photo above) houses some of these as part of the garden’s efforts to conserve endangered species. If you’re anywhere near Puerto Vallarta, enjoy the sun, the beach, and the tequila, but be sure to visit Vallarta Botanical Gardens, too.
There aren’t enough superlatives to describe the Pacific Orchid Expo, with countless stunning blooms and more floral fragrances than my nose can process. But I think an under-appreciated aspect of the show is the diversity of all of these flowers. It’s mind-bending to contemplate that these all belong to a single plant family.
This is far beyond the orchid variety to be found at an average supermarket or florist. They only sell a few limited types of orchids in different colors and sizes. (The last photo shows a Harlequin Moth Orchid as a prime example.) They’re certainly beautiful flowers in their own right, but they represent only a tiny fraction of the diverse orchid family. The Pacific Orchid Expo excels in offering so much more.
New printing technology is helping scientists to understand orchids better. Researchers used 3D printers to help create replicas of Dracula flowers, and experimented with these replicas to reveal how the orchids trick flies into pollinating them.
The orchid show schedule really picks up this month, as milder weather makes orchid handling easier. Large shows abound in Santa Barbara, Philadelphia, San Diego, Montreal, Bangkok, Maui, Miami, and Taiwan. But there are also lots of great smaller shows in areas less well-known for orchids, like Boise, Winnipeg, and Tucson.
