AboutOrchids

Bad wildfires have brought terribly smoky conditions to the San Francisco Bay Area for the past week. Of course, this is nothing compared to the suffering of those who have lost homes and loved ones in the fires, which are over 150 miles (241 km) away. However, it is causing bad air problems. Our daily pollution readings are in the red and purple hazardous zones, which is a big change from our typically good air quality. I’ve lived here for almost 30 years, and endured smoky days before, but this is the worst I can remember.

How does the smoke affect my orchids? It probably won’t kill any of the plants, but it may harm them. Mostly, it’s a battle with dry air resulting from the same offshore wind flow which carries the pollution here. At a time when many orchids are entering winter dormancy, I need to keep spraying them to increase humidity. Bad air quality may cause growth or flowering problems. Some orchids like Cattleyas can suffer “bud blast” from smoke. That’s when flower buds start to form, but then wilt before blooming. I do have a Laelia living outside which has some sad looking buds, so that could be from the smoke. Other problems, like low flower counts or weak leaf growth, may take weeks or months to appear. There’s not much I can do but try to mitigate any damage with clean water and good humidity. For myself, I’m wearing an N95 face mask for fine particulate matter whenever I’m outdoors in my garden. And I’m waiting for the winds to change, and the fires to be put out, so we can breathe again.

Buenos Aires is home to an extraordinary Japanese garden. El Jardín Japonés de Buenos Aires is one of the largest Japanese gardens outside Japan. It’s located within walking distance of Buenos Aires Botanical Garden. During our visit, the venue was busy with tourists, locals, and groups of school children. It is obviously a much-loved green space in the city.

The gardens include many traditional elements, with Japanese gates and bridges, a large koi lagoon, sculpted trees, stone lanterns, and an elegant tea house. While we were there, we enjoyed lots of colorful spring blooms, including cherry blossoms. We didn’t see any orchids on the grounds, but we did find Moth Orchids for sale in the nursery, along with bonsai, succulents, and garden plants.

The gardens also serve as a center of Japanese culture in Argentina, and feature events with martial arts, flower arranging, origami, manga, anime, and more. Find additional info at the Buenos Aires Japanese Gardens website (in Spanish.) And don’t miss this wonderful site if you’re in Buenos Aires.

Orchid shows are great chances to enjoy incredible flowers, connect with your local orchid society, talk to experts, and buy plants. Don’t miss these valuable opportunities.

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Recently, Dave had a work trip to Buenos Aires, and I was able to come along. Of course, the Buenos Aires Botanical Garden was quickly put on our itinerary. The garden’s full name in Spanish is Jardín Botánico Carlos Thays de la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires.

Founded in 1898, it covers 21 acres (7 hectares) in the bustling city’s Palermo neighborhood. There are sections in Roman and French styles, and areas for plants indigenous to Argentina, and each of the continents. Five greenhouses and lots of statues, sculptures, streams, and waterfalls mean there’s plenty to find around every pathway.

Unfortunately, the glasshouses were closed on the day we visited. We didn’t see orchids inside the tropical plant house, but there were many other tropical wonders (photo tip: you can often take nice pictures of plants inside by putting your camera up to the glass.) If you’re lucky enough to be in beautiful Buenos Aires, don’t miss Buenos Aires Botanical Garden. Check back soon for more photos from Argentina, including a wonderful Japanese garden.

Orchid lovers have more reasons than ever to join the American Orchid Society (AOS.) Of course, there’s the great monthly Orchids magazine with gorgeous photos and superb care advice that comes with membership. But now, the AOS has also greatly expanded their online resources. All of their old magazines, going back to 1932, are now online and searchable. In addition to this wealth of information, there are monthly orchid care webinars run by experts to answer your questions. Plus, your membership means that you’ll be supporting the AOS’ many essential orchid conservation measures. Find all this and much more when you join the AOS.

Check out a colorful infographic explaining how taking plants from the wild endangers orchid survival. Many rare species are openly sold online despite conservation laws. But with limited resources, almost no money is spent to stop it. That same topic is being addressed in light of a recent London conference on the illegal wildlife trade, which didn’t even have endangered plants on its agenda. With so many urgent conservation priorities, even the prettiest orchid can’t compete with a cute panda or koala. Researchers need to study the illegal trade to best understand how to combat it. Convincing people to take plants more seriously will have to be part of the process.

I don’t mind having a big spider in our home, as long as it’s a Spider Orchid. Also known as a Brassia, this Spider Orchid has very large flowers, over 14 inches (36 cm) tall! Its long petals certainly create a spidery impression.

This plant was a great buy at a local grocery store a couple years ago for about $12. At first, its flowers were about 11 inches (28 cm) tall. Over successive blooms, they’ve grown slightly larger each time. It’s reliably flowered twice a year, and it stays in bloom for two months or more. It has a sweet, spicy scent.

Brassias mimic spiders to attract pollinators. In the wild, spider-hunting wasps are taken in by the ruse, and attack the flowers. In the process of their assault, they pick up or drop off pollen. It’s certainly one of the strangest pollination strategies I’ve ever heard of. To learn more about these fascinating plants, check out my previous post about Brassias.

Atlas Obscura delves into a century of scientific advances which brought tropical orchids to your local grocery store. At the start of the 1900’s, growers began to unravel the secrets of how to germinate orchid seed, such as the essential role of fungi. Biologists started to clone orchids in the 1950’s, which would transform the industry in coming years. By the 1970’s, Dutch and American researchers were discovering that Moth Orchids made the perfect houseplants. Decades of continuing progress in hybridizing and science have helped bring down prices, and made Moth Orchids the most popular potted plants in the USA.

From Mexico City to Kansas City to Nairobi to Emu Plains, Australia, orchids are loved around the globe. Check out these great events happening everywhere in their honor.

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Head to San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park for the Dracula Ball at the Conservatory of Flowers on Thursday, October 18th. This elegant dinner event with limited tickets will benefit the Conservatory and its collection of rare orchids, including Draculas. Guests will enjoy a program from Ron Gagliardo, chief horticulturist at the dazzling new Seattle Spheres. Buy tickets before they’re gone!