Orchids

Why are Orchids so alluring? I am not sure why orchids are so appealing. When I lived in the USA Mid-Atlantic region I tried to keep them. Of course that meant inside for most of the year, if not all year. At first I failed with some store-bought plants. Then one year I kept the plant alive throughout the year. It never did produce another flower, but the leaves were still green and growing. That was the extent of my success. I wonder if that plant is still living as I left it with my son before coming overseas.

The word Orchid is derived from the Greek word (orchis) for testicle because of the shape of the root tubers in some species of the genus Orchis

Here is the Philippines we grow them outside. We mount then on trees, coconut-fiber poles, Driftwood and in containers with various media such as coco cubes, fiber, charcoal, etc. Here, they just seem to grow, or maybe it is because the WOMAN tends to them and I try to keep my fingers off. I want to propagate some so that I can have hands-on experience. It would be nice to not kill “her orchids”. I haven’t the nerve nor the time to try it. Someday I will take a deeper hands-on approach to orchids, that just isn’t today yet.

Next comes my confusion as to the naming conventions used for orchids and how to identify them. But, no excuses. gotta start somewhere so I will dive into the Vanda genus as a starting point. They are also somewhat available in our area. I will also get somethng going for Cattleya, Cymbidium, Dendrobium, and others as I understand them plant and perceive we are keeping them

People selling orchids here are really just talking about the flower or the hybrid names. Detailing our orchid holding is going to be much more challenging than I thought.