The Love Affair with Moth Orchids
Valentine's Day 2018 is fast approaching and since I can't offer you, dear reader, a dozen roses and assorted chocolates, how about a dozen or so pictures of orchids?
 |
| Etobicoke's Centennial Park Conservatory Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid hybrid |
It's a tough time for me as a gardener in Toronto as the middle of February offers no respite from snow, slush, horrible windchills and so on. I'm not the type to order and read seed catalogues by the fireplace; in fact, currently I'm reading books about many non-gardening topics like marketing, design and Japanese fiction. I just don't find spending hours reading about constructing compost bins, growing chickens in the city and maximizing your backyard vegetable yields particularly exciting or beautiful.
 |
| Etobicoke's Centennial Park Conservatory Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid white hybrid |
What do I find beautiful at this time of the year? As you surely have ascertained at this point of the post, orchids!
 |
| Phalaenopsis "Harlequin" Moth Orchid at the Centennial Park Conservatory |
I'm not an orchid collector or grower but I can completely understand how and why many apparently rational and sane people lose their rationality and sanity buying, growing and showing off their babies as I was the same with hostas many years ago.
(Erik Hansen wrote a very funny and yet at times sad book detailing the madness of some orchid growers titled "A Horticultural Tale of Love, Lust, and Lunacy" which I've read and reviewed here. You don't even have to like orchids to enjoy reading it as the themes cover any obsession we have!)
If our house wasn't so drafty and dry in the winter, I likely would keep an few orchids around but, to be honest, I much rather take pictures of orchids than actually growing them. And why not? Orchids are so photogenic and practically dare you not taking a picture of them when they're happy blooming away in warm and humid conditions.
 |
| Phalaenopsis "Harlequin" Moth Orchid hybrid at the Centennial Park Conservatory |
"Warm and humid" growing conditions in Toronto right now are rare and likely to occur inside greenhouses and conservatories. Two local conservatories I visit regularly always have more than a few orchids blooming away so recently I carried my camera in the hope of capturing some pictures. Lucky for me, these orchids were happy to accommodate!
 |
| Phalaenopsis hybrid at the Centennial Park Conservatory |
Most of today's pictures show the orchid you're most likely familiar with: the moth orchid or Phalaenopsis. You see these hybrids on sale almost anywhere: grocery stores, home improvement and warehouse shopping stores, your local floral shop and of course, garden centers. I'm amazed how plants so beautiful (in bloom of course) are so common and inexpensive to the point of being commodities. I realize, of course, these are due to the fact that Phalaenopsis can be commercially propagated easily by tissue culture.
(If you want to dive into the fascinating world of Phalaenopsis propagation, click on this PDF created for the American Orchid Society: "Growing the Best Phalaenopsis" by Runkle et al. I was surprised how quickly I recalled all those terms from my botany and horticulture classes from eons ago!)
 |
| Phalaenopsis hybrid at Etobicoke's Centennial Park Conservatory |
 |
| Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid at the Allan Gardens Conservatory |
 |
| Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid hybrid at Etobicoke's Centennial Park Conservatory |
 |
| Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid hybrid at the Allan Gardens Conservatory |
 |
| Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid hybrid at the Centennial Park Conservatory |
 |
| Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid hybrids at the Centennial Park Conservatory |
 |
| Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid magenta hybrid at the Allan Gardens Conservatory |
 |
| Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid purple and white hybrid at the Allan Gardens Conservatory |
 |
| Purple and white Phalaenopsis Moth Orchid hybrid at the Allan Gardens Conservatory |
Here's excellent information about keeping your Phalaenopsis happy at home by the American Orchid Society: Novice Phalaenopsis Culture Sheet
Wait, there's more!
If you're tired of looking at moth orchids at this point, I've included the following orchids which were begging to be photographed during the same visit to the Allan Gardens Conservatory.
 |
| At the Allan Gardens Conservatory Cymbidium insigne "Sweetheart" |
 |
| Cymbidium insigne "Sweetheart" at the Allan Gardens Conservatory |
 |
| Cymbidium insigne "Sweetheart" at the Allan Gardens Conservatory |
 |
| Angraecum spp. Orchid at the Allan Gardens Conservatory |
