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The Allure of Orchids

© Kathy Reiffenstein

As I walked through the doors of the Pacific Orchid Exposition last weekend, 150,000 orchids of every description assailed my senses. Lemony green cymbidiums, lavender phalaenopsis, burgundy striped and dotted paphiopedilums shared the stage with frilly cattleyas, magenta dedrobiums and spectacular indigo vandas.

The show’s name, A Night in the Tropics conjured up exotic, ends-of-the-globe locales, but in fact, orchids are found in almost every climate (except deserts) and on every continent except Antarctica. Thanks to the efforts of orchid hybridizers, particularly in Asia, orchids are readily available in most areas at affordable prices. And this availability and selection has led to many of us ‘ordinary mortals’ being infected by orchid fever.

Until the early 19th century, orchids were relatively unheard of outside of a few botanical gardens in England. At that time, pioneer plant hunters were sent out by wealthy patrons or large nurseries to scour tropical locations for prize specimens. Because of the vagaries of long-distance shipping and the difficulties of propagation, collecting orchids throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries remained a hobby for the wealthy.

As plant explorers learned more about this seductive beauty, it was discovered that, in nature, orchids grow symbiotically with a fungus – that is, the orchid seed will not germinate without being infected by the fungus which provides it with carbohydrates necessary for growth. Before this was known, early growers were continually frustrated by not being able to easily propagate orchids from seed. But in 1922, a Cornell University professor successfully grew orchids in vitro in a sterile medium which contained all the elements the plants needed. This breakthrough caused the price of orchids to plummet and paved the way for the wide selection of orchids available today.

Even in today's modern world, orchids still cast their spell of magic. One has only to read Susan Orleans’ The Orchid Thief to be caught up in the intriguing escapades of a modern day "explorer". It’s not hard to catch some of John Laroche’s desire as he wades through the Florida Everglades in search of the rare ghost orchid. Figuratively traipsing around Fakahatchee Swamp with Laroche, one wonders what it is about this alluring plant that fires the passion of even the ordinary gardener.

To answer that question, in part, I have only to look out my own window and see my glorious pots of Cymbidiums in full bloom. Filled with flower spikes, each spike containing 15-18 perfect orchids, these plants were actually destined for the trash pile several years ago, when my neighbor decided that they took too long to flower. I didn’t have much knowledge of orchids (other than in college corsages), but I thought I’d give them a try. Now, four years later, they have bloomed profusely each winter (this year they started in November and 2 more just-emerging spikes will assure me of flowers until about the end of March) and have provided a spectacular display when most of the rest of the garden is sleeping.

The copyright of the article The Allure of Orchids in Container Gardening is owned by Kathy Reiffenstein. Permission to republish The Allure of Orchids in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.