Welcome to the Orchid Garden and Merry Christmas! Christmas to me, is a
time of love and joy, not presents (although I won't turn any down!) For
this reason I have chosen the most loved orchid there is in the world, the
Cattleya orchid.
The Cattleya species and hybrids are the most popular and
prized orchids in the orchid world.
The photo in the left-hand corner of this page a Cattleya.
As I look around my greenhouse I am always amazed at how a plant that
is not very pretty, with stiff leaves and large pseudobulbs (the thickened
portion of a stem, but not a true bulb) can produce such beautiful flowers.
The plant I am talking about is the
Cattleya orchid. The Cattleya is one of the most sought after orchids by
the orchid professional as well as the hobbyist. The blooms of the Cattleya orchids
are some of the most beautiful and exotic flowers in the world. The blooms are often
very large (5 to 6 inches) and scented with a sweet perfume that engulfs you with a fragrance that is hard to forget. The flowers come in a large variety of colors,
from soft lavenders to deep reds, brilliant whites, warm yellows, and an amazing blue,
plus almost everything in between as well as many color combinations.
Many of the blooms also have frilly lips that remind you of lace. The lips are so
delicate and intricate that it is hard to believe that they are real. Because the
blooms are very long lasting (up to 8 weeks), they make excellent cut flowers.
These spectacular flowers have dominated the florist market for the last century.
Cattleyas, known as the "Queen of Orchids,"
are old familiar faces to us, even if we can't put a name to them. The exotic flower
you see decorating the tops of the fancy chocolates
you bought for your sweetheart, or elegantly portrayed on many greeting cards and gift
wrapping paper, is a Cattleya. The beautiful corsages worn by brides on their wedding day, and the
bride's bouquet will usually have one large Cattleya in the middle to represent the
love from her soon to be groom. High school girls receive
beautiful corsages from their prom date made from the bloom of the Cattleya. I can just see a young man
smelling the orchid and trying to decide what color would look best on his very
special girl's dress.
Romance has surrounded this beautiful flower for centuries. It represents love, luxury,
and beauty. In times of old,these orchids were even used as a aphrodisiacs! The Cattleya
Go To Page: 1 2
The copyright of the article The Orchid Of Love in Orchid Gardening is owned by . Permission to republish The Orchid Of Love in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
