Orchid passion

You know that you're slightly obsessed when you take vacation time just to be near the front of the line for the local orchid sale.

Witness the scene at the Lyman Estate in Waltham this weekend. There were clearly experts in attendance, but also a few novices like me. ("Would I like a Care Sheet? Yes, how did you know?") All were single-minded hunters searching for their prey.

Here's what I scored . . .

The perfect combination of my curious fixation on epiphytes and my fondness for dark red flowers, this mahogany-colored Dendrobium Burana Min x Blue Twinkle.



And just because its blooms are so very white and its stems so graceful, a nameless white Phalenopsis.



A bit like that scene at the end of The Graduate. I acted on passion. Now what?

Winter respite

Snow and cold temperatures necessitated a visit this week to the warmer climes of the historic greenhouses at the Lyman Estate in Waltham.

My dear friend, DH, who left her own garden, two greenhouses, and allotment in London to enjoy New England in February, was knowledgable company.



Yes, the one hundred-year old camillias were wonderful . . . but the orchids were even more than wonderful. What variety of shape and color! There were dendrobiums, phalaenopses, cattleyas,

maroon-flowering cymbidiums,



brown cymbidiums,



yellow cymbidiums,



and my favorite, this deep salmon phragmipedium.



These are plants with which I need to become reacquainted. I had a dendrobium many years ago but was unaware that different orchids have different temperature, light, and water needs. Clueless. Time to find out what type of orchid will tolerate my windowsill. I think that I'll be back for the annual orchid sale at the Lyman Estate on March 23-25.