People expect beautiful flowers to smell good. The truth is, the primary role of fragrance in flowers is to attract pollinators. This is as true of orchids as it is of any other family of plants. Some of these pollinators (flies, for example) prefer very strange odors. Others don’t even have much sense of smell (birds), relying instead on visual cues to zero in on a flower. In addition, many of the artifical orchid hybrids have had the fragrance bred right out of them in the quest for ever larger more colorful blooms.

The upshot of this is that people are sometimes disappointed and even surprised by what does or doesn’t emanate from a gorgeous orchid blossom. "Catnip" and "socks" might be the verdict when someone gets a whiff of certain Oncidiums. "Nothing" might be the baffled response after a deep sniff at a stunning purple Phalaenopsis.

There is certainly no reason to stop sniffing, however. A vast number of orchids still exude the sweet, spicy fragrances that people can’t get enough of.

Cattleya, Rhyncostylis, Zygopetalum, many of the Oncidium genus, certain Cymbidiums and Miltassias - the names sound like something out of Roman military history, but the aromas are as fresh and delightful as a stroll through the Garden of Eden.

Funny footnote: If you look into the center of almost any orchid flower, you will see a small light-colored structure called the column. The column always looks to me like a human nose! It’s a silly coincidence, but it makes me laugh whenever I notice it.

It’s a shower of eye candy, an exclusive perfumery full of rare fragrances, an Aladdin’s cave of delicate. fleeting jewels. It’s Orchid Mania, again, (thank goodness!) and my favorite way to capture it before it melts away like a beautiful dream?

Ever since I got a digital camera I’ve been collecting and hoarding orchid images like a magpie, a packrat, a squirrel saving acorns. All through the year I can call them up on screen and revel in the colors, the textures, the marvelous variety of forms. And yes, sometimes even the memory of a luxurious scent will seem to float off the screen.

The anticipation of these things really does enliven the bleak February days. As if that weren’t enough, this year there is even more incentive to bring a camera along to see Orchid Mania 2010. Check out the Garden’s Orchid Mania Photography Contest, as well as the Cleveland Botanical Garden Photography Club, both new this year. And even after the show is over, look forward to a year’s worth of beautiful screensavers!

"What frightful trouble you have taken about Vanilla; you really must not take an atom more; for the orchids are more play than real work"    

-Charles Darwin in letter to colleague William Hooker   

  As I am preparing for this year’s Orchid Mania exhibit  opening February 27, I wanted to share some history of one very interesting and perhaps most economically important orchid species, Vanilla planifolia. The vanilla orchid is peculiar because it grows like a vine. The fermented seedpods are the source of the flavoring vanillin.

        Vanilla and chocolate have a long history together and have been together long before the invention of ice cream.  One of the earliest record of the use of the vanilla bean dates back as far early 1400’s when vanilla beans along with cacao seeds, from which chocolate is derived, were part of tributes paid by the Totonacs and other Central American tribes to the Aztecs. The Aztecs, Mayans, and other Central American natives used vanilla almost exclusively to flavor and perfume a popular beverage prepared from cacao seeds. 

      In the early 1500’s, vanilla, along with its chocolate beverage, was introduced in Europe and became popular among the wealthy. It wasn’t until 1602 that Hugh Morgan, pharmacist to Queen Elizabeth I, suggested that vanilla could have other uses besides being a flavoring for chocolate. In 1789, Thomas Jefferson, then the U.S. ambassador to France, brought Vanilla to the U.S. from Paris along with a recipe for vanilla ice cream. His hand written recipe can be found in the Library of Congress.

          Many attempts were made to grow vanilla outside of Central America in the first three centuries after its discovery, but the orchids never bore fruit. In 1838, Charles Morren discovered that only bees of the genus Eulaema pollinated the flowers, and they could not survive outside of Mexico. Three years later a suitable method of hand pollination was discovered that allowed vanilla production to spread across the globe. In 1858, vanillin was isolated opening the way for the creation of artificial vanilla.

 Posted by Nate Tschaenn

Even in the darkest days of winter – especially in the darkest days of winter- there are orchids to be found in the Eleanor Armstrong Smith Glasshouse. The past few weeks saw the annual flowering of the "Darwin Orchid," Angraecum sesquipedale (left). This immense white orchid is a native of Madgascar.

This week and for weeks to come, more and more orchids will be opening their buds in the Costa Rican biome.

This substantial Brazilian species, Oncidium ampliatum (right) , has branched flower spikes more than 2 feet long. A single plant can produce more than a hundred bright yellow flowers. 

Many of the most popular domesticated orchids bloom during the gloomy winter months – one reason why the Orchid Mania 2010 is always such a spectacular and

welcome event.

  Orchids, Part 2: Light 

 Following up on my last post about properly watering orchids, I would like to offer some advice on providing orchids with adequate light. While proper watering is the most critical step in keeping your new orchid alive and growing, proper lighting is a key part of getting your orchid to rebloom. If you give an orchid too little light, it will bloom poorly or not at all. Give it too much light and you may end up with yellow, sun scorched leaves. 

    Examine the amount of light coming in through your windows when considering where to place your orchids. Unobstructed south to west facing windows provide the best range of light conditions for growing any type of orchid. High light levels can be toned down with blinds or sheer curtains, or orchids can be moved closer or further away from the window.  I grow my orchids, a mix of dendrobiums and oncidiums, quite well on a southwest windowsill  with the blinds slightly open. Orchid leaves should be a light green color. Dark green leaves are typically a sign that an orchid is not receiving enough light.

 Phalaenopsis, Miltonias, Paphiopedilums, and Phragmipediums grow and flower best in bright indirect sunlight with cooler temps. This means that they should be grown near a brightly lit window but without any hot midday sun shining directly on the foliage. These are some of the best orchids if your only option is an unobstructed northern or northeastern exposure.

 Laelias, Oncidiums, and Brassias enjoy moderate light but without long periods of direct sunlight. Filter direct sunlight with sheer curtains or blinds or place them a bit further from the window.

 Dendrobiums, Vandas, and Cattleyas need the brightest light. Ample direct sun from the morning or evening light of a western or eastern exposure should be adequate or a southern exposure with light shading as protection from the midday sun.  

Part 1: Water

Most of the orchids that were on display during Orchid Mania now have a new home. This last Sunday we held our orchid sale where the public had a chance to buy leftover orchids from the show.  For my next two blog posts, I am going to be sharing some orchid care tips for beginners, in case any of you have purchased an orchid recently and are wondering what to do with it.

 It is understandable to assume that since most orchids are from tropical rainforests that orchids will need a lot of water, but this is rarely the case. Most orchids are epiphytes and grow in little or no soil with roots that are often exposed. Epiphytic orchids will dry out much quicker than terrestrial plants in their native habitat and have adapted to hold moisture between rainfalls. Placing an orchid in a pot with medium that is constantly wet will rot the roots and cause the plant to shrivel up just as easily as giving it too little water.

You should check your orchid one to two times a week for water. Research your species of orchid to see how much moisture it prefers. Orchids such as Cymbidiums, Miltonias, Phragmipediums and Paphiopedilums like to remain evenly moist but not soggy at all times. They should not be allowed to dry out completely.  Phaleonopsis, and Vandas should be allowed to dry out approximately 80-90% between waterings without ever becoming completely dry. Cattleyas, Laelias, Dendrobiums, Oncidiums, and Brassias should also be allowed to dry between waterings except when actively growing. 

It is often better to error in favor of underwatering your orchid than overwatering. It is easier to revive an underwatered orchid than one that has lost its entire root system to rot. Lift the pot before and after watering so that you get an idea of how heavy the orchid should feel if it is dry or moist. Don’t be afraid to dig into the medium a little bit to feel if it is moist. The medium surface may appear dry even when there is plenty of moisture in the pot.  

Most orchids enjoy higher humidity than in the average home. If humidity is too low, emerging leaves and flower buds may not develop correctly. You may notice newly emerged leaves that are wrinkled like an accordian.  You can raise the humidity in the area surrounding you orchid with light morning misting, or by using a humidity tray. If the humidity in your home is especially low, you may want to consider using a humdifier. Watering more frequently is not a substitute for higher humidity.

My next post will focus on providing orchids with the appropriate amount of light to grow and bloom. Do you have any specific questions about watering your orchid? Leave me a comment and I will respond as soon as possible!

    One of the highlights of this year’s Orchid Mania show are the three arches stuffed with orchids surrounding the large bridge in the Costa Rica biome. As beautiful as the arches are you might be surprised at how inexpensive the structures them-selves were to put together sans orchids. The arches were built entirely in-house, and most of the materials were extra supplies that we had on hand. When facing a project big or small, it pays to be creative with the resources you already have.

    The main supports of the arches are six long pieces of rebar that were left over from some long forgotten project. The rebar was fairly easy to bend by hand into six halves of an arch. Attached to the rebar in a cylinder shape are lengths of vinyl coated wire fencing, also left over from past projects. The fencing is double wrapped in plastic deer fencing (left over from the construction of our chameleon enclosures) and stuffed with packing peanuts in order to support the orchids that will eventually be stuffed inside. Finally, surrounding the outside of the arches, stuffed between the deer fencing, is a thin layer of inexpensive and renewable long-fibered sphagnum.

 I hope you don’t mind my orchid-centric blogs this month! Sometimes it can be challenging to talk about plants and gardening in the middle of the winter, but when our orchid show begins, it’s easy to talk about all the incredible blooms! This week I’d like to share two of my favorites with everyone. The first one- LC (which is the abbreviation for Laeila-Cattleya) Green Veil ‘Dressy’ is one I first encountered here last year. I know it has been around for a few years, but it’s special to me because of its chartreuse petals and deep magenta lip. It also has a wonderful frangrance. To some, it smells peppery, but not to me. I liken it to lemon ‘Pledge’. It’s a little citrusy and a little spicy. My second favorite is Dendrobium Oriental Smile ‘Fantasy’. It’s one of the few Dendrobiums that has light, sweet fragrance. I love the lip of the blooms- so fuzzy! We have several Oriental Smile ‘Fantasy’s in the show this year. You can find them in the Costa Rica glasshouse on the lower canopy strut. Enjoy the pictures, but better yet, come smell and see these awesome orchids for yourself!

 There’s so much variety in the orchid family, with more than 25,000 naturally-ocurring species and over 100,000 hybrid varieties. Orchids run the gamut from breathtakingly colorful and sweetly fragrant, to downright peculiar. We’ve got the whole range represented in this year’s Orchidmania exhibit. Paphiopedilum, or "slipper orchids" are some of my favorites in the peculiar category:

This group of exotic-looking flowers has some unusual features: a prominent pouch-like lip and a habit of deceiving and waylaying pollinating insects. Flies are attracted by the shiny callus in the center, which resembles nectar or other moist food material. Also irrestible to flies:  foul scents of rot, furry warts that look like other feeding insects, and brown, maroon and yellow colors. Once enticed to land, the insects slip into the pouch and must struggle out past the pollen-bearing parts of the flower. Loaded with pollen, they fly off to the next waiting orchid. 

Wow! I can’t believe that we are currently installing our sixth orchid show! It’s been incredibly popular over the years and for the first time, we’ll be staging a large part of the show in the Glasshouse.  This year we will be exhibiting new orchids that are gorgeous, fragrant, and unique. It never ceases to surprise me how orchid breeders create ever more beautiful and coloful flowers. When we open the boxes of orchids, it’s like Christmas all over again! Just this afternoon as I was going through the new arrivals, I was beginning to chose which ones I want to buy after the show is complete. With orchids, you can never have just one! The Orchid Show will be open beginning this Saturday, Feb 28th, so if you’re in need of warmth, color and sweet scents, the Botanical Garden is the only place in Cleveland that will satisfy you!

I just love the chartreuse colors on this Cattleya-type orchid.