Orchid Extravaganza
Last year, we took you on a tour of the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in Richmond, VA, to see the amazing crystal sculptures that were placed around the garden. This month, they are featuring orchids in the conservatory. These are not just the orchids we see pinned to Sunday-best suits on Easter or Mother's Day. Walking through this exhibit gives you a taste, not only of the variety of shapes and colors, but of the sheer exuberance these flowers display in their native growth patterns.
With apologies to those who want all the facts, I did not get the names of all the orchids.
Step into the conservatory main hall and the giant O is smothered in
orchids.
All the levels of the central fountain have orchids banked on the ledges.
They love the constant humidity. Hanging baskets like this one were
all over the conservatory but this was the only one low enough to get a
clear photo of the flowers.
Doritaenopsis
Several other plants that naturally grow near orchids were in the display
Foxtail ferns
This moth orchid is chemically altered to look blue.
Cymbidium
Orchids and spathiphyllum