Uh-Oh…Another New Orchid!

My 22nd Orchid

My fridge has been sorely lacking in nutritious fare, so this morning I made a trip to the Manhattan Trader Joe’s to pick up some cheap & tasty groceries. Here’s where you may ask, “But you live in Brooklyn—why are you grocery shopping in Manhattan?” My answer is that once a week I volunteer with a cat rescue organization inside the Union Square Petco, so I find myself just a few blocks away from TJs. I find that shopping there at midday during the week isn’t nearly as much of a shit show as, say, after work hours. Also, you just can’t beat their prices.

The past few times I’ve shopped at TJ’s (both at the Manhattan and Brooklyn locations) they didn’t have any orchids, so I didn’t expect to see any today; this was strictly a grocery trip. Or so I thought.

Lo and behold, as soon as I entered the front door I saw lots of blooming orchids: Phalaenopsis, Dendrobiums, and a couple Zygopetalums. A Zygo in bloom is unbelievably hard for me to resist, with its green, brown, and purple flowers and its amazing scent.

I picked up one of the Zygos, inspected it, and talked myself out of buying it because I already have 21 orchids! I returned the plant to the shelf, but only made it about 10 feet farther into the store before I turned back and was all over the orchid like flies on dog shit (mmm, nice visual for a grocery store). What’s one more orchid when you already have upwards of 20, right? Plus, this one only cost $15.99! It had no ID tag, but that honestly doesn’t matter to me.

Into the basket went the Zygo, and the rest is history. I mean, seriously, can you blame me?

Zygopetalum flowers
Gorgeous Zygo Blooms

Here’s a closer look at this effing beautiful flower:

Zygopetalum flower
Zygo, up close and personal

During the subway ride home I further inspected my new orchid and discovered several new growths, indicating that the plant is happy and healthy. I kept sticking my nose inside the opening at the top of the cellophane around the plant so that I could breathe in its scent. I’m not so good at identifying scents, but I think these blooms smell like honeysuckle….something along those lines. Whatever the scent is, it’s really lovely, and strong too.

As you can tell by this lengthy post, I am very excited about my new orchid. I love having this outlet that allows me to share my enthusiasm for my nerdy addiction!

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