The Orchid Show: On Broadway, Part Deux!

Pedestrian Entrance to NYBG

My parents were in town from St. Louis this past weekend and early this week. My mom is a fan of orchids, so I thought it would be a fun activity for us to go to the Orchid Show at NYBG. So on Tuesday morning we met at my parents’ hotel in Brooklyn Heights and my mom and I subwayed it to Grand Central, then took the Metro North train up to the Botanical Garden. It was only a 20 minute ride from Grand Central—and so much cheaper than renting a Zipcar and faster than taking the subway the whole way!

Most of the flowers on display were the same as my first time around, but there were a few new ones here and there. This show just never gets old!

So, here they are: my favorite photos from my second visit to The Orchid Show….

Continue Reading

NYBG Orchid Show 2011

Photo credit: nybg.org

It’s a new year, and I’m already thinking about the New York Botanical Garden‘s Orchid Show! I just looked at their website and found out that this year’s show runs from March 5 through April 25, and the theme is “On Broadway.”According to the site, “The lure and lore of orchids and the theater are melded by Tony award-winning set designer Scott Pask and image maker Drew Hodges to evoke the flair and excitement of Broadway.”

Sounds pretty different from the themes of the past two years, which were “Cuba in Flower” and “Brazilian Modern.” To be honest, I don’t really care what the theme is; I just want to go see thousands and thousands of amazing orchids!!

Orchid of the Week: Psychopsis krameriana

One of the craziest looking orchids I’ve seen in person is the Psychopsis krameriana, aka Kramer’s Butterfly Orchid:

Psychopsis krameriana
Photo credit: Alex in situ, Flickr

I was just reminded of these orchids the other day while perusing the orchid selection from Silva Orchids at the Union Square Greenmarket. Silva had a couple Psychopsis plants for sale and of course I considered buying one. I managed to restrain myself – hooray!

I first encountered Psychopsis at the NYBGs 2009 Orchid Show. It was one of the more unique-looking orchids on display and I was completely taken with it. At first glance this orchid looks like a butterfly, but when you look closer you find something more sinister:

Psychopsis krameriana at NYBG
Skull face!

As a fan of all things sinister, I immediately fell in love with the Psychopsis. When I discovered the orchid’s name, I became even more enamored of it because I’m all about psychology. And of course I found another Psychopsis to photograph at this year’s Orchid Show:

Psychopsis krameriana at 2010 Orchid Show
2010 Orchid Show Psychopsis

The level of detail on these blooms is just incredible. Psychopsis orchids are part of the Oncidium family, which is known for its delicate yet detailed flowers.

I thought these orchids were so cool that (shameless plug ahead!!) I felt compelled to create Psychopsis Orchid postage stamps for my Zazzle store.  🙂

Orchid Show, Part Deux

[BE FOREWARNED: Giant Photo Dump Ahead!]Phalaenopsis in bloom

After my first Orchid Show visit at the New York Botanical Garden this year, I vowed to return on a weekday and take my time exploring. Today, I did just that – and it was 100% worth paying another $20 for a ticket.

The NYBG switches out some of the orchids on display throughout the duration of the show, so I got to see some different orchids this time around. They had removed the Zygopetalums, which disappointed me a bit because I wanted to get more photos of those (they’re one of my faves!). Regardless, it was nice to see new blooms rather than the exact same display.

I did a slightly better job of taking photos of the I.D. signs during my second visit so that I could label my pictures properly.  It can be hard to tell which sign relates to which plant, so I labeled the photos as best I could. Hopefully I haven’t made any labeling mistakes, but if I have please feel free to correct me. If I don’t list the name of the orchid in the photo caption, it’s because I couldn’t find it. Again, if you know the name, leave a comment…enlighten me!

Continue Reading

Orchid Show: Cuba in Flower at New York Botanical Garden

[WARNING: Photo-heavy post ahead!]

Two weeks after the Orchid Show opened at the New York Botanical Garden, I made my way up to the Bronx to visit with my boyfriend and friend in tow. The weather was truly hideous; we happened to go on a day that had 60 mph winds and about a metric ton of rain. But once we set foot inside the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory it was like tropical heaven with a beautiful display of orchids around the reflecting pool:

NYBG 2010 Orchid Show: Cuba in Flower

Continue Reading

Orchid Show Visit

Just got home from the Orchid Show at the NYBG — and it was awesome! The weather is truly FOUL out there, rainy and super windy, but luckily my friend has a car and drove us to the garden.

Will post a full update with photos, but here’s a pic of a big, gorgeous Cattleya hybrid for now. It’s labeled as a Brassolaeliocattleya Success Dream x Laeliocattleya Orglade’s Grand:

Brassolaeliocattleya Success Dream x Laeliocattleya Orglade's Grand