We Need More Orchid Celebrities

10 years ago

In this blog entry I'm going to attach four epiphytes to the same branch...

Epiphyte 1 - Improving on some common expressions...

kill two birds with one stone -> attach two epiphytes to the same branch
don't keep all your eggs in one basket -> don't keep all your epiphytes on one treeÃÂ
there's more than one way to skin a cat -> there's more than one way to attach an epiphyteÃÂ

It would be awesome if these improved expressions caught on! ÃÂ Please feel free to use them and report back on the results.

Epiphyte 2 - Orchid celebrities...

What's an orchid celebrity? It's a specific orchid plant that has been photographed by several different people.

For example...here's a Cattleya blooming on a tree in the Waimea Arboretum and Botanical Garden (Oahu, Hawaii)...

It's so cool that so many different people documented the same orchid over a time span of 6 years. ÃÂ We can roughly measure the orchid's progress and see how much variation there is in its blooming time/duration.

Is this Cattleya on a tree the biggest orchid superstar? ÃÂ Do you know of any other specific orchid plants that are more famous?

Personally, having looked over a ton of photos of orchids on trees...I haven't found any other orchid that comes even vaguely close to being as famous.

For example, if you look through photos of orchids at the Fairchild Botanic Garden in Miami Florida...you'd be hard-pressed to find the same orchid photographed by two different people.

So why are there so few orchid superstars? Shouldn't there be more? Here are some of the factors involved...

1. Showiness - The more spectacular an orchid is...the more likely it is that people are going to think it's worth the effort to photograph and worth the effort to share the photos with others. And when it comes to star power...some orchids have more potential than other orchids.

2. Exposure - Even if the orchid is the most spectacular and showy specimen ever...if it's in a private garden then it's probably not going to be documented by numerous different people. But even in a public garden...no two locations are going to receive the same exact amount of foot traffic. Locations nearer the entrance are going to receive far more traffic than locations far off the beaten path. But even if the orchid is located near the entrance...a spectacular orchid that's high up on a tree will receive far less attention than an orchid that's located closer to eye level.

3. Blooming duration - Even if the orchid is spectacular...and it's in a public garden near the entrance....and it's at eye level...if its blooming duration is very short...then this will decrease the amount of people who will photograph it.

4. Photo tagging - Even if many people take photos of the same orchid...if they don't tag the photos with the relevant...

Comments (4)

arthurm
10 years ago
Wonder why more orchids are not grown on trees? I'm thinking of taking some xdelicatum keikis down the golf-course and tying them to the trunks of Casuarina trees. Wonder if they will walk?

Of course, it is a bit hard to take your baby to an orchid Society Meeting if it is stuck on a tree.

So we are left with maybe the most viewed orchids on Photo-galleries. Wonder what is the most viewed orchid on Charles B's Photo Gallery. Here is no 1. on the WSOS Photo Gallery.
Den. Sailor Boy 'Popeye'

Maybe the tag Ã¢ÂÂPopeyeÃ¢ÂÂ has something to do with it attracting 1201 views so it is famous by accident.
tolumniamatt
10 years ago
Excellent post! Love it! Worthy of being included in the AOS Orchids magazine.
epiphyte78
Original Author
10 years ago
tolumniamatt, thanks!!

arthurm, at least here in Southern California...when you go to a botanical garden...it's extremely rare to see orchids on trees. Most of the orchids can be seen growing in the display greenhouses. So I think it's largely a matter of people not knowing that so many orchids can be grown on trees here. If they were aware of this fact then I'm pretty sure there would be a big boost in orchid sales.

That's a really great idea to tie some keikis to the trees at the golf course! The higher up you attach them the less likely it is that somebody will swipe them. But wouldn't you be surprised to see somebody standing on top of a golf cart trying to grab some orchids!

Over in Miami, an orchid enthusiast attached some orchids on the trees in his local dog park...and I think they are still there.

The most likely location near my house is a cemetery. I suppose I could attach some orchids on the trees there. But then I'd have to visit several times a week to water them during summer. It's not like they don't water enough...it's just that they don't water high enough. But maybe a few trees get hit pretty high up with sprinklers.

Hmmm...actually...what if I set up a drip watering system with a big water bottle suspended from a branch?? I wonder what the slowest drip rate could be for a Laelia anceps during a typical summer day? I should experiment to find out.

A cemetery is a perfect place for orchids though...in the sense that the prime real estate is all taken. That's why epiphytes are epiphytes in the first place!

Yeah, you're right that you can't show your orchid at your society meeting if it's attached to a tree! Well...you can if it's a miniature orchid attached to a potted tree. In the future every bonsai will have at least one epiphyte attached to it. Epiphytes add plenty of interest and value to bonsais!

Here's CB's photos sorted by popularity.

Another awesome orchid photographer...orchid dude.
garyfla_gw
10 years ago
Hi
Many years ago there was some dendrobiums on a Palm
supposedly planted in 1888!! in south miami.. Remenmber seeing it in the early 70's It was in an area called the "Orchid Jungle" The area was devastated by hurricane Andrew. Never heard what happened to the orchids /plants.
gary