The Beauty Behind Nature’s Delicate Creations
Dr. Pfister and Terri Pfister attend Orchids Forever.
Coming off one of our warmest Northeast Ohio Februaries in years, it’s no wonder most of us find ourselves thinking about Spring (rather than skiing) as we head into March. The idea for this week’s blog came to me the weekend before Valentine’s Day, when I decided to take my wife to the flowers, rather than bringing the flowers to her…
What better flower could I have chosen than the flower that symbolizes (since the Ancient Greeks) love, beauty, and refinement?
You guessed it, I took her to the 17th annual Cleveland Botanical Garden orchid festival — Orchids Forever. And you thought it would be roses!
This festival runs every Tuesday through Sunday until Sunday, March 12th. If you have never been to the botanical gardens, this would be a great time to give it a visit at the Wade Oval, across the street from the Cleveland Art Museum and across the grassy quad of the Natural History Museum. If you catch my drift, you can see the orchids before or after visiting one of the other inspiring Cleveland attractions.
Let’s take a closer look at this Cleveland floral landmark…
The botanical gardens are built around two large display areas of opposite ecosystems, one a rain forest and one a desert. Each area is sealed off by doors to protect the varying flora and its inhabitants of butterflies and insects. During the orchid festival, orchids are displayed in the various rooms and corridors that lead to these two diverse plant worlds. Once inside each ecosystem, the orchids have been strategically placed in true natural settings, exactly as if you were walking through a desert or canoeing through the Amazon!
I enjoy seeing orchids displayed in flower shops and nurseries as much as the next person, but when you can experience them in their natural settings with actual mist, 85-degree temperatures, and 100% humidity, it’s pretty cool.
As the butterflies glide about and you look up into the three-story wet canopy of the rain forest or twisted branches of a baobab tree in the desert, you actually begin to feel what it must have been like to be an early explorer discovering these natural treasures for the first time. According to Wikipedia, there are roughly 28,000 orchid species throughout the world, with 200 species endemic to the United States.
One of the many orchids on display at Cleveland Botanical Garden’s Orchids Forever
This year’s show theme, “Immersed in Color,” includes 3000 orchids, 100 different types, from around the world.
The creative way these orchids are presented is quite unique in the fact that you are dazzled by each flower’s delicate presentation of color and shape, all-the-while consuming knowledge from nearby displays. Every part of every flower, right down to its color, was designed by Nature with a purpose for survival. You learn that pink and red orchids are pollinated by birds and butterflies, whereas purple and blue attract bees. Orange coloration is favored by hummingbirds, but flies and wasps have a predilection to yellow. White flowers are bright at night for nocturnal moths to pollinate. With extra-long nectar spurs coming out of the flower, these orchids are a perfect fit for these nocturnal moths, who are equipped with an ultra-long proboscis!
Most orchids in the wild are three to eight years old before they get their first blossoms (talk about late bloomers!) and most orchid plants have a 20-to-25-year life expectancy.
As a biologist and former manager of the College of Wooster’s greenhouse during my Senior year, I was curious as to how one could get an orchid to re-bloom once it lost its first blossoms.
I know some of you must feel guilty pitching out a perfectly healthy green plant just because its flowers died. So I asked the resident horticulturalists at the gardens about how to get orchids to re-bloom, and they gave me several tips that I will share with you…
First and foremost, orchids love indirect light, especially the low angle morning rays. They tend to die in a direct southern exposure!
Water only sparingly once a week with a one-part milk, four-part water mix to boost calcium for growth.
The garden’s secret ingredient… coffee grounds! A very organic and biodegradable source for the plant, consisting of nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium. Finely ground eggshells are another great source of calcium and potassium for the orchid’s survival.
If all these organic recycled sources of nutrients are too much trouble for a grower to procure, the horticulturalists admitted that a fertilizer of 20-20-20 with minimal urea will work in a pinch. Urea is a nitrogenous substance found in urine, so word to the wise on what not to do on your orchid plants, no matter how upset you may get from them not blossoming!
Can you guess why this one is called the “Old Man Orchid”?
I was surprised to learn several other facts about orchid flowers, while reading the wall displays. I’ll share a few with you in closing…
The orchid flower itself, according to the ASPCA and Just Add Ice Orchids LLC, is not toxic to cats or dogs but may cause indigestion if eaten. Many restaurants are now adding orchid flowers to their salads for flavor and organic benefits, as they are an excellent source of calcium, magnesium, and zinc.
The gorgeous Karma Orchid specie, with its six separate fan shaped pedals, is ideal for cake decorating and garnishes (first, for its visual beauty, and secondly, for imparting a fresh, crisp, endive-like flavor). According to gardenstyle.com, because orchid flowers contain calcium, magnesium, and zinc, dermatologists have recommended grinding up the flowers and making a paste for under the eyes and for skin burns. The flower paste has been found to boost the skin’s own immunity, reduce fine lines, reduce aging, and be an overall soothing balm, making it “the perfect plant.”
So, dear readers, the next time you think about sending flowers to show your enduring love to your significant other, why send a rose or carnation that may last a week when you could send an orchid plant (same cost or cheaper) that will last 2-3 months and, if your soul mate doesn’t like the color, have them make a salad or balm for what ails them?!
And while we’re on the culinary trail…
Remember, Wade Park is only .4 miles from pasta heaven, Little Italy. Whether it’s sautéed frog legs at Maxis or veal scaloppini at Dolce Vita (or some sweet, delectable goodies from Corbos or Presti’s bakery), you owe it to yourself once this year — go and partake of a gastronomic experience that is just slightly this side of LA or NYC!
Cheers to all the orchid addicts out there,
Dr. Pfister