A Stroll Through The Orchid Show: Patrick Blanc's Vertical Gardens
March 3rd was the opening of The Orchid Show at the fabulous New York Botanical Garden and runs through April 22nd. Orchids are one of the largest families of flowering plants, with an estimated 30,000 naturally occurring species worldwide. The world of orchids is so vast and diverse and there are so many incredibly beautiful flowers. It’s only fitting that orchids get their own show, now in its tenth year. The title of this year’s event is The Orchid Show: Patrick Blanc’s Vertical Gardens. Blanc is world-renowned for designing his fantastic vertical gardens and how he combines thousands of orchids in this exciting show with other companion plants is just breathtaking!
1 Arriving at the New York Botanical Garden - It was a very dreary day.
2 The Enid A. Haupt Conservatory is a Victorian-style glasshouse, which opened in 1902. By the 1970's, the building was in serious disrepair and was saved from demolition with a generous contribution by Enid Annenberg Haupt.
3 This enormous glass structure is home to a tropical rain forest, a cactus-filled desert, and an ever-changing landscape of flowers and foliage, as well as this year's fabulous Orchid Show, Patrick Blanc's Vertical Gardens.
4 Upon entering the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory, you are greeted by this towering wall of tropical splendor rising high above the Conservatory’s reflecting pool. - Not too dreary in here!
5 Dr. Patrick Blanc, known as The Green Man, has dedicated his life to the study of plants in their natural habitats and to growing plants on the vertical plane as an artistic calling.
6 Now in its tenth year, this is the United States' largest exhibition of orchids.
7 Phalaenopsis, or moth orchids, are one of the most popular orchids among home growers today.
8 Phalaenopsis has moth-like flowers in a wide array of colors.
9 Many wild moth orchid species have flowers that are spotted and striped in deep, rich colors.
10 The flowers of moth orchids grow on tall spikes and are very long-lived. One spike can flower for several months.
11 A pretty yellow Phalaenopsis
12 And a bright magenta one
13 And a lovely purple and white Phalaenopsis
14 A column of orchids embellished with Spanish moss
15 The column is made up of Doritaenopsis 'Beauty Sheena Rin Rin.'
16 The vertical walls on display were created specifically for the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory.
17 And they were, indeed, quite stunning.
18 This wall features some incredible greenery.
19 Like this cascading plant called Juncus effusus Spiralis
20 This exhibit combines orchids with other tropical plants from all around the world, like this white moth orchid and Pink Lantern, Medinilla magnifica, a flowering shrub from the rain forests of the Philippines.
21 Growing along the walkway - Asian Corsage orchid, Cymbidium, 'Via Verde Dawn Citron Alba' - These orchids are known for their grass-like leaves and tall spikes of waxy flowers in shades of white, green, pink, and burgundy.
22 Asian corsage orchid - Cymbidium - 'Lupe's Coffee'
23 In their native habitats, many Cymbidium species are tree-dwelling epiphytes, but in tropical gardens, they can be grown in the ground like these.
24 Asian corsage orchid, Cymbidium, 'Lovely Moon Crescent'
25 The reed orchid 'Epidendrum radicans' is an excellent choice for the novice orchid grower, as they are tolerant of a wide range of growing conditions and bloom profusely.
26 On the next wall - Pansy Orchids - Miltonia and Miltoniopsis - Named for Lord Fitzwilliam Milton, a 19th-century British orchid expert - It's amazing just how much they resemble pansies!
27 Pansy Orchids - Miltonia and Miltoniopsis - A small genus of fragrant epiphytic orchids native to the cloud forests that extend from Costa Rica and Panama to the Andes in Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.
28 On the same wall as the Pansy Orchids, Pink Quill tillandsia cyanea, an unusual bromeliad, is on display.
29 Stunning phalaenopsis
30 A poster of Patrick Blanc with Butterfly Dance, the vertical wall created for the National Theatre in Taipei, Taiwan, in December 2009.
31 This unusual cascading greenery is called Ceratostema rauhii Ericaceae.
32 Cane Orchid 'Dendrobium anosmum' - The Cane Orchid is one of the largest and most diverse genera of orchids. Their thickened stems, called canes, store water and nutrients.
33 This red orchid is called Oncostele 'Aloha Sparks Pele's Glow.'
34 Phaius - Nun's Cap Orchids - Plants in this genus are commonly called Nun's Cap because their delicate flowers resemble a nun's veil.
35 This fabulous orchid is a Phragmipedium - Eric Young.
36 A very large hanging staghorn fern 'platycerium alcicorne' polypodiceae
37 Many people came to enjoy the show.
38 Many of the plants in Blanc's designs are selected for their dramatic foliage, which may be unusual in shape or color or have an iridescent sheen, like these Elkhorn ferns, Microsorum punctatum 'Grandiceps.'
39 More dramatic foliage - Strobilanthes dyeriana 'Persian Shield' - Native to Burma, this evergreen shrub has become a popular companion of container gardens.
40 In addition to dramatic foliage, this wall featured whimsical dancing lady orchids.
41 When Oncidium orchids were introduced to Europe in the 1830s, the flowers were thought to resemble ladies in ruffled skirts, lending them their common name.
42 Their scientific name, Oncidium, derives from the Greek onkos, meaning mass, or body, referring to the wart-like growth on the lip of many species.
43 Oncidiums are usually found growing on the trunks or branches of rain forest trees throughout subtropical and tropical America, from sea level to high mountain areas.
44 These plants differ widely in habit, but are easily recognized by their slender branching sprays with many small flowers, generally in shades of yellow and brown.
45 Dancing Lady Orchid - Oncidium spp.
46 Another Dancing Lady Orchid - Oncidium spp.
47 And another Dancing Lady Orchid - Oncidium spp.
48 A section of the wall
49 Rainbow Orchid 'Vanda' - This orchid was discovered in Northern India in 1837. When it was brought to England, it caused a sensation because of its rare and desirable color.
50 This great orchid is 'Brassidium' Shooting Star Mustard.
51 This great orange orchid is Cattlianthe 'Trick or Treat.'
52 This beautiful nearly burgundy orchid is Colmanara 'Masai Red.'
53 A Beallara Patricia McCully orchid
54 This section of the conservatory, the tropical rainforest, features incredible climbing vines.
55 Passiflora 'Grace Ann' - A lovely passion flower
56 This is the bloom of Mysore clockvine 'Thunbergia mysorensis' from India.
57 Jade Vine 'Strongloden macrobotrys' - Native to the Philippines, this is considered one of the most beautiful flowering vines in the world. Very few plants exist with flowers of this unique shade of turquoise.
Martha Pins
Martha Tweets
Stunning display...oh how i love conservatories...as a young child my mother would take me through the conservatory at Assiniboine Park in Winnipeg, Canada. Sadly, that structure no longer exists so i am always intrigued whenever i see such a facility.
Posted by: sherey | March 6th, 2012 at 2:39 am
Good morning Martha, what a gorgeous post to start my day with thank you. I love this place and it is a wish of mine to visit. Have a beautiful day xo
Posted by: Rowaida Flayhan | March 6th, 2012 at 2:50 am
Amazing, Thanx for letting us make this field trip w. you. It was enjoyable to finally see inside of this famous landmark. You are such a great educator.
amc
Posted by: Anna Charlton | March 6th, 2012 at 5:33 am
What a beautiful display of orchids and tropical plants Patrick Blanc created at the Orchid Show at the New York Botanical Garden! Thanks for taking us Martha!
Posted by: Cindy F | March 6th, 2012 at 9:40 am
Hi Martha, This was a 'breathtaking' blog post for us to enjoy this morning! It may have been dreary outside when you went, but seeing those stunning orchids inside The New York Botanical Garden was fantastic, as well as beautiful! Patrick Blanc's Vertical Garden with so many gorgeous orchids provide a superb tour for all of us to enjoy! How amazing that there are 30,000 beautiful orchids worldwide! Your photos of these delightful orchids are absolutely stunning and I would love to be there, too! Loved seeing Ghenghis Khan's Daily Wag blog about snow finally coming to your Bedford farm! We had a minor dusting of snow last night and it looks kind of pretty this morning! Loved hearing you on Sirius RadioXM110 yesterday, but so sorry to hear that beautiful Verdi died on March first(: I know he is in heaven now! Was fun to see Dr. Pia on your TV Show yesterday! Hope you have a great day, today! Off to see The Daily Wag's Playground Fun today! Jan
Posted by: Jan Erickson | March 6th, 2012 at 10:15 am
Martha,
The orchid's are just beautiful! Thanks for sharing this blog.
Posted by: KLBrown | March 6th, 2012 at 10:59 am
Thank you for the tour Martha. I appreciate the attention to detail you have meticulously given each beautiful image and the complicated names and origins of each species is super educational. Gratitude for sharing your in depth knowledge and obvious passion for such a inspiring gift from the gods-Orchids!
Posted by: Valarie@Cmomwork | March 6th, 2012 at 11:05 am
¡¡maravillosas dancing y humilde Vanda!!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by: Virginia | March 6th, 2012 at 11:30 am
Our mother at last had an orchid on her 25th anniversry as she loved the color and plant called orchid. Your blog pictures of times visiting gardens in unlikely places such as resorts in Vegas inpired me to search out florals in Wynn and Bellagio there. Kathy spotted orchids at not so luxury places, too. Steph manged to catch our vast prairie blooming last summer in many images but we are thinking Dakota may not have that much rain this coming season.
Posted by: ann | March 6th, 2012 at 12:28 pm
Oh my goodness, how gorgeous! My favorites are the Beallara Patricia McCully, Passiflora Grace Ann and Jade Vine, just beautiful.
Posted by: Kim | March 6th, 2012 at 1:10 pm
Gorgeous! My first encounter with an orchid was a green orchid corsage for the prom. I've loved orchids since.
Posted by: Terri | March 6th, 2012 at 1:15 pm
Hi Martha,
Wow, 30,000 species of orchids – now I don’t feel so bad for not remembering the names! Actually, I can only remember about 2 of them anyway but don’t test me. I can easily see why so many people have such a fondness for these beauties. I’m not sure if all orchids are hydroponics but with or without soil, I have never been able to keep any of them healthy. They just never bloom a second time and usually wither away. Too much food, too much water, I’ll never know. Of all of your pictures I think I like #56 the best; the Mysore clockvine but Grace Ann in picture #55 is pretty cool too. Oh how I wish I had an orchid thumb! Trish
Posted by: Trish | March 6th, 2012 at 5:10 pm
I can only wonder what would force a person to ever leave such a wonderful spot. Have they found gleeful refuges hiding in the vegetation?
Posted by: Margie | March 6th, 2012 at 5:58 pm
What beautiful orchids! Such an elegant flower. I wish I had the time to get to New York for this show. Luckily I have Longwood Gardens very close by to get my orchid fix. Hope to get to the annual orchid show next year. I did go to the Philadelphia Flower Show last evening and saw quite a few varieties of orchids, but the show was overall disappointing...not as spectacular as in years past.
Posted by: Stacie Dale | March 6th, 2012 at 9:59 pm
I went and saw the orchid show yesterday after reading about it on your blog, and I have to say, it was beyond my wildest dreams, absolutely spectacular! Anyone who can get there, it is worth the trip. The amount and variety and the vertical wall displays, there are just massive amounts of orchids around every door archway, huge displays up in trees, the vertical walls are so amazing! I want to go back for the Monet's Garden exhibit this summer, that should be amazing also.
Posted by: Val | March 22nd, 2012 at 9:10 pm