First cattleyas in flower

Now, that’s it’s getting a bit cooler in our part of the world, couple of my first cattleya orchids started flowering. These two orchids been with me for many many moons and I don’t even remember how they  came to me, yet every year without a fail they are the first one’s to bloom.

They one’s of the  “old fashioned” one’s, most of the cattleya’s one see these days have fuller flowers, more blooms and generally more compact plants - these one’s more lanky with occasional blooms, yet they have beauty all of their own and I love their strong colors. They also have quite strong scents - the red one smells like “tutti - frutti” and the darker purple one have very strong herbal scent with a bit of acetone in the background, not unpleasant, just different.

Some of my other orchids started waking up after the hot summer spell and many of them started developing flower spikes, so I’ll be featuring them soon in this blog.

Cattleya labiata

Some of my cattleya orchids started to show their flamboyant blooms and one of the first one's to flower is cattleya labiata - pretty orchid originated in mountains of Brazil. They have kind of compressed middle and it usually blooms with these beautiful 2 flowers on each pseudobulbs.

These orchids are among the easiest orchids to grow, very tolerant of different conditions and suitable for beginner as well as for experienced grower. They will grow in almost any compost provided it drains well. They like light shade and plenty of water during growing season and in our climate do well in the green house as well as under the shade of the trees in summer. They usually flower in late autumn/ early winter with large, beautifully sculptured fragrant blooms and they very popular with orchid hobbyist as well as general gardeners. I am looking forward seeing some more of these fragrant, colorful beauties this season.

Trip to Far North Qld

I've just returned from my trip to Far North Qld, been away for a while visiting this beautiful part of the world. Took many trips and excursions and seen many natural wonders of that protected World Heritage area. Learned so much from passionate people and local guides who really care and preserve this delicate environment and was given an opportunity to share in their knowledge and wisdom.

Seen whales frolicking in the ocean and crocodiles in Proserpine river, visited some sacred Aborigines sites and learned about healing properties of many native plants, seen beautiful native orchids growing in canopies of trees in Daintree river and was introduced to many species of birds and animals that are at home in these protected areas. Walked in the rainforests that are thousands years old and learned many old legends, as old as the "time" itself. Tried many exotic foods and fruits and seen the beauty of the Great Barrier Reef in all it's splendor.

Met many local and native guides and shared their knowledge and experiences, legends and stories, promised Tui of Daintree River Cruise Centre to thank him via this blog for his passionate love of the Daintree river and for manuvering and taking the boat so much closer to the edges so that I can look at the plants and orchids, while snakes were resting on the overhead branches and crocodiles lurking in the water below. The local guides and local guided commentary is so important on the trip like that and all these people share such passion and love of the area, delicate eco-system and their real love for environment. There is so much healing energy in that part of the world, energy that is bold, uncompromising, sacred, primeval, majestic, spectacular, unusual, unchanged, confident and I feel enormous privilege to be able to share and experience that healing energy.

Winter colors - Cattleya Orchids

Here in AU we are in the beginning of winter with cold and rainy weather, at times experiencing strong icy winds from Antarctica and our beautiful and lush tropical gardens look a bit muted, waiting for a spring time when a new growing cycle will start it's magic in our part of the world, however it's great anticipation time for orchids growers and collectors since Cattleya orchids are in flower at the moment, giving us much needed color infusions.

My Cattleya's just started flowering and with the names like "Sweet Valentine", "Tokyo Girl", "My Blue Heaven", "Firewalker", "Pink Angel" - who can resist these flamboyant beauties!

Cattleya's are one of the most popular orchids with orchid hobbyists as well as the general gardeners and these days have many spectacular varieties and forms. They are the easiest of all orchids to grow, being very tolerant of poor conditions and neglect.

This species are widespread in the American tropics, mainly in costal Brazil and the Andes. There is also significant Cattleya occurrences in Mexico and other Central American countries.

These orchids are quite easy to grow and in our climate need light shade during summer, lot's and lot's of water during hottest part of the year and a bit of a shelter during colder months. They are quite forgiving plants and store their energy in large bulbs, which means that even inexperienced orchid novice will be able to grow them, since they recover very quickly from any neglect.

Right at this moment it's raining quite heavily outside, cold with strong winds sweeping everywhere, dark clouds with a bit of thunder somewhere close - I am off to the greenhouse for much needed color therapy with my Cattleya's and their magical blooms!