These beauties live in a glass pavilion at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden.
Orchids were everywhere, in pots, on trees, on the walls, hanging around.
I wanted to post their names, but their identification is beyond my realm.
I have always been fascinated by orchids.
Their shapes, their colors, their pollinators.
One of my favorite books is The Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean.
I understand why folks have obsessions about them.
These flowers seem other-worldly, angelic, heavenly…
Flower
When the Orchid Queen has a New Year’s Eve party,
all the orchids arrive in their delicate finery
to dance through the kingdom warmed under the glass.
Skirts of velvet or satin,
with stripes, spots or splash marks.
Each twirls through the branches to greet other beauties.
All colors so vibrant, with intricate markings.
The tiniest of orchids perched high to observe them
as colors of royalty parade through the rooms.
Showy slippers and ruffles
and streamers
and bonnets.
Spots of brilliance revolving around every tree.
What was she wearing you ask of the Queen?
She rang in Two Thousand and Eighteen in green.
FLOWERÂ Â 2018
floweralley 