Winter '07 :: A Bloom for All Seasons

Orchids have long been a source of fascination and symbols of love, beauty and luxury. The earliest references to orchids appear in Chinese language dating from 1000 B.C. Cymbidiums were the orchids the Chinese knew best. Called "Lan" and meaning "elegant woman" or "superior man," they appear in early Chinese paintings. The first books on orchids came from China in the 13th century and provided full cultural information. Confucius referred to the pleasure of seeing good friends as that of entering a room full of "lan" or fragrant orchids.

"Orchids have such a rich emotional tone and appeal. They’re exotic and alluring and yet you find them everywhere these days. They offer an achievable, and often affordable, glamour," says Tres Fromme, associate with MESA Design Group in Dallas who often uses masses of orchids in his designs for public gardens.

And in the winter when little else is blooming, what could be more wonderful than to lose yourself in an orchid blossom? They could be jewelry; they’re so intricately created. They almost blur the distinction between artifice and nature.

"Orchids, like Madonna, are always reinventing themselves," says Tres, with a laugh. "Watching an orchid go from bud to flower and then watching the flower mature, it’s really a performance. When used in arrangements or sitting in a pot near the kitchen window, they’re never static. And then there’s the range of forms," he continues, "stiff upright plants or languid waterfall varieties, pseudobulbs or fleshy tentacle-like roots—these are all indications of how the orchid has adapted to its environment. There’s a wonderful richness there and it’s easy to become addicted to the aesthetics. "

Indeed, the world of orchids, Orchidaceae, is a marvel of evolutionary range and ingenuity. There are more than 800 genera and 25,000 known species, and the number of registered hybrids, now topping 110,000, rises almost daily. In fact, they hybridize so easily that there may never be an end to the new varieties and new color combinations that growers create.

Now, orchids are being hybridized specifically for the cut flower trade. "We’re getting the most wonderful colors now, including a variety called ‘Coca Cola’ which we were the first to introduce in this country," says Larry Hammack, co-owner of Foxgloves & Ivy Floral Design Studio in Atlanta, Georgia. "It’s a wonderful clear deep brown with ten to twenty blossoms per stem."

Orchids as cut flowers are grown all around the world. The explosion of world exploration in the 1600s gave rise to an explosion in orchid collecting. The East Indian Company collected orchids in India, Hernandez described the orchids of the Andes and by the late 1600s orchids were reportedly in cultivation in Holland.

"Thailand is still the biggest producer of orchids," says Larry, "but they come from Australia and New Zealand. The Dutch are now growing orchids under glass and China has devoted miles and miles to greenhouses for the sole purpose of growing orchids. It’s really changing the market. Because they come so far and have very specific handling requirements," he explains, "florists can’t just go to the local wholesale house and pick up a batch of orchids." Larry advises careful planning and ordering if you need a particular bloom to ensure that you get what you want.

At their shop, he and partner Greg Brown send out hundreds of arrangements each week, and orchids are a part of many of them. "When orchids are used in arrangements, they always make a statement," says Larry...

Winter 2007 | By Conne Ward-Cameron | Photos by Mason Fischer, Mike Wenzel, Jason Wallis, and courtesy of Foxgloves and Ivy