Cattleya Orchids in Hong Kong Orchid Tree

This is the current scene above my neighbor’s mailbox. A flowering Cattleya Orchid she installed in the crotch of a Hong Kong Orchid tree. A delightful welcome to the driveway or mailbox.

I would say the Cattleyas are probably 3 feet in circumference and nestled in the center of a semi multi trunked Hong Kong Orchid Tree. The flowers are pink and white, fabulous and slightly fragrant; it should be noted that there are some really fragrant Cattleyas that can be used in this way. The Hong Kong Orchid tree is looking as good as possible for a Bauhinia so the Cattleyas are the star of the show.

The iambic pentameter or whatever hadn’t occurred to me when I started this post – Orchids in the Orchid Tree. Where’s an English teacher when you need one?…maybe it is alliteration? In my experience, English teachers were generally offended by my writing so somewhere, somebody is feeling unhappy about comma faults – my specialty. I was nearly kicked out of the University of Georgia for my comma faults; my solution to stay in college – semi-colons! And it worked! I have a college degree and am still here offending innocent people with my punctuation. I can only wonder how many good, interesting writers were sidelined by English teachers. Carl Sagan comes to mind:Billions and billions. Ms. Ford, if you are still out there, I am published and somebody paid me!!

I digress, my neighbor offered a start of these Cattleyas to me and I enthusiastically accepted. I have a good sized Banyan Tree asking for some Orchid company. Research (and my neighbor) tells me that you need a rough barked area, then apply some sphagnum moss, add the orchid and tie it to the tree with string. Water until established and …Voila.

Orchids in the Orchid Tree…

Cattleyas