I still want you to go with me to meet Elaine and Patty at Tropiflora, Lindsey. It takes an hour and a half to get there so we must leave here at 8:30. Let me know soon.

Jim

Maybe I'm late to the party and everyone already knows about this....but my bug guy and I were talking the other day (about orchids of course) and he asked if I had ever seen the orchid mantis, which I had not so he pulled it up on his phone real quick and I was in absolute AWE, so I have to share with you guys!

Here are a few pictures, but really you should all google 'orchid mantis' and look at all the pics---it's AMAZING!!

That is just SO neat, Patty. It would be great to have one inhabit your greenhouse, or maybe my pool cage? Think it would keep the orchids free of mites and scale and all those delicious things that feed on our orchids?

Sadly, the Wiki page on it says it prefers to eat butterflies and moths, so you couldn't let it get loose in a garden!

I sure have never seen anything like that, Patty. Neat.

What a fascinating insect, Patty!! A pretty pet in our growing areas? That would be something!

Jim, regarding the Grt Why Not, I knew it was named Guarsomething, but to tell you the truth, I was too lazy to look up the abbreviation. I remember Ctna easily, not Grt.
The C. Heathii 1 is correct, since mine is loddigesii x walkeriana and it is also not a natural hybrid.
Your Laelia anceps v. is gorgeous! Mine is in spike and still a couple of months away from blooming. Pretty Mermaid/Marmaid.

I have to watch over the Summer, the worst offenders attaching to neighboring Orchids are the Neofinetia hybrids.

Lindsey, Vandas at Lowe's and in spike no less!! If that were to happen here, I would faint!!

Not too bad on price, for those Lowe's Vandas either.

But in Apopka we pay $8 to $12 for a nice big one, though not in spike.

About the prices, Mrs. Holmes (or Mrs. Carter, I don't remember which) used to ask "why are people willing to spend $50 to $75 on floral arrangements that only last a few days when they can spend far less on a huge orchid that will bloom for months."
$27 for a blooming Vanda sounds downright cheap when you think of it that way.

In my opinion, the answer, Alice, is that we are an "instant-gratification"/"throw-away" society.

Our local Lowes has an abundance of Vandas right now! My heart be still! They're all priced at $29.99, and the temptation is overwhelming! Some colors I'd not seen before. I'm trying very, very hard to stay away!!!!

Surely the same plant picked up at a nursery would be double that around here.

Tara, which Lowe's????? My son just moved to Palm Valley and I will be heading that way in a few weeks. A few years ago he lived in Julington Creek and the Hagan Ace hardware used to have some lovely orchids for good prices.

Alice, it's the one at I-10 and Lenox Ave. Just west of downtown, but I've a sneaky suspicion that all of the Lowe's around here are stocking them as well.

I found an Ace Hardware in Orange Park that has an amazing variety of Orchids. Some pretty amazing $$$'s too! But they did have some that I've not seen in most of the BB stores. Even some named/labeled varieties.

Hope you have a safe trip heading down this way!

Thank you, they'll probably be gone by the time I get there but the search is always the most fun.

Well...I guess I better go back to Lowe's then...and pick up one!
Jim, I'm going to take a pass on the road trip south...maybe next time?

For $29 you can get three of them in Apopka and all of them will be bigger than what you are finding at Lowes.

Jim

Jim sure knows how to twist the knife in your heart, huh, Lindsey.

We will miss you in Sarasota, Lindsey.

Jim

Lindsey's discipline is commendable.

It is!

it's not MY discipline...it's the checking account....and the climbing credit card balance...luckily my paycheck will double in a couple of months when the social security checks start rolling in!