Saturday, March 5, 2016

Slice of Life - Orchids

pop of color
subtle creams and yellows
wonderful white
burst of pinks and purples
petal variations
varying sizes and shapes
variety of hues


This is the last weekend for the orchids to be on display at our local Franklin Park Conservatory.  I wanted to make sure I saw them this year and needed something to pick me up while gray skies loomed overhead.  I enjoyed lingering and noticing these beautiful plants today.  I've never tried to grow orchids and realized I didn't know very much about them until I started reading three display panels.  So, today in my notebook I not only gathered my noticing notes but collected some nonfiction information.  Maybe one day these two snippets of tidbits will merge together in another piece.



structure
   petaloid sepals - green leafy petal like at the flower base
   true petals - three

growth
    monoodial - tip of main stem
    sympodial - horizontal stem - like grass or iris

where
   cold mountain tops - terrestrial - grow in soil
   tropical rainforest - ephiphytic - grow in tree canopy
 
   lithophytic - attach to rocks




Thank you to the Two Writing Teachers group for hosting our writing community and you can enjoy other slices from today by stopping by the link provided.

5 comments:

  1. The orchids at Franklin Park are always so beautiful! Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Happy Writing!

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  2. Orchids are some of my favorites. I raised them when I lived in Manhattan because I had the perfect window sill for them. I haven't had much success with them since I moved to PA. Your piece makes me think it's time to try again.

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  3. Your snippets are like poetry. I love orchids. I've only grown phaelonopsis orchids, the kind you can buy at the grocery store. They are so beautiful and each orchid is unique.

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  4. Next weekend I am going to an orchid show in St. Louis, so this was a great read for me. I have a couple plants in my bathroom next to the block glass window. So far they are surviving. I will be on the lookout for some factual info, instead of just snapping pictures. Stay tuned!

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  5. My brother-in-law grows orchids. They are beautiful --I love the idea of poetry and nonfiction mixed. You could do it for all types of flowers. That could be cool as a children's book! Fun
    Clare

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