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NEWBORN ORCHIDS – THE BAD & GOOD NEWS

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FOTD – July 15 – Good news, bad news. Newborn orchids

After we came back from grocery shopping, I went to see how my orchids were doing. Lo and behold, both of them were in bloom when just yesterday morning, it was all buds. Big fat buds, but no flowers.

These pictures were taken the day before yesterday

That’s the good news. The bad news is that in trying to move a branch of the yellow orchids, the branch broke off. It snapped. This is not the first time this has happened to me, but it’s the first time in several years. It was a movement of no more than a quarter inch, but went against the branch’s curve. I was trying move the flower a wee bit so I could take its picture. The whole branch broke including ALL the buds and the one fully open flower.

Broken yellow branch in a crystal dish. Now it’s in a very small plastic pot full of sphagnum moss, slightly dampened. I hope it will take root

I forgot how fragile orchids are when they are blooming, how fragile almost all succulents and cactus are. It is probably because their stems hold water and especially when they are blooming, their branches are swollen and have little mobility.

I lost the branch and now will have to wait for it to bloom again which, I hope, will be soon. Meanwhile, I’m trying to convince the broken branch to make roots and become a new orchid. I’m doing the right stuff, but it doesn’t mean it will work. I have to be prepared for failure, but if the Earth gods are with me, it might just decide to make roots and become a new orchid.

Last time, this orchid was off white with an orange center. This year it’s white with a slash of yellow across its base. It’s lovely and looks nothing like it looked during any of its previous blooms. It might have eventually become a light green, but I’ll have to wait for its next bloom. Fortunately, though I ruined its summer bloom, it will bloom again, possibly soon. If as a result of this disaster, I manage to get the broken branch to grow roots, I’ll feel like I’ve finally come of age as an indoor gardener.

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Categories: #Flowers, #FOTD, #gallery, #Photography, Anecdote, Cee's Photo Challenge, Flower of the day, indoor garden, orchids

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3 replies

  1. robertawrites235681907
    07/16/2023 • 04:03

    The branch breaking was unlucky, but hopefully it will root. My mom’s are doing well too. I must take pictures of them in the summer. They are on her windowsill and there are burglar bars in the background which I don’t like. After reading this though, I won’t be moving them.

    Like

    • Marilyn Armstrong
      07/16/2023 • 14:20

      If you shoot with a macro or other close-up lens, the background usually disappears anyway. And now most photo programs let you play with the background bokeh. I forget to use it, but really, I should.

      I’m hoping the broken branch may turn out well. So far, it’s still alive in its tiny little pot. Two days and doesn’t look like it’s dying. But orchids live a long time, so it may just be doing what orchids do — survive.

      Liked by 1 person