Orchids

By Rom Watson
c. February 22, 2013

Orchids bloom in my care.  It’s not something I’m going to put on my resume, but I do find it interesting because I have never in my life had any aptitude for taking care of plants.  None at all.  Any plant I’ve ever been given has died.  Maybe not right away, as I do recall one African violet that lasted over a year; but sooner rather than later, plants in my charge withered and died.

Until three years ago when a friend had to move and gave us three orchids plants she couldn’t take with her.

They were small and had never bloomed.  She got them free from a grocery store that was going to throw them out.  I had always thought of orchids as fragile, exotic flowers that required constant attention, so I had no expectations that these three orphans would survive.  However, I did my due diligence and looked up orchids online to find out how to care for them.  I read that one has to water them once a week, really soak them, and then make sure any excess water has drained out.  So that’s what I did, and they grew.  Then they bloomed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The orchid in the photo above bloomed first.

Then the pink one bloomed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Later, the white one bloomed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then the pink one bloomed again.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Credit for all these photographs goes to Corinne Watson.  (I’m very lucky I married a good photographer.)

Apparently orchids are not fragile flowers that require constant attention, because being in my care hasn’t killed them.  The first plant that bloomed did die shortly thereafter, but I’m almost certain our former upstairs neighbor staggered home drunk and poured a Cosmopolitan on it.  That’s just the sort of thing he would do.  (Goodbye and good riddance, Jason.)

 

 

Below are some photographs of an orchid plant that the managers of our building put in my charge last year.  It had never bloomed for them.  In my care, it bloomed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All three plants are thriving, and preparing to bloom again.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Who would ever have thought that I would be good at raising orchids?  Certainly not me.  The fact that they thrive is a constant surprise.

 

 

 

 

 

Whenever I admire these beautiful blossoms, I am reminded that you never really know what you’re going to be good at until you try.