Wedding Job Part II

This is an update on the finished products that were used for the wedding. I had to make 13 corsages with 3 different designs, and I had to make 9 boutonnieres with 3 different designs.  Essentially, I cam home from school, and sat at my kitchen table to start cutting and gluing flowers together.  It was about a 6 hour job. My hands got so much glue, that the next day when I was taking a Chem test I was still picking at the glue.

Mom for weeks confidently told me that it would be simple and quick job since she would be helping. I always gave her a look of incredulity.  When the moment of truth came, out of the 23 things I had to make, she only made 4.  Big help she was....Well, we got the job done and I've decided that I will make a terrible florist.  Terrible! I had zero patience by the time I got to making the boutonnieres. The whole family had to sit at the kitchen table and tell each other jokes to keep my sanity. <3 my parents.

Well here are the completed works:

The bride's corsage:

Top: The Bridesmaid corsage.

Right: The Relative's corsage.

Material: Phalaenopsis orchid, plumosa leaf, and...forgot what the accent flowers were called.

Bottom: Groom's boutonniere.

Materials: dendrobium orchid. 

Bottom Left: Groomsmen.

Last: Male relatives.

Wedding Job Part I

I've been hired to make corsages and boutonnieres for a wedding after my Junior prom post.
At the nagging of my mom, I've finally found time to take a pictures of the orchids that are to be used and the overall design of the corsages and boutonnieres.

Dendrobium Orchid: for the boutonnieres

Phalaenopsis Orchid: for the corsages

Designs...might change

Masdevallia Redshine 'Sheila'

This Saturday I went to Golden Gate Orchid's closing/ SF orchid society only member sale.  Tom Perlite, a long time Bay Area Orchid grower who has received numerous rewards for his orchids all over the globe, is retiring at the end of this year.  I was actually given the honor of interviewing him for a school project during my sophomore year...he offered me inspiration on how far a degree in horticulture or plant related can take me.  Since, he got a degree in Botany at UC Berkeley. Well, my parents and I drove out to his greenhouse in South San Francisco to show him our support and wish him luck in retirement.  My only goal was to get a masdevallia hybridized by himself, and that is exactly what I got.  He handpicked this red masdevallia that has been given a First Class Certificate (the highest honor you can give to an orchid) for me.  Sheila is the name of his wife.  Do I hear a "aww" somewhere? <3

This Masdevallia has a burgundy color under normal light, but it is almost a bright blood red when you place it in the sun.  The photo of the orchid can not do it justice.  You have to see it to appreciate it.  It is 2.5 inches long 1 inch wide.  The texture of the orchid almost waxy and Tom described the thickness of the orchid to be almost like "plastic". There are several new growths sprouted from the base and it is freshly repotted in sphagnum.   The cool part of the orchid is that from one spike there's two flowers popping out.  $30 for an orchid that was hybridized by an orchid legend, I think I got a bargain.

P.S. I have yet to post a second masdevallia that I got at his greenhouse, but I'm waiting for the second flower to bloom since the currently in bloom one is a bit damaged.  But will post as soon at it blooms.

Testing New Ink

I got new ink for drawing and calligraphy, and I wanted to draw something to test it out.

Quick free hand sketch of orchid mantis and phalaenopsis orchid. 

Replenishing the Old Collection

Around February, my tillandsia collection diminished to nothing...
They were ravaged by mealybugs, suffered from rot, or suffered from underwatering.  Overall, it just left my tillandsia collection from a grand total of five to a grand total of a 1/3.  Pretty sad, I know.  The mealybugs were the most disappointing of all the ailments that my tillandsias suffered. It was just that I noticed a couple of mealybugs on my neofinetia falcatas one day, and the next thing I knew the source of the mealybugs were from the inside of the little leaves of my tillandsia.  I tried to do everything in my power to get rid of the mealybugs...but it was just too far gone. 

But, recently I was able to snag some great deals on tillandsias at the UC Berkeley Botanical Garden gift shop.  They had my favorite tillandsia that I have been looking for months that was eaten away by voracious mealybugs.... 

So yeah...this little tillandsia fuchsii v gracillis was the tillandsia that I have been looking for months.  It is really hard to find, and the only place that I know that sells this tillandsia is on ebay.  Only problem is...the shipping is $6!!! And the location of the seller is just a five hour drive.


BOTTOM: I also got a really nice mounted tillandsias for $25.  When I first saw it, I thought it was really pretty especially with that gorgeous bloom.  There's spanish moss on it, and three different types of tillandsia.  I got it for my mom, but mainly I wanted it because it was just a great deal that I couldn't resist passing up. 

RIGHT: This is my 1/3 that I have left of my original tillandsia collection.  It is a little "pup" from the mother plant that had two "pups" growing from the side.  I just broke off the larger of the two "pups", and I am now growing it without dirt in a 0.5 inch pot.  Pretty small...but this one I didn't kill.  My mom did...Did you know how she killed it? She watered the poor thing at night and the water got trapped between the leaves.  It died of rot...DO NO WATER EPIPHYTIC PLANTS AT NIGHT!!!!

BOTTOM: I also picked up my first carnivorous plant.  It's a Drosera...or sundews.  I mainly picked this little guy because he was cheap and doesn't have a dormant season like the venus fly trap which is a plus.  I have it in a little jar sitting in rainwater that I collected for my orchids growing with my orchids.  So far...it seems happy with new "tentacles" growing from the base.

Conservatory of Flowers 7/23/13

It's so hard to find a bright sunny day in San Fran these days....

I've been volunteering at the Conservatory of Flowers in San Francisco for the past month. Watering their orchid collection and now repotting their highland tropics collection.  It's fun, especially when you're rocking out to your favorite playlist. But the humidity and the whirring of the fans get to your head after a while...

Anyways, I'm sorry for not posting anything at the Conservatory because it was either I forgot the memory card in my camera to the fogging of my lens due to the humidity.  Finally, I got some good pics in as I was roaming around after my shift.  Unfortunately, the Conservatory of Flowers newsletter cannot do the orchids currently in bloom justice. So I'm going lend a hand....

Vascostylis Veerasawas White

Disa Uniflora

 

Gongora Tricolor

Coelogyne usitana

Cirrhopetalum

It looks like a monkey!!! <3 draculas

Dendrobium Hybrid

 Now for the Conservatory's special exhibits like the aquatics exhibit and their butterfly exhibit!

Southern Cali Trip Final

What you're greeted with when you enter

 On our way back to the Bay Area, we stopped by Cal-Orchid Nursery.
I had deep feeling of regret of not going there when we visited Santa Barbara Orchid Estate on our first day. Cal Orchid was right next Santa Barbara Orchid Estate.  I'm not kidding!  When you drive into this little road called "Orchid" (such an original name...) on the left side are the gates to the Santa Barabara Orchid Estate, and down the road on the right side are the gates to the Cal-Orchid Nursery.

Still, I needed to clear my head from the shopping spree from Day 1.  I think the the 24 hours lapse between the first nursery and the second day was a good time frame to clear my head.  Orchids tend to fog your mind...and all rationality that one has.  So here, I got a healthy Lycaste Aromatica which I learned was from Golden Gate Orchids owned by Tom Perlite.  HE'S RETIRING!!! I'm so sad, right now. Both my mom and I exclaimed "What????" when we heard the news from the extremely nice owner.

But yeah...the greenhouse was clean and well organized.  Something that is very hard to find in most orchid nurseries I've been to.  There was a barbeque going on with guacamole and chips.  It had a very homey feeling to the entire open house.  I think...this is on my favorite nursery list. 

Again...sorry for the lack of names. At least in this round of orchid pics, I can recognize a lot more orchids and my dad accidentally took a picture of the names along with the orchids. 

Neofinetia Falcata Hybrid

Agraceum (I really regret not getting this orchid, so much history dating back to Darwin's Origin of Species)

Lycaste

Encyclia

Vanda