Hello everyone! I have been searching for a lovely chocolate scented orchid known as "Sharry baby".(Oncidium family) I have been advised that my best bet is to find someone who has one, and ask to purchase a few "bulbs" (I guess they are pseudo bulbs) off of them. Does anyone know of anyone, or have one of these orchids that lives in the Vancouver/Lower Mainland area that I might be able to purchase a plant from? I appreciate any assistance you can offer! Thanks and have a Happy New Year!!!
Various flowering Oncidium cultivars on display much of the time at supermarket floral departments and garden centers here frequently smell like candy. If the candy smell is your priority you probably do not have to bother trying to track down that particular one, unless it needs to be a chocolate smell specifically. Otherwise, if you sample others that are colored like red licorice these often smell just like it also, an amusing occurrence. And maybe if you start checking others encountered, that resemble the one you mentioned you will find that some of these smell like it also. If instead you want to zero in on that particular one you should be looking at the offerings of orchid specialists. A good basic online search phrase for desired merchandise is the name of the product followed by the word "price". If you have found that it is effectively commercially extinct then the next question is there another, perhaps better one that is available? There are tens of thousands of kinds of orchids, with many on the market similar to one another - this last point becomes immediately apparent when you start looking at offerings made at outlets here.
Good morning Ron! And thank you for responding to my post :) From what I have been able to ascertain is that these orchids are widely available in the USA, but because of the cost of shipping certificates growers do not ship them to Canada anymore. I have been searching for 2 years (when I am out and notice orchids at various stores) and have not seen anything that has a scent. In the Vancouver area I have spoken to at least 5 different orchid places that have all confirmed this import issue. They all said that 10 years ago it was easy to find, but is now cost prohibitive. SO frustrating!!!! I contacted a few growers in the states and they tell me the same thing about shipping them. I REALLY APPRECIATE you letting me know that others of the same genus also have scent!!!! I was unaware of this info so will broaden my search for something in that category with a sweet smell. I spoke with one fellow who said that there is an orchid called Maxillaria Tenuifolia that is red and smells like coconut. Have you heard of this??? I have never seen it for sale. I am new to orchids, but have always had great luck with plants in general. If you or anyone else have any suggestions for a variety of orchid that would like a bight NE window and cooler temperatures (for most of the year) hovering in the 64-70 degree range I would really appreciate it! Thanks again for your input!!! Cheers Tuberose :)
Canadian Orchid Congress vendor list. http://www.canadianorchidcongress.ca/vendors.html After I posted this a checked a couple of the sites and found your plant at Name: Paramount Orchids, Chuck Morin Address: 95 Renz Road, Parksville, BC. Canada V9P 1E8 Phone: 250 248 7023 Email: info@paramountorchids.com Web Site: http://www.paramountorchids.com/ Although their web page categorizes it as "Currently Unavailable". Before this I did a little looking on the web using the "Sharry Baby" name and as I suspected it appears to be something like a grex or series, with there being multiple Sharry Baby cultivars being shown on various sites. The one shown and described by Paramount, which I called "your plant" is Sharry Baby 'Sweet Fragrance'.
Yesterday I encountered whichever Sharry Baby clone or cultivar Matsui Orchids in California shipped to the Molbak's independent garden center in Woodinville, WA. Molbak's had an end cap display of them in a prominent location. The fragrance was better that that of other candy scented oncidiums I have sampled but not so much so that it is necessarily essential to get this particular type in order to enjoy that effect.
Hi, just back from Kauai and saw amazing Maxillaria Tenuifolia that did indeed smell like coconut. I am so jealous that we cannot ship these beauties to Canada. Just beginning my online search... C QUOTE=tuberose;334128]Good morning Ron! And thank you for responding to my post :) From what I have been able to ascertain is that these orchids are widely available in the USA, but because of the cost of shipping certificates growers do not ship them to Canada anymore. I have been searching for 2 years (when I am out and notice orchids at various stores) and have not seen anything that has a scent. In the Vancouver area I have spoken to at least 5 different orchid places that have all confirmed this import issue. They all said that 10 years ago it was easy to find, but is now cost prohibitive. SO frustrating!!!! I contacted a few growers in the states and they tell me the same thing about shipping them. I REALLY APPRECIATE you letting me know that others of the same genus also have scent!!!! I was unaware of this info so will broaden my search for something in that category with a sweet smell. I spoke with one fellow who said that there is an orchid called Maxillaria Tenuifolia that is red and smells like coconut. Have you heard of this??? I have never seen it for sale. I am new to orchids, but have always had great luck with plants in general. If you or anyone else have any suggestions for a variety of orchid that would like a bight NE window and cooler temperatures (for most of the year) hovering in the 64-70 degree range I would really appreciate it! Thanks again for your input!!! Cheers Tuberose :)[/QUOTE]
Saw some again at Molbak's. Saw later that the RHS does lists Sharry Baby as a grex. The cultivar from Matsui that Molbak's has been buying has all dark flowers, unlike the partly white flowers that dominate internet photos.
