'Once exotic, rare, and delicate, these orchids have been transformed into a commodity—inexpensive, widely available, and completely familiar.' The Century-Long Scientific Journey of the Affordable Grocery Store Orchid
They've definitely become disposable; I've often seen them thrown out after their flowers have withered. It's sad to see perfectly healthy plants treated in this way.
Yes, but ... If you live in a small apartment, you can't have all these pots with a few leaves hanging around for two years until they flower again. I do have two that I've been waiting on for a few years now. They both have had some repeat flower growth, so I know it's possible. But now and then I wonder why I have to be loyal to these two and can't have a nice pot of flowers. That article was very interesting.
This reminded me of an odd connection. I like wild orchids, naturalized orchids, terrestrial orchids, but have only rarely grown any. I found and uprooted a Cypripedium in the small wooded lot behind our house. I was a toddler. My mercurial mother erupted, with uprooting a wild flower being of only minor concern. My sister as a teenager worked at a florist' nursery with greenhouses, where they also grew orchids. Cattleya, noted in all the holiday and prom corsages. We lived in Linwood NJ, and those greenhouses belonged to second generation growers, the Off family in the article. It was already a fecund family dynasty. If I come across abandoned plants in pots, I'm always interested, but orchids seem to be the most abused. I'm guessing that people who like their plants spraypainted in unsuitable colors generally can't manage basic orchid requirements.
Ooooh....don't get me started on 'Just Add Ice'! Too late---I'm irate. Here is a link...and if you can read it without shouting WHAT??! you are a better man than I am, Gunga Din. Phalaenopsis Orchids | Just Add Ice Orchids To paraphrase the late great Steve Lucas: Phals grow in the RAIN FOREST---where there IS NO ICE! Not only is this promotional abomination just plain WRONG but it assumes that the consumer is too stupid to figure out how to take care of an orchid. It (and the Ubiquitous Phal) promotes 'throwaway' culture: I strongly suspect that this strategy has as its deliberate intention the aim of having sincere but ignorant consumers FOLLOW this horrid advice, which will result in the death of the plant---which the person will blame on his or her self---who will then proceed to go out AND BUY ANOTHER PLANT. It is our duty, my friends, to learn and teach the TRUTH whenever possible!
