"she pulled on a pair of blue dishwashing gloves and got to work nestling orchid roots into pots of moss... Mary Jo Brink...
90-some odd collection of orchid species sitting on rolling carts, some near a bright window, others tucked under fluorescent lights. ... "I spend an hour and a half here at least once a week," she said... waters her orchids once a week. During the summer, they get watered every five days... Brick has been growing them for 14 years... ... in 1998... moved from Ontario and the back of the Jeep Cherokee was filled with the plants... at least 20 of them always in bloom throughout the inn. ... greenhouse... built for her as a Christmas present... a few years ago... addition built on an existing deck... Though small, the greenhouse has four micro-climates... a propane heater, insulated windows, a few fans, a solar-heated water tank and a thermostat set at 72 degrees Fahrenheit during the day and 62 F at night. ... In 1996, she learned the art of growing orchids... on Aruba... soon Brink was receiving gifts of orchids, which she eventually took to Canada... While... on vacation, the power went out and the backup system failed. Brink lost her plants. She started over, only to be thwarted in December when a thermostat miscalculation killed 40 of her new plants. These were major setbacks, but by the end of January, Brink was circumspect. ... When... on vacation, she is apt to check the news for any orchid-related events" URL : http://knox.villagesoup.com/Community/story.cfm?storyID=108148 photos : 1) [caption :"Mary Jo Brink, with her orchids"] http://knox.villagesoup.com/sharedpix/News/200801/P130692.jpg 2) [caption : "Mary Jo Brink trims dead foliage off the orchids"] http://knox.villagesoup.com/sharedpix/News/200801/P130691.jpg 3) [caption : "Repotting orchids"] http://knox.villagesoup.com/sharedpix/News/200801/P130693.jpg *************** Regards, VB _______________________________________________ the OrchidGuide Digest (OGD) [email protected] http://orchidguide.com/mailman/listinfo/orchids_orchidguide.com
