Arthur Chadwick... president of Chadwick & Son Orchids Inc. answers : 1) "Q: ... looking for a Phalaenopsis that is orange with blue spots or blue with orange. I'm hoping for University of Virginia colors. Is this possible?...
Answer: ... Orange and blue are rare hues in orchids, even rarer in Phals, and the odds of the two together defy calculation. These... are predominantly found in whites, pinky-purples and yellows. Orange, a secondary color mix between red and yellow, is possible and the well-known hybrid P. Baldan's Kaleidoscope, though technically yellow with red stripes, does give an orangish appearance. Blue, a primary color, doesn't exist in the moth orchid family. The closest thing is bluish shades of violet, called blue violet or indigo, and these are miniature flowers about the size of a dime... Vandas boast the large stereotypical ocean blue blossoms and though they breed with Phals to make Vandopsis, there have been no successful large blue offspring thus far. Spots (and stripes) have been in circulation for some time, thanks to the breeding influences of the species P stuartiana from the Philippines, but not much progress has been made toward other popular patterns, such as plaids, paisleys and pentagrams. In the jungle, pollinators are attracted to the blooms for any number of reasons -- enticing shapes, irresistible fragrances, sexy color, etc. Man-made hybrids, on the other hand, are not bound by the same constraint of having to attract insects; their mission is to attract man [and woman...]... ***************** 2) Q: I received a... Phalaenopsis... It had been in the car before they gave it to me and the petals were already drooping... Is there any way to revive it?... Answer: ... Once an orchid has suffered "heat stroke" and the blossoms are wilted, sadly the best course of action is to cut off the flower spike and give the plant a rest. Limp flowers will not reinvigorate... URL : http://www.inrich.com/cva/ric/entertainment.apx.-content-articles-RTD-2008-08-29-0030.html ************ Reagrds, VB _______________________________________________ the OrchidGuide Digest (OGD) orchids@orchidguide.com http://orchidguide.com/mailman/listinfo/orchids_orchidguide.com
