Repotting Time for the Orchids

What happens when engineers pot orchids?  Think parallel processing.  Potting orchids, doing laundry and cooking at the same time!  Recipe for disaster or a model of efficiency?

I discovered some divisions of some very special (and very large) plants.  Thats the thing about repotting, it's like having a reunion with your old friends.  Imagine trying to untangle several 40+ growth Cattleyas that have grown over each other (including an awarded intermedia orlata and a gorgeous Lc. Aloha Case) tangled up with some Epi. stamfordianum albas.  They were all growing really well up in the sunny corner of the greenhouse. 

Finally, I'm stopping for the evening...I'm out of sun, out of moss and out of bark (and running low on pots).  Looks like a bark run tomorrow.

Korean Double Layer Celadon Vase

Large Celadon Jar with Double Layer (vase inside a vase) Openwork Technique and Crown Design by Mr. Choi In-Gyu, on display at the American Museum of Ceramic Arts.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!  May your day be full of family, friends, good food and fond memories.

*I never realized how beautiful wild turkeys are until I saw them up close, with the sun reflecting off of their iridescent feathers.  They are, in my humble opinion, up there among the most stunning American birds for beauty.  It leads one to wonder what we might have if we had bred domestic turkeys for beauty rather than for food.  It could have been the domestic peacock!  This one lives in the aviary at the San Diego Safari Park so she's well fed and safe from the Thanksgiving festivities.

**No turkeys were harmed in the creation of this photo. ;-P 

Metallic Glaze Teapot by Pierre Bounaud at AMOCA

Metallic Glaze teapot by Pierre Bounaud on display at the American Museum of Ceramic Art in Pomona, California.

Korean Celadon Dragon Vase

Celadon Bottle with Inlaid Dragon Design by Mr. Kim Seong-Tae of Songweol Ceramics, on display at the American Museum of Ceramic Arts.  Most were also available for sale.  I really liked this one but, alas, it was priced at around $47,000 so a picture will have to do.  The clay is carved and inlaid with different colors of slip to create the pattern and then glazed with a clear celadon glaze.

Northern Red Bishop

Northern Red Bishop or Orange Bishop (Euplectes franciscanus).  These are found from Senegal to Northwest Kenya and have also been naturalized into Puerto Rico and the West Indies.  In nature, these small weavers nest in tall grass where they weave spherical nests.

At the Kayak Rental

The kayaks were neatly stacked in rows for the evening.  The low rays of the evening sun made for great reflections.

Cattleya labiata

Cattleya labiata.  From a distance, this looks like a semi-alba but, if you get close, you can see that it has a light lavender blush.  This plant was brought into judging last night.

Cattleya bowringiana variety alba

Cattleya bowringiana variety alba.  This is a rare albanistic variety of the normally sparkling lavender C. bowringiana.  Most of the albas out there that I have seen are actually semi-albas with a teensy bit of bluish-lavender in the throat.  I suspect many if not most arose from selfings of C. bowringiana 'Tower Grove'.

Korean Ceramics Masters

Jar IV by Mr. Ju Eon-Sik, on display at the American Museum of Ceramic Arts (AMOCA).  The texture looks like dry, cracked wood.  I remember seeing some awesome ceramics when I used to fly out to Korea.  I only regret not having bought more of them (but there is only so much space in the house...).

Cattleya guttata variety coerulea

Cattleya guttata variety coerulea.  Cattleya guttata is native to the hot, shrubby sand dunes of Brazil where they sometimes grow to 5 or 6 feet in height, throwing huge spikes of gorgeous waxy blooms.  This is a coerulea form, which is a somewhat uncommon, recessive color mutation, most typically found in Cattleya species and hybrids.

Cycnoches cooperi

A reasonably dark clone Cycnoches cooperi.  These are native to Brazil and Northern Peru and tend to prefer warmer growing conditions.