Orchids in Bloom

"We are shaped and fashioned by what we love"  - Goethe

Orchid Image 01

The Chicago Botanic Garden holds a nearly two month long orchid show each year, and every year I try to attend. 

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This year the show runs Feb 8, 2020 to March 22, 2020. 

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Notice the spots differ from the top petal to the two flanking petals
God created an amazing design!

The orchids are an explosion of color during a time when the landscape outside is not.  (Winter in the midwest features a lot of neutrals - grays, browns,  and whites if there is snow)

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I love the amazing patterns...
[ Notice how the speckles change from the top petal to the two flanking petals
God created an amazing design! ]

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... the saturated colors...

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the shapes...
[ Notice how tiny fuzzy hairs on the salmon "slipper" above (better seen zoomed in) - Velvety texture ]

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and variety of flowers labeled orchids.

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The show is housed in the Regenstein Center, a beautiful contemporary building with 3 greenhouses built in 1976 featuring wood and brick, natural light and lots of space. 

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For the 6 weeks of the show, huge displays of over 10,000 orchid plants are designed, installed and maintained in the 3 greenhouses and other large gathering rooms in the center.

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This is not a weekend show hosted by an Orchid club.  But for even more orchids, I like to come on the weekend when the Illinois Orchid Society holds their Spring Show and Sale and their members bring in their knowledge and cherished plants....
(March 14-15 2020 this year)

Orchid Image 11

My photos in this post are flower focused, (pun intended) and don't try to show the installations and the space.  (There is only so much time and this post already has many pictures!)  

The Chicago Botanic Garden's website here can give you another view.  I highly recommend this show,  and every year I look forward to seeing it.     



Click on the images to see them enlarged. (Yes, you can see these images even larger!)  The best way to see the images in their largest format is to (on a windows system) right click on the image and select "open in new tab" from the option box that opens. This bypasses software that limits the size of the image opened.  On the newly opened image, click on the image again to see it  zoomed maximum.

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I am linking to these parties:
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Kathleen: Thur Favorite Things (L Entry )
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Finding Silver pennies: Silver Pennies Sun 6a (m Entry )
Life and Linda: Dishing it Digging it Sun 3p (l Entry )


Another Orchid Show
Try this

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