In 1982 my husband and I bought an Orchid - just ONE!
It was an Oncidium jonesianum that was mounted on a piece of cork bark.

   We hung it in the front room window. Not long after it started putting out flower spikes. In about a month it had the most beautiful butterfly looking flowers we had ever seen. We were so amazed that something growing on a piece of bark could produce such lovely blooms.

   We immediately went out and bought another orchid.
This time we bought a Cattleya. The Cattleya plants are not much to look at as far as foliage but the blooms are spectacular. We put this in the same location as are the Oncidiums. It sat all year looking sad.

    Then right before Christmas we noticed a flower sheath was forming. In February we were rewarded with three of the largest lavander blooms we had ever seen. The fragrance was overwhelming.

    Back to the Orchid store. This time we bought quite a few different orchid plants. In to the front room they went. Of course orchids like a lot of humidity so we bought kitty litter pans and made humidity trays for the orchids to sit on. They all bloomed and we just couldn't resist buying more and more.

    After about a year we outgrew the front room. We moved the plants into a spare bedroom upstairs by a window with a southern exposure. It did not take long and we were building plant tables, hanging grow lights, running fans and a humidifier. Well, it took about three years and we had out grown our "plant room."

    We had to have more orchids, there were so many different kinds. We did not have this one or that one. Oh dear, what to do, we have got to have that one too! We finally gave in and bought a small green house. It was 8 feet wide and 16 feet long. Out to the orchid shop again. We bought this one and that one and soon had over 400 plants. Every time we turned around we found one we did not have. We were soon out of room AGAIN!!

    Up went greenhouse number two. It was the same size as the first one and we connected them together. Back to the orchid shop again (I think we made their business quite profitable).

    We were soon buying orchids through the mail as we had bought every thing the orchid shop had to offer. By now our first plants were growing and we were dividing the ones we already owned. We had orchids running out our ears! What should we do with all the plants we now had?

   In 1986 we started a small orchid business. We needed some way to make room for the orchids we did not have. We also built another greenhouse. This gave us the room we needed to BUY MORE.

   We are still growing orchids and they still fascinate us.
So be careful when you buy your first orchid!

Oncidium jonesianum Reichenbach f. (1883.)
Indigenous to Brazil and Paraguay; prefers riverine forest habitats