Long Island and Outer NYC Boroughs with Travelin' Elisa

April 23, 2018 - The Orchid Show Blooms at The New York Botanical Gardens in The Bronx Each Spring

4/24/2018

Located in The Bronx, The New York Botanical Gardens is host to the The Orchid Show each Spring. (c) travelincousins.com

Having traveled all over the world, and taken a tremendous number of photographs of flowers in every imaginable setting, I can say, wholeheartedly, that The Orchid Show at the New York Botanical Gardens ranks among the world's most lovely!

Each Spring, for the past sixteen years, The Orchid Show showcases thousands of dramatically displayed orchids in the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory. With tens of thousands of species thriving in habitats around the globe, orchids are some of the most diverse and well-adapted plants on Earth. There are an estimated 30,000 naturally occurring orchid species and tens of thousands of artificially created hybrids, making Orchidaceae the largest plant family on Earth!

While the show has ended for the 2018 season, the memories of Orchid Shows gone by are still indelibly ingrained in my memory! My trip back in the Spring of 2016, to what was called, Orchidelirium, was a joyous day of sunshine, flowers and fun!

Just having parked near the Botanical Gardens in the Bronx (c)travelincousins.com

It was the final day of the Orchid Show, with the perfect blend of bright sunshine and mild temperatures, which, on its own, is enough on its own to put me in a super mood.

My girls and I drove into Queens, picked up our favorite exploration relative, Aunt Ro and then headed over the Triborough Bridge to The Bronx. Although the Botanical Gardens opens at 10am and we arrived a bit after 11am, the parking on-site was already full! Not a problem on a gorgeous day, presenting us with an opportunity to take a morning stroll to the entrance of The Gardens. It was obvious that many others were just as excited about the glorious day as well, because even the municipal parking lot, a block away, was jam packed with visitors and my little foursome ended up parking on the very top level!!

I'm really not sure if it was that Spring was in the air or because it was the last day of The Orchid Show, but boy did people come out in droves to spend a leisurely day in the beauty of nature.

The Conservatory at the NY Botanical Gardens (c)travelincousins.com

Flowers galore around the grounds of The New York Botanical Gardens, Bronx (c)travelincousins.com

Walking around the grounds of the Gardens was brilliant. On this day, however, the real joy was inside the Conservatory, getting up close and personal with all those spectacular orchids!!

I could not stop snapping away! Any flower lover will concur with me that it's virtually impossible to take too many pictures of these natural works of art! So many colors and shapes and sizes!

The array of displays throughout the exhibit was truly breathtaking as you can see!

Orchidelirium - 2016 Orchid Show at The New York Botanical Gardens (c) travelincousins.com

Me and Kelsey surrounded by orchids (c) travelincousins.com

Marking its sixteenth year in 2018, The Orchid Show showcases thousands of dramatically displayed orchids in the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory featuring a series of installations crafted by Daniel Ost.

Ost is celebrated worldwide for his eye-catching installations in private and public spaces, working with both living and cut flowers. His large-scale artwork has drawn comparison to that of renowned sculptors Anish Kapoor, Claes Oldenburg, and Andy Goldsworthy. In Belgium he has been called “the Picasso of flower arranging,” and in France he was touted as “the international star of floral decoration.”

Daniel Ost - creator of the floral installations at 2018 Orchid Show - In Belgium he has been called “the Picasso of flower arranging,” and in France he was touted as “the international star of floral decoration.” (photo credit: nybg.org)

In celebration of The Orchid Show's 16th Anniversary, here are
16 Beautiful Facts About Orchids:

1. Orchids are one of the largest and most diverse groups of plants. Over 30,000 species of orchids have been described with researchers discovering hundreds of new species each year.

2. In addition to those found in the wild, 100 000 varieties of orchids are created artificially, via selective breeding.

3. The lifespan of an orchid depends on the species but certain species can survive up to 100 years.

4. Size, shape and texture of leaves depend on the habitat.

5. Orchids thrive in almost any environment around the world, from deserts to rain forests.

6. Having evolved and adapted in order to survive and reproduce in such a wide variety of habitats, orchids grow in almost any size, color, and shape imaginable.

7. Substances derived from orchids are used spices, fragrance and in traditional Asian medicine.

8. Orchids produce several millions of miniature seeds. Only few seeds will develop into mature plant.

9. In 1818 the naturalist William John Swainson sent back the first orchid specimen seen in London.

10. According to the fossil evidence, orchids have existed on the planet for about 100 million years.

11. Orchid flowers always grow upside down when mature.

12. An orchid has bilateral symmetry — like a human face — so if a line is drawn vertically down the middle of the flower, the two halves are mirror images of each other.