Moth Orchids

Well, Otter Nurseries' branch here in Torquay don't seem able to keep the orchids alive for long enough to offer them at lower prices post flowering. Considering the long-suffering nature of most orchids, it's some achievement to ruin them quite so quickly.

They also had some extremely poor Clivias reduced to �£4.99, but even when in flower they were worthless. They are the low quality, fast-grown, unselected seed strains that are really only fit for the bin. I prefer to raise my own from proven parentages. They may take a few years, but the results are infinitely superior to what you can buy in garden centres nowadays.

Back to the moth orchids. There were yet more plants at the greengrocers the other day so I grabbed a very fine, well-shaped white and a really good deep cerise. Excellent plants, good sets of leaves and plenty of live green-tipped roots, which is what you want. The only down-side is that they are un-named hybrids, but I can live with that.