Orchids Are Named After a Greek God and a Male Body Part

We can thank the Greeks and Romans for many of our plant names.   The word  Orchid comes from the Greek word orchis which means testicle due the shape of the orchid root. 


Probably keeping with the Greek origin of the name, there is an accompanying Greek myth about Orchis, who was the the son of a nymph and a satyr.   Orchis was drunk at one of those lively Greek god festivals and as any drunken good nymph/saytr, attempted to rape a priestess of Dionysus.

Orchis did not fare well because of his insult and was torn apart.   

Orchis' father prayed for him to be restored, but the gods changed him into the flower we now known as the orchid.

Regardless of the flower's name, the orchid is one of the best plants for those who are passionate about indoor gardening. The popularity of the orchid are that the flowers appear almost wax like and come in a large variety of colors.

Orchid flowers last a long time and in some cases, some varieties of orchid flowers can last up to two months!

Before discussing the care of orchids, here are some additional interesting true facts about the family of Orchidacea, which we call Orchids.

• Orchids are considered one of the two largest families of flowering plants with over 26,000 orchid species
• There are more orchid species than bird species and mammal species
• Orchids encompass 6-11% of the word’s seed plants
• Vanilla flavoring and vanilla fragrances come from the dried seedpods of the orchid genus Vanilla
• There are more than 100,000 human produced orchid hybrids and cultivars
• There are orchid species, which grow in every region of the world other than the Arctic regions

Purchasing and Maintaining a Your Live Christmas Tree

Purchasing a cut live tree most certainly can be viewed, as not only an investment in the region's agricultural industry, but Christmas tree farming benefits the local environments where  they are grown and sold.

Some interesting facts:

• Three tree seedlings will be planted for every tree cut during the holidays as for example 30 million real trees are sold in the country each year, with almost 350 million more being planted to take their place.
• 350,000 acres of green space is devoted to Christmas tree farming in the United States.
• Most cut trees end up being recycled and offered back to residents as a garden mulch and as in some parts of Ohio discarded trees are often submerged in lakes to provide shelter and spawning areas for fish.  
• Buying a cut tree supports American and Canadian industries as most artificial trees are made in China

　
When purchasing a cut tree: 　

• The best practice is to cut your own tree or buying a tree fresh-cut from local growers if possible. Fresh cut trees from the larger stores were likely harvested one month before Thanksgiving
• Cut off an additional inch or from the bottom of the tree you purchase, as resin has filled the plant’s vascular system and needs to be removed to allow water absorption
• Water daily. Never allow the water to go below the cut stump, because the pitch will dry and the tree won’t be able to absorb water.
• Keep the tree away from any heat source to avoid drying and the risk of fire. To reduce a tree fire is probably that one great reason the smaller Christmas lights are much more preferable to the larger lights.
• Turn the tree’s lights off when no one is home.   Best practice is to never leave children alone in a home with a lighted cut tree.
• Some trees lots will spray fire retardant on the tree.

　
　
　When purchasing a balled and burlap live tree

• The tree generally needs to be gradually conditioned to the warmer house temperature. So often times, moving the tree to an unheated garage for several day and then inside is an effective way to reduce plant shock from the temperature change.
• Choose a smaller tree---large ones will substantially lose more water indoors and due to the weight of the soil ball or pot will be more difficult to move around.
• Keep the tree ball moist when inside. To achieve continual moisture, a good method is wrapping a wet blanket around the ball of the tree.

Have the hole already dug to plant the tree outside after the holidays before the ground has frozen. There are some that don’t replant the tree until March and keep the tree watered in a cool unheated garage.