Like a calm yoga exercise the stem stretches aloft from a dark green base, then unfurls into a branch with enormous flowers. These are sometimes snow white, orange or purple through to lilac and russet. Sometimes this lady also wears exciting spots and stripes. Because the flowers bear some resemblance to a flying moth, Phalaenopsis is also known as the moth orchid. The flower symbolises pure friendship, and therefore makes an excellent gift.

Styling

The calm and structure of the plant requires a substantial or eye-catching pot as a contrast. A pair of Phalaenopsis together also give a good effect: The flower stems can be pointed in all directions, which gives harmony and balance. Decorative glass pots are a solution to prevent all the roots from growing towards the light.

Orchid of the month

Every month we present a new orchid of the month. Want to find out which orchid it will be next month? Take a look at the list.

A high-spirited fountain shape from which springs an impressive flower stem: Cymbidium is the power babe amongst orchids. Its pointy leaves bob under long sprays which often hold more than ten flowers per stem, in golden brown, green, pink, red, white and yellow, with the lip as a landing platform for insects. One remarkable feature is that she also flowers in the winter when almost all her fellow orchids are hibernating.

Styling

Because of its shape, Cymbidium is rather top-heavy. A sturdy pot is a necessity. A sober style suits her best: heavy ceramic, a hollow tree trunk or a tall modern dish reinforces the personality of this domestic diva.

Orchid of the month

Every month we present a new orchid of the month. Want to find out which orchid it will be next month? Take a look at the list.

This dame doesn’t do modest. And why should she? A rich, layered crown of flowers rises into the air from a distinctively shaped trunk. The flowers are a feast of lilac, white, pink, yellow or green, whilst the broad lip almost always features a large dark spot, as if Dendrobium likes wearing lipstick.

Styling

Because Dendrobium is a wild and extravagant little madam, a calm setting is a good idea. Opt for smooth porcelain or glass pots, a Japanese lacquer box or a wooden dish or pot.

Orchid of the month

Every month we present a new orchid of the month. Want to find out which orchid it will be next month? Take a look at the list.

You can’t skirt round Paphiopedilum: a lady with royal allure and a seductive lip who attracts quite a few admirers in the wild. Flying insects are tempted with scents and the promise of nectar in the flower. As a houseplant this tropical beauty can cope very well without air-borne visitors. She is one of the easiest orchids to keep: you barely need to think about her.

Styling

Paphiopedilum looks excellent on her own in a pot which matches the leaf or the flower, but also does very well as a group act in terracotta. What looks particularly good with Paphiopedilum are simple earthenware, coarse linen or thick wool and rough wood.

Orchid of the month

Every month we present a new orchid of the month. Want to find out which orchid it will be next month? Take a look at the list.

90% of the orchids in the EU come from NL

90% of all the orchids in Europe come from Dutch greenhouses. A true mega-success.

Not many people realise that Dutch growers are the orchid champions of Europe. Yet that is the case, according to a report from ABN Amro about the plant sector. Every week the growers bring some 1.5 million mature orchids to market, which find their way to the consumer through auctions or contracts. There are now almost 500 football pitches worth of greenhouses filled with plants in the Netherlands.

Propagating orchids is hard work. It takes eight years before a new variety of orchid can be put into production. Most of the plants in the Netherlands are created using ‘meristem culture’. The aim of the propagation is ultimately to achieve the most beautiful high quality plant possible. With wild orchids that is virtually impossible. Their seedlings can contain viruses, and grow in all directions, as it were. You also get varying colours and heights, because the DNA of hundred or thousands of generations is contained within that seed. A lot of newly developed species never make it into large scale production. It really is survival of the fittest.

Why is the orchid plant such a success? It’s a plant which flowers for a long time, requires little care and is not at all expensive. It fits perfectly with the modern, demanding consumer.

Colour of the year for 2014!

On Thursday 5 December Pantone – the global authority in the field of colour – announced the colour for 2014: PANTONE 18-3224 Radiant Orchid, a compelling, magical and mysterious purple inspired by orchids.

A colour which is an invitation to innovation by enhancing creativity,” says Pantone executive director Leatrice Eiseman. “The colour also inspires confidence and emanates great joy, love and health. It is therefore a great colour in which to live and work, or to wear.”

Every year Pantone identifies the colour of the year which will influence the creative disciplines such as interiors, design, fashion and graphic design for twelve months. The scouts thereby also look at less obvious trend indicators such as art, films which are still in production and popular travel destinations.

How can you use this eye-catching colour in your own interior? Obviously with the aid of a potted orchid, which come in many beautiful shades of purple. Radiant Orchid works wonderfully when used next to olive or darker shades of green, or when you combine it with turquoise, teal or light yellow. Naturally it will liven up a neutral space which contains mainly grey, beige and taupe. One thing is certain: the warm colour and the orchid provide fresh energy and will shine in any interior.

www.pantone.com

From birth to maturity

The search for perfection requires patience. Breeders produce thousands of new hybrids every year. The period from the initial selection to the inclusion of an orchid in the range covers some 8 to 10 years. So it takes a while before a particular orchid variety ends up in the living room!

This year we will follow the orchid from selection through to cultivation into a beautiful mature plant. We would like to use video images to show how the orchid is born and grows into a magnificent houseplant.

The first phase

We start the first phase with the selection, breeding and tissue culture of the small orchid plants before they arrive at the growers for cultivation.

Every year the breeders produce thousands of new plants which are grown to the stage where the plant produces seed. When these flower, a few thousand are chosen for further selection. Clones of each of the varieties are then tested in various locations and for various properties. Ultimately a few dozen of these varieties will be included in the breeder’s range.

The plants are bred into uniform progeny in plant tissue culture laboratories. During the process the plant material passes through various phases. The development of the plant material is monitored closely in the growth chambers. Following the final phase, when the orchid plants develop a tiny root, they are delivered to the nursery where they are potted.

The journey from orchid to skincare product

Cosmetics house Guerlain has its own orchidarium. They grow their own long lasting orchids in order to use their extracts in their Orchidée Impériale cosmetic line.

Orchids: beautiful inside and out
Orchids grow in the wild, in the rainforest, before they end up in your home in a vase. They can grow there to be eighty and still look fresh, due to their high resistance to damaging climate influences and anti-inflammatory characteristics. So, they thought at Guerlain, would that work for our skin as well?

Guerlain’s orchidarium
Guerlain grows in their own orchidarium in Geneve and a nature reserve in TianZi (China) special orchids, which they are studying in the laboratory. It appears after more than 10 years of research that indeed: in the orchid are elements which can reduce the effects of skin ageing and repair the moisture in the skin. What is really great is that Guerlain can take this extract out of the flower and add it to their cosmetics.

Skincare line Orchidée Impériale
The long life of the orchid is taken from the orchidarium, via the laboratory and ends up in your bathroom. The skincare line Orchidée Impériale promises you a skin which is full, firm, smooth and supple, reducing the appearance of wrinkles. You can read more about the Orchidarium on the Guerlain website.

www.guerlain.com

Foto credit: Guerlain.com

Be inspired

Beards have been gracing the male jawline for a while now. They come in many shapes and sizes: the stubble beard and the shadow beard, but also the full and longer beard. Retro barbershops are very popular again in order to care for the latter type. Men have their beards trimmed, washed and combed whilst enjoying a drink and a pampering beard oil.

A ritual has now been added to this in America: full beards are being furnished with magnificent floral creations. Flower power is back! Obviously the Orchid is perfect for this. The wonderful shapes and colours result in surprising creative looks.

Be inspired by the photos below.

From birth to maturity

The search for perfection requires patience. Breeders produce thousands of new hybrids every year. The period from the initial selection to the inclusion of an orchid in the range covers some 8 to 10 years. So it takes a while before a particular orchid variety ends up in the living room!

This year we will follow the orchid from selection through to cultivation into a beautiful mature plant. We would like to use video images to show how the orchid is born and grows into a magnificent houseplant.

Phase 2: potting up and selection in the nursery

After around 25 weeks on average, the baby orchid has grown into a sturdy toddler. The shoots which were a few centimetres long have developed considerably at the nursery. It’s high time to ‘pot them up’ so that they can grow further in a more spacious pot.

The woodchips in the pot are referred to as ‘bark’. They’re chunks of tree bark – preferably hardwood, since the potting medium needs to last a long time. First for nearly eighteen months in the greenhouse, and then longer in the customer’s home.

These pieces of bark are carefully inserted into the pot, and are never pressed down, because an airy medium is important.

This film also shows how the plants appear on a monitor. Every plant passes in front of the camera, which not only looks at the size of the plant, but also the amount of foliage. Plants which are not large or green enough yet need to wait another week or two. Only then will they move to the next greenhouse to grow into an adult plant.