Amorphophallus titanum bloom

Joyce Miller Miller7398@comcast.net
Thu, 18 Jun 2009 19:02:50 PDT
Dear Ronald.
    Got your message.  Actually, I am not a particular fan of "Ted" but in 
flower it is quite a magnificent spectacle -- sort of like a giant 
Elizabethan collar.  At the time I saw "Ted" I was a volunteer with the 
conservatory.  I was their "orchid lady."  It took me four years to work 
through all the orchid pots that had not been repotted since 1999. 
Sometimes, when I tipped a plant out the medium bark we used had broken down 
and looked like peat moss.  In orchids, this can result in a possible toxic 
acidity.  I used to tease Ernesto, then curator, that he never made a fuss 
over when one of "my" beautiful orchids bloomed, but he made a big PR effort 
over a stinky plant.  Of course, I understood the importance of publicity 
for the conservatory.
    Best wishes, Joyce Miller, Gresham, Oregon, U.S.A. 


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