Orchids!

I always have at LEAST 12 projects going at once. Just ask Jade. (he's rolling his eyes.)

These projects become sort of personalities within themselves... some even developing voices to speak to me in dreams or in keep me from sleeping at night, urging me to create them. I know that sounds crazy- but that's the way I've always been. (;

One of these projects is my Orchid series. I have an infatuation with orchids, and I would love to paint each and every one of them if I could. Unfortunately, there are over 22,000 orchid species discovered SO FAR in the world. This does NOT include hybrids! (the ones most people see in stores or at shows.) Orchids are everywhere- they're even in Michigan. They are fascinating plants- some growing from the branches of trees in the tropics- some in swamps, others are terrestrial, such as the lady's slippers- and resemble some sort of alien life form.

Many of them have very interesting names- like the one named after Dracula. They are also used for some surprising things... (I quote wiki here)

One orchid genus, Vanilla, is commercially important, used as a foodstuff flavouring.

The underground tubers of terrestrial orchids (mainly Orchis mascula (Early Purple Orchid)) are ground to a powder and used for cooking, such as in the hot beverage salep or the so-called "fox-testicle ice cream" salepi dondurma.

The scent of orchids is frequently analysed by perfumists (using Gas-liquid chromatography) to identify potential fragrance chemicals.

And if you're really a nerd like me, keep reading...

Orchidaceae (or Orchid family) is the largest family of the flowering plants (Angiospermae).^[1][2] Its name is derived from the genus Orchis.

The Royal Botanical Gardens of Kew list 880 genera and nearly 22,000 accepted species, but the exact number is unknown (perhaps as many as 25,000)^[3] because of taxonomic disputes. The number of orchid species equals about four times the number of mammal species, or more than twice the number of bird species. It also encompasses about 6–11% of all seed plants.^[4] About 800 new orchid species are added each year. The largest genera are Bulbophyllum (2,000 species), Epidendrum (1,500 species), Dendrobium (1,400 species) and Pleurothallis (1,000 species). The family also includes the Vanilla (the genus of the vanilla plant), Orchis (type genus) and many commonly cultivated plants like some Phalaenopsis or Cattleya.

Moreover, since the introduction of tropical species in the 19th century, horticulturists have more than 100,000 hybrids and cultivars.

And none of this mentions the sheer unusual beauty they possess.... Anyway. I'm slightly infatuated... lol

Thanks for reading!