Orchids Galore

Last weekend, Alejandro and I took the Metrobus to the neighborhood of San Angel on Mexico City's south side.   Our destination was a museum in a colonial house known as the "Casa del Risco".  It was built in the mid-1700s, and in 1963 it was inaugurated as a cultural center and museum.

In the courtyard of the house there is an enormous 18th century fountain which is decorated with porcelain from China and Japan, a reminder of the trade which existed between Asia and the Spanish colony of Mexico in that era.

The courtyard was filled with a variety of orchids from Guatemala.  There had been a contest, and some of the plants bore prize ribbons.

In the next room there was an orchid sale.

As lovely as the orchids were, I was not tempted to buy any.  It would have been inconvenient to try to carry a plant back to the apartment on the Metrobus.  Besides, I am not buying any more orchids until the one I have reblooms.  My plant is very healthy with new leaves, and it is shooting off new air roots.  But it does not want to bloom.  I talked to a couple guys at the show about my orchid.  One said that I need to give it cool nights, but another said "no".  The kind of orchid I have, phalaenopsis, is a hot climate orchid.  However, when I returned home I did some research on the internet.  Even though phalaenopsis grows in tropical climates, it likes an evening temperature between 55 and 65 degrees Fahrenheit.  So, I am going to put it out on my glassed-in balcony at night, open one of the windows, but keep it out of any drafts.  We'll see if with the cooler night temperature it decides to rebloom.