Orchid

I was asked to look after two orchids for a good friend (of my blip airfield espionage experience last week) who was going to live in America for a while - rather like an adoptive mother - quite flattering really that she thought I was green fingered and capable! Both plants were blooming, lush and tickety boo when they arrived here at their new home and knowing I would have to account to her in later years I did my utmost!

Put them with my my two orchids which we had actually bought at a garden fair together and thought ,'Bob's your uncle' easy.. I had never had any problems but within weeks they started to look dodgy! Fractionally worried at the wilting I read waded through a few loads of books so they were tended with the utmost care!! Oh I tried absolutely everything to keep them happy but....no luck, not even a tiny bit. There was no pleasing them : watered, not watered, cold, heat, light, no light, room to room, the front of the house and the back of the house, a little bit of spray .............you name it I did it ! Talking to your plants...oh yes!!!! Though near the end they were not getting lovingly coaxing words and probably why they rapidly bit the dust. A mystery! Strangely she has never asked about them and I certainly haven't brought the subject up!

I was given this orchid a couple of years ago and have still managed to get it to flower -result!!