Selena Sabine Visits Santa

Sabine paid her yearly visit to Santa and made a litany of requests.  Bean asked for a series of fine orchid specimens (along with the usual list of soft seafood treats).  Compared to the other kitties, Sabine spends the most amount of time in the orchid room, so it's natural that she's the kitty leading the demand for more orchids.

The first one on her list is Paph. delenatii.  Envious that Lan Lan has a slipper orchid, Bean is rallying for a few of her own.  Paph. delenatii is one of the few fragrant Paphiopedilums.  It's compact with a large and mesmerizing pink flower.  She also wants a Paph. malipoense, a dwarf Paph. with a light raspberry scent.

Bean is also craving a green Cattleya hybrid.  Perhaps a Lc. Green Veil 'Dressy' will fit the bill?  A grower writing on the OrchidBoard says that they smell like black pepper.  She's not sure if that's a good thing or not.  Blc. Greenwich 'Elmhurst' AM/AOS stands out as especially attractive this holiday season.  Bean spent a little time on AQ+ slowly scrolling through the ten amazing award-winners from Blc. Greenwich (Lc. Ann Follis x Blc. Lester McDonald).  'Elmurst' boasts of 5-6" apple-green petals, a splash of magenta on the lip, and a strong perfume.  In May 1976, Orchids by Hausermann won 84 points for 'Elmhurst' during the Florida North Central Monthly Judging.  The judges' description noted the "butter yellow" deep in the throat.  Hausermann is selling Blc. Greenwich 'Elmhurst' AM/AOS in three different pot sizes at very reasonable prices.  But Bean cautions me that Santa should probably wait until the March warm-up before acting as a fly-by-night courier for such delicate beauties.  After all, reindeer don't have heat packs.