Blooming sales

Bryce Alderton

Not one, not two, but three floors of orchids from around the world

filled South Coast Plaza during the weekend as enthusiasts gathered to

appreciate, buy and learn more about the colorful plants.

More than 60 vendors from areas are far as Taiwan, Hawaii, Mexico,

Thailand and the Philippines converged on the Costa Mesa mall’s Crate &

Barrel/Macy’s Home Wing from Thursday to Sunday for the 22nd annual

Fascination of Orchids International Show and Sale.

Among the more than 100 orchid displays was the 30-foot “Majestic

Jungle” designed by Don Davidson, a floral and Rose Parade designer.

The display depicted a mother tiger sitting atop a grassy cliff with

two cubs below her. Bamboo and tropical blooms of oncidium and dendrobium

orchids, fragrant ginger blossoms, red anthurium and heliconias flanked

the mother while yellow, pink and purple hues from plants such as banana

blossoms and proteas surrounded the cubs.

The tigers were made out of dehydrated carrots and bell peppers

softened with cardoon puffs and pampas plumes, and were striped with

black seaweed and onion seeds. They drew much attention from the many

onlookers.

“I like the whimsy of the tigers,” said Barbara Monahan-Burke, a

Studio City resident and garden designer who came to Sunday’s show with

Newport Beach resident Margaret Burke, her mother-in-law. “It’s

inspirational to see the combinations they use.”

The two are flower lovers and have been coming to the show for as long

as they can remember.

“This is the nicest display I’ve seen,” Burke said. “It makes me think

I’m in Hawaii.”

Every year for the past five years, Bob and Linda Enochs of Monarch

Beach have attended the show where Linda gets her Valentine’s Day present

-- an orchid.

This year’s gift was a magenta-colored Miltoniopsis, or a “Pansy

Orchid,” which Enochs couldn’t wait to get home to add to her 15-orchid

collection.

“This has an unusual face and color, a variety that I don’t have and

one that is pretty without blooms as it is with blooms,” she said. “I

love orchids because of their gracefulness and color. It’s so exciting to

see a spike coming out of something. This is my valentine.”

For some vendors, Sunday’s show was the largest show they’ve ever

attended.

Such was the case with ABC Orchids & Tropicals from Lafayette, La.

Owner Bob Chauvin drove three days to Costa Mesa for the show.

He said sales weren’t what he expected but he took advantage of the

four-day show to speak with other growers and buy plants to take home.

“We’re short of where we’re hoping to be, but it’s nice to visit with

Hawaiian growers and meet them face to face,” Chauvin said. “This is a

well-organized show.”

The biggest sellers for ABC were the indoor orchid Phalaenopsis, which

has blooms that come on spikes ranging from 1 to 48 inches long with

colors from white to a red-lavender so dark it approaches black, and the

outdoor orchid Cymbidium, Chauvin said.

Steady streams of customers greeted Fred Clarke, owner of Sunset

Valley Orchids in Vista, Calif., during his second year at the show.

“It’s been as good as last year,” Clarke said. “We’ve had a steady

stream of customers -- a good turnout with people.”

Orchid lovers were particularly attracted to a light lavender Cattleya

that had pale blue flowers splashed with a dark blue ring around the

petal’s edge, he said.

The show was expected to attract about 100,000 visitors during its

four days.

* Bryce Alderton is the news assistant. He may be reached at (949)

574-4298 or by e-mail at o7 bryce.alderton@latimes.comf7 .