Yes, they really looked like that. I haven't changed the colors.
I'd heard of this before, from Ivynettle, but this is so much worse than anything she described.
I emphasize that they really looked like this. April Fool's Day is still a few days away. This is a real thing, that exists in the world.
The husband had to draw my attention to them. ("Hey, did you see the blue orchids?") I had gone through the floral department (it's a grocery store), and had looked right at them, but apparently failed to recognize them as plants.
I didn't examine the stalks for punctures, but I assume that's how they made these: dye injected into the flowering stalks.
It makes the spray-painted points seem not so bad, right?
Somewhere, somebody is working on creating something even worse than this, and we're going to long for the halcyon days when people were injecting dye into Phalaenopsis flowers. What do you think it will be?
Was the soil blue, too? What about the leaves? I'm wondering if you could do this by just spiking the water.
ReplyDeleteDerek:
ReplyDeleteI didn't look at the soil, but I'd be surprised if you could water with dye and get this. Dyes are usually bigger molecules than I thought roots generally took up. Also you'd waste a lot of dye, when it ran back out whatever potting medium you were using, and I suspect customers would reject an orchid planted in blue bark.
Of course, I would have thought that customers would reject spray-painted poinsettias, too, so maybe I'm not the best judge.
They left the sequins off?
ReplyDeleteI have seen this done with cut daffodils placed in water and ink. I would have thought the roots would keep out the big molecules, as you say mr_s. It is possible that a colourless dye precursor could be absorbed then change in the plant. Let us hope they haven't got real scientists working on this.
I still think my idea of a colour-changing Lithops optica with LEDs under the soil would sell like hot-cakes.
Wow. And I thought gluing straw flowers onto cacti was bad.
ReplyDeletebut in some ways should we be all that surprised? they're making glow-in-the-dark cats. CATS!
there's nothing out there that people will alter to appease modern whims
You're kidding... I haven't seen these orchids here, but I figure it's just a matter of time. Yes, this is worse than the Poinsettias. I think the next 'victims' will be the cacti... Maybe in orange. Or red.
ReplyDeleteDamn, these things are everywhere. I've been seeing pics of them in Europe on Facebook all winter long. The other day one of the local bloggers went to the orchid show and sale and spotted one, but it was not as blue as these. These aren't even as blue as the ones I saw pics of earlier in the year.
ReplyDeleteI'm not really sure how I feel about these.
I saw a bunch of these at Canada Blooms this year - I'd successfully blocked them out of my memory until now.
ReplyDeleteThis is the source of that fugly ass fake:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.silvervase.com/blue-mystique-main.php
Dear Mr. Subjunctive,
ReplyDeleteI just wanted to stop by and say that you have inspired me to start my own blog, which you can find here: http://plantshavefeelings.blogspot.com/
While I am a novice indoor gardener, and my blog is a youngin', I can at least semi-boast about my 26 plants (30 plants if I include my sad, leggy herbs).
Keep up the wonderful writing and information that you post.
You truly are an inspiration for indoor gardeners and whenever I am looking for more detailed information, I always trot over to your blog.
P.S. I am jealous that you worked at a greenhouse.
Mike:
ReplyDeleteThanks. I notice they don't say how they do it, only that it's not paint, it's not a hybrid, and "it is the result of a patented process that infuses white orchids with a special medium." Which is consistent with injection of dye, but also consistent with watering plants with dye. So we still don't know, and since it's patented, they're not going to want to tell us.
I still think injection is most likely.
Oh my god. They have arrived!
ReplyDeleteThey've been getting progressively worse here since I first saw them - more strongly coloured (like in your pictures), and they are everywhere.
The puncture marks are usually easy to see - I just never had my camera with me when I saw them, or I would have taken a picture.
FYI, Check out the below link taken from Silver Vase Nursery's facebook fan's picture and the comments from "happy" customer -
ReplyDeletehttp://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150116300252834&set=o.193438544002756&ref=nf
I saw some of these back in Dec/January in South Africa at an orchid nursery; even the roots were slightly bluish.
ReplyDeleteThey're simultaneously quite striking and quite horrific.
There have been a couple of posts over at Orchid Board about these - some company has actually patented this process...
http://www.orchidboard.com/community/beginner-discussion/41071-artificially-blue-orchids.html
http://www.orchidboard.com/community/beginner-discussion/42904-blue-phaelenopsis-am-i-sucker.html
http://www.orchidboard.com/community/hybrids/43677-blue-mystique-phals.html?highlight=blue+mystique
Here's the US vendor's page about them: http://www.silvervase.com/blue-mystique-main.php
I saw such plants in Germany two years ago, but they weren't as blue as this. I did check their flower stalks and found out the colour was injected.
ReplyDeleteLast year I saw blue Anthurium andreanums too. I didn't check the flower stalks, because their tags said the next flowers would be returned to white.
I saw one of these abominations at of all places the local conservatory's retired orchid show...I was NOT amused...
ReplyDeleteHaven't seen them for sale around here yet though...YET.
They do this to tropical fishes too - which I think is bad taste. I am neutral for plants though - but if I have a choice it would be jet black.
ReplyDeleteIf you're talking about the so called "Glofish" those are actualy geneticly modified, not dyed. which while it does have it's own morality isssues for some is at least better than injecting them with dye.
ReplyDeleteOh, oh my, never mind. They really do dye some fish, that's Barbaric.
ReplyDeleteOtter Pop blue, or maybe birthday-cake-icing blue; totally consistent with the grocery-store aesthetic. Looks like Longwood Gardens was asking for feedback on them during this year's Orchid Extravaganza.
ReplyDeleteGhastly.
ReplyDeleteNero Wolfe would be rolling in his grave.
Hi,
ReplyDeleteI've seen some at a local nursery chain here in GR, Michigan. I noticed the roots had dark blue stains. I almost posted my cell phone pics of them on my (fairly new) plant blog for today.
Aaaaaand it gets worse!
ReplyDelete*shudder* I actually am already familiar with this atrocity. It doesn't get easier with repeated exposure. Please excuse me while I self administer some electroshock therapy in hopes of deleting this from my memory.........
ReplyDeleteZAP!
Longwood Gardens actually used these in their displays this year. It upset me.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I forgot to mention it but I love the title of this post. LOVE IT. I hope I'm not coming off as creepy and obsessed...
ReplyDeleteThey are injected. I saved a blue one and a lavender one from HyVee and the lady was nice enough to tell me that they wouldn't grow back those colors. Both of my plants have wounds on the spikes where they injected the dye. Not so secret and patented... Otherwise they seem healthy, hopefully they come back nicely in their next bloom cycle..
ReplyDeleteAnonymous:
ReplyDeleteYeah, I found one with a visible injection site about a week after I posted this; that post is here, and there's a bunch more stuff on the dyed-orchid craze under the label dye-infused plants.