Download or read book The Orchid Thief written by Susan Orlean and published by Ballantine Books. This book was released on 2011-07-20 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK A modern classic of personal journalism, The Orchid Thief is Susan Orlean’s wickedly funny, elegant, and captivating tale of an amazing obsession. Determined to clone an endangered flower—the rare ghost orchid Polyrrhiza lindenii—a deeply eccentric and oddly attractive man named John Laroche leads Orlean on an unforgettable tour of America’s strange flower-selling subculture, through Florida’s swamps and beyond, along with the Seminoles who help him and the forces of justice who fight him. In the end, Orlean—and the reader—will have more respect for underdog determination and a powerful new definition of passion. In this new edition, coming fifteen years after its initial publication and twenty years after she first met the “orchid thief,” Orlean revisits this unforgettable world, and the route by which it was brought to the screen in the film Adaptation, in a new retrospective essay. Look for special features inside. Join the Random House Reader’s Circle for author chats and more. Praise for The Orchid Thief “Stylishly written, whimsical yet sophisticated, quirkily detailed and full of empathy . . . The Orchid Thief shows [Orlean’s] gifts in full bloom.”—The New York Times Book Review “Fascinating . . . an engrossing journey [full] of theft, hatred, greed, jealousy, madness, and backstabbing.”—Los Angeles Times “Orlean’s snapshot-vivid, pitch-perfect prose . . . is fast becoming one of our national treasures.”—The Washington Post Book World “Orlean’s gifts [are] her ear for the self-skewing dialogue, her eye for the incongruous, convincing detail, and her Didion-like deftness in description.”—Boston Sunday Globe “A swashbuckling piece of reporting that celebrates some virtues that made America great.”—The Wall Street Journal

Download or read book Orchid written by Jim Endersby and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2016-11-07 with total page 313 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The prize-winning history of the orchid: “an engaging and enlightening account of one of the Earth's most mythologized botanical wonders” (Richard Conniff, author of House of Lost Worlds). At once delicate, exotic, and elegant, orchids are beloved for their singular, instantly recognizable beauty. Found in nearly every climate, the many species of orchid have had varying forms of significance in countless cultures over time. Following the orchid’s journey from Ancient Greek medicine to twentieth century detective novels, science historian Jim Endersby explores the flower’s four recurring themes: science, empire, sex, and death. Orchids were a symbol of the exotic riches sought by 19th century Europeans in their plans for colonization. They became subjects of scientific scrutiny for Charles Darwin, who investigated their methods of cross-pollination. As Endersby shows, orchids—perhaps because of their extraordinarily diverse colors, shapes, and sizes—have also bloomed repeatedly in films, novels, plays, and poems, from Shakespeare to science fiction. Featuring many gorgeous illustrations from the collection of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Orchid: A Cultural History was awarded the Watson Davis and Helen Miles Davis Prize by the History of Science Society. It is an enchanting tale not only for gardeners and plant collectors, but anyone curious about the flower’s obsessive hold on the imagination in history, cinema, literature, and more.

Download or read book A History of the Orchid written by Merle A. Reinikka and published by Timber Press. This book was released on 2008-11-14 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An engaging account of humanity's growing fascination with orchids from ancient times onward, together with a biographical gallery of 50 great scientists, naturalists, and explorers who contributed to our knowledge of orchids. The nomenclature and bibliography have been updated for this edition. This book is only available through print on demand. All interior art is black and white.

Download or read book The Orchid Thief written by Susan Orlean and published by Wheeler Publishing, Incorporated. This book was released on 1999 with total page 370 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The orchid thief is John Laroche, a renegade plant dealer and sharply handsome guy in spite of the fact that he is missing all his teeth and has the posture of al dente spaghetti. This national bestseller follows him into the Florida swamp to relate his mesmerizing true story of beauty and obsession.

Download or read book Orchid Muse A History of Obsession in Fifteen Flowers written by Erica Hannickel and published by W. W. Norton & Company. This book was released on 2022-12-20 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Longlisted for the 2023 PEN/E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award A kaleidoscopic journey into the world of nature’s most tantalizing flower, and the lives it has inspired. The epitome of floral beauty, orchids have long fostered works of art, tales of adventure, and scientific discovery. Tenacious plant hunters have traversed continents to collect rare specimens; naturalists and shoguns have marveled at orchids’ seductive architecture; royalty and the smart set have adorned themselves with their allure. In Orchid Muse, historian and home grower Erica Hannickel gathers these bold tales of the orchid-smitten throughout history, while providing tips on cultivating the extraordinary flowers she features. Consider Empress Eugenie and Queen Victoria, the two most powerful women in nineteenth-century Europe, who shared a passion for Coelogyne cristata, with its cascading, fragrant white blooms. John Roebling, builder of the Brooklyn Bridge, cultivated thousands of orchids and introduced captivating hybrids. Edmond Albius, an enslaved youth on an island off the coast of Madagascar, was the first person to hand-pollinate Vanilla planifolia, leading to vanilla’s global boom. Artist Frida Kahlo was drawn to the lavender petals of Cattleya gigas and immortalized the flower’s wilting form in a harrowing self-portrait, while more recently Margaret Mee painted the orchids she discovered in the Amazon to advocate for their conservation. The story of orchidomania is one that spans the globe, transporting readers from the glories of the palace gardens of Chinese Empress Cixi to a seedy dime museum in Gilded Age New York’s Tenderloin, from hazardous jungles to the greenhouses and bookshelves of Victorian collectors. Lush and inviting, with radiant full-color illustrations throughout, Orchid Muse is the ultimate celebration of our enduring fascination with these beguiling flowers.

Download or read book Orchids written by Wilma Rittershausen and published by Soma Books. This book was released on 1999 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This beautiful and original guide to the world's most glamorous flower reveals the limitless fascination of orchids. It captures the romance of their history, illuminates the contemporary triumphs of hybridization, and provides the key to growing them successfully at home. -- Over 250 stunning photographs by Linda Burgess capture the diversity and exotic appeal of orchids. -- Text by Wilma and Brian Rittershausen, unrivalled experts in the orchid world. -- Practical, step-by-step, illustrated information on the care and cultivation of orchids. -- An illustrated directory of over 150 orchids is arranged according to their growing conditions, with anecdotal breeding history and details of individual care. -- The only book on orchids to carry the authority of the Royal Horticultural Society.

Download or read book A Passion for Orchids written by Jack Kramer and published by Prestel Publishing. This book was released on 2002 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This cultural history of the orchid includes 60 colour plates of antique orchid illustrations by such botanical illustrators as Martin J. Heade, Lucien Linden and Walter Hood Fitch. Each illustration is accompanied by a brief history of the artist.

Download or read book Fascination with Orchids written by Cheng Cheng Tan and published by . This book was released on 2001 with total page 18 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Orchids for Everyone written by Charles Henry Curtis and published by . This book was released on 1910 with total page 460 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Orchids for Everyone Classic Reprint written by Charles H. Curtis and published by . This book was released on 2015-06-29 with total page 438 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Excerpt from Orchids for Everyone The object of the present work is to extend greatly the popularity of Orchids among that ever-increasing class of business people who have a great love for plants and flowers, and find in their study and culture a delightful recreation and an absorbing hobby. The arrangement of the subject matter is unique. No previous attempt has been made to group Orchids according to their value for general cultivation, and it is believed that the system will appeal strongly to those who contemplate the culture of Orchids, as well as to those thousands who have newly fallen under the fascination of these wonderfully beautiful and interesting plants. This arrangement should be the means of saving beginners from much vexation of spirit, and from the disappointment and loss that are sure to follow a bad selection of kinds to start with. In the first group the best kinds with which to commence Orchid culture are indicated clearly, and in the selection due regard has been paid to beauty, interest, ease of culture, and cost. The best methods of culture are described, and many of those little details that make all the difference between success and comparative failure are pointed out. For those who, after achieving some success, are willing to incur the expense of obtaining and cultivating them, the rarer and more highly-priced Orchids are also described; while Orchid genera of secondary importance, and those that appeal by their quaintness and botanical interest, are included towards the end of the book. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Download or read book Orchid Species from Himalaya and Southeast Asia Vol 3 R Z written by Eng Soon Teoh and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2022-05-03 with total page 185 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A presentation of over 700 popular orchid species in 104 genera carefully detailed with beautiful photographs and concise descriptions of plants, their distribution and habitats by a well-known author and photographer. Each genus is assigned a separate chapter. Coverage of the most commonly cultivated Asian species including their varieties and cultivars (e.g. in Bulbophyllum 72 species; Coelogyne 33 species; Dendrobium 161 species; Paphiopedilum 58 species; Phalaenopsis 60 species; Vanda 44 species) is exhaustive. The orchids are photographed from their best perspective, individual blooms and entire inflorescence: additionally, many species are also shown growing in their natural habitat. Representative hybrids are included to illustrate how some species have contributed to show-worthiness of various genera, their adaptation to a wider climate range, and easy cultivation. This book is a pleasure to view; simultaneously, an easy reference for the identification of orchid species and it provides a guide on how best to grow them. Nowhere else will one find so many popular species beautifully illustrated in a single volume. A must for everyone fascinated by orchids or with a love for nature.

Download or read book The Orchid Book written by J. Cullen and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1992-11-12 with total page 580 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The rich and often bizarre variety of form exhibited by orchids has long provided a fascination for amateur and professional botanists alike. Once seen as a hobby exclusively for the rich, the cultivation of orchids is now widespread and the need for an accurate and simple guide to the identification of species in cultivation has become apparent. This book aims to fulfill that need by providing botanically correct, yet easily accessible information about this unique and exceptionally diverse group of plants. The main part of the book is based on the text of the family Orchidaceae published in the second volume of The European Garden Flora, with the information fully updated and displayed in a revised format. Simple keys to the genera and to the species allow access to descriptions of 900 individual species which also include references to published illustrations and other useful information. Numerous line drawings of diagnostic features help to make the keys and descriptions easy to understand and use. A brief introduction covers the structural features of orchids important in identification, and gives some information on cultivation and a list of general references.

Download or read book Britain s Orchids written by Sean Cole and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2020-11-03 with total page 288 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An accessible, comprehensive and beautifully illustrated guide--the only one to cover all the orchids found in Britain and Ireland Covering more than fifty species as well as hybrids and variants, this is an engaging, intuitive and in-depth identification guide to all the orchids of Britain and Ireland at all stages of development, from first emergence through to setting seed. Drawing on the authors' extensive field experience and the latest scientific research, Britain's Orchids uses multiple techniques to help both beginner and more advanced orchid enthusiasts to identify even the trickiest plants. The book is beautifully illustrated with plates by talented artist Sarah Stribbling as well as more than 1,000 detailed, instructive and evocative photographs by the authors. Orchids have long fired the imagination with their beauty and rarity. This book aims to ignite or increase your passion for these special plants and for the conservation of their habitats, from remote mountaintops to urban wild spaces. The first book to cover all the species, subspecies and varieties, as well as hybrids, at all stages of development Lavishly illustrated with close to 100 stunning plates drawn to scale to show key identification features and more than 1,000 stunning photo showing orchids in their natural settings Simple, step-by-step system for identifying almost any orchid Up-to-date distribution maps and seasonal charts showing when each species can be seen in its various stages Special-feature identification keys that can be used on difficult plants

Download or read book Royal Horticultural Society written by Wilma Rittershausen and published by . This book was released on 2003-01-04 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This glorious guide to the world's most glamorous flower reveals the limitless fascination of orchids. It captures the romance of their history, illuminates the triumphs of hybridization, and provides the key to growing them successfully at home. The heart of this book is a close look at some of the most intriguing and colourful gems of the orchid world, including several new species not previously seen in print. And good news for timid gardeners--all are readily available and easy to grow! With dazzling photographs that convey the individual beauty of each plant, this book is for people who would like to try to grow an orchid as well as those who want to tackle a new type.

Download or read book Field Guide to the Wild Orchids of Texas written by Paul Martin Brown and published by . This book was released on 2008 with total page 350 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "In his tenth book covering the wild orchids of North America, botanist Paul Martin Brown turns to the Lone Star State. From the Big Thicket to the Big Bend, from the panhandle to the coastal plains, FIELD GUIDE TO THE WILD ORCHIDS OF TEXAS is the first native orchid field guide to cover all of the state's eco-regions. In addition to the many insider orchid-hunting tips Brown provides, he also recommends trip itineraries offering the fullest viewing of native orchids at their peak seasons. This handy guide covers more than 50 species and varieties, several of which are new to Texas and, in some cases, even brand-new to the orchid world. Brown also covers numerous color and growth forms. FIELD GUIDE TO THE WILD ORCHIDS OF TEXAS includes all the essential tools-field photographs, diagnostic line drawings, and useful reference keys-to quickly and easily identify an orchid discovered in the wild. A checklist of the state's wild orchids and charts listing optimal flowering times and distribution by region make this a user-friendly year-round guide. Though many may not realize it, Texas is home to some of the rarest orchid species in the world. FIELD GUIDE TO THE WILD ORCHIDS OF TEXAS is a valuable and comprehensive resource for the casual hiker and lover of the outdoors."--BOOK JACKET.

Download or read book Travels and Adventures of an Orchid Hunter written by Albert Millican and published by . This book was released on 1891 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Orchid Folios written by Mok Zining and published by Ethos Books. This book was released on 2022-08-12 with total page 147 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “When you take an orchid out of its pot, you must first loosen the roots’ hold on the soil. Late last evening as I unravelled the braids of the shattered phalaenopsis, I saw how the ends were white and shrivelled from neglect. You have to do it gently—it’s like combing hair. I remember Mum’s fingers running through mine, and mine through hers, until the final months when all of it started to fall.” A pot shatters. An arrangement falls apart. A florist finds herself amidst the scattered leaves of history. At once a poetry collection and a documentary novella, The Orchid Folios reimagines the orchid as a living, breathing document of history: a history that enmeshes the personal, colonial, linguistic, and biotechnological with the Vanda Miss Joaquim, the symbol of Singapore’s postcolonial hybridity. While the Orchid has shaped the fantastical narratives that govern our multiracial City in a Garden, it continues to shape-shift and bloom on its own terms, challenging us to imagine a decolonised Singapore. This is the organism at the heart of The Orchid Folios—by turns stark and unruly, documenting and challenging the narratives that are the roots of our national consciousness.