New from Tampa

[catthom]

Hi,
My name is Catherine, but I go by Cat. I live in Tampa, Florida on an acre and a half pocket swamp on the Hillsborough River. I have been growing orchids for over 20 years- but I'm more a hobbyist than a serious collector. I got into orchids by buying some unlabeled, bare root babies at a nursery sale (these would be NOIDs?) that grew and bloomed- that got me hooked. I got many of my orchids as cuttings/plant divisions from friends- but I also buy from a couple of local growers, most notably Louis Del Favero. As my orchids have grown and overgrown- I've passed them on to friends- 2 of whom are now far more serious than I. They make fun of my haphazard collection!
I love great big red cattleyas, vivid purple Vandas, Florida native orchids (but, never from the wild) and anything that is unusual or strange. After this years long cold spell, I'm probably down to about 50 plants. My big plan is to start setting various of my orchids free- I am researching which plants will free grow here, then I will establish them up in our trees (we have close to 50 large oak, cypress, sweet bay, elm, mulberry, persimmon, citrus etc) and let them do as they may. Well, after some judicious watering to get them on their feet. Since we have a true, but small wetland- I'm hoping our little micro-climate will work in my favor.
Cat