All along the way, she hopes to see a ghost orchid in bloom. She tours their nurseries and attends the orchids shows. Martin Motes, Bob Fuchs and Tom Fennell are just a few of the important and influential orchid growers with whom she meets. Susan meets a number of famous orchid growers and collectors as she researches the history and draw of orchids. In addition, she covers the history of the swamp itself and discusses how living creatures flourish in Florida with its one-of-a-kind support system for plants and animals. Susan travels there and hikes throughout the grounds to get a better feel for the environment where orchids flourish in the wild. The Fakahatchee Strand is an unusual place filled with living creatures in a unique swamp atmosphere. Laroche had been determined to take wild orchids out of the Fakahatchee Strand through the help of Seminole Indians, who are permitted to remove wild things from the preserve. In the meantime, a grower can have a successful career. When an orchid grower successfully creates a new hybrid of the flower, they have a seven year monopoly on the hybrid since it takes the flower seven years to bloom. Orchids are mutated and grown by collectors in a commercial environment. It seems that when someone begins to have an attraction to orchids, it will oftentimes become an obsession and they will have an expansive collection of rare and unusual orchids from around the world. Laroche introduces Susan to the world of orchid collecting. Of course, Laroche believes he is the smartest person he knows. While interacting with him, she finds one of the most eccentric, obsessive people that she has yet to come across. Susan meets John Laroche and attends his courtroom hearing with the Seminole Indians. She is intrigued when she reads the story and decides to investigate the situation further. Susan reads a newspaper clipping about a man named John Laroche and three Seminole Indians who have been accused of stealing orchids from the Fakahatchee Strand. The Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean is a story about the world of orchid growing and collecting, its history and the people who are involved in this form of collecting.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |