Our Trip To The Orchid Factory

Several days ago, we hired a driver, Miguel, to take Pam and I plus one other couple we met (Don and Elizabeth from Chicago) to a town north of Cuenca called Gualaceo. Before I tell you about the orchids, a word about Miguel, a 31 year old Ecuadorian who lives on farm with cows. He lived in New York City as a chauffeur where he earned enough money to return home to purchase is farm. His wife and  two teenage children remain in New York.Because of his time in New York, his English was good enough for us to communicate, combined with our limited espanol.

On to the orchid factory, called Ecuagenera. (http://www.ecuagenera.com). We learned that the orchid family, one of the most populous of all plant families is of great importance to Ecuador. It is believed that there are more than 4000 species of orchids in Ecuador, ranking this country as one of the most richly populated areas of the world.


This is our guide, Michelle:

 

This is the first step of a seven-year process. Seedlings are placed in sealed bottles and stored at a specific temperature.













 One of the final results is the beautiful monkey-face orchid. Incredible! Following is another variety which are endless.