Orchid Borealis

Polystachya pubescens is a compact and cheerful species from South Africa , Swaziland and Eastern Zimbabwe  ( link  to a distribution map).  While it is common species in South Africa, it is either rare or extinct in Zimbabwe ( Flora of Zimbabwe ).  In South Africa, it occurs in  Eastern Cape , KwaZulu-Natal , Limpopo , Mpumalanga  according to this  South African Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) site .  This is the summer rain fall region, and the plants experience a prolonged dry season during the cooler winter months (Stewart and Hennessy 1981). The genus Polystachya is a moderately large genus with approximately 250 species.  It belongs to the subtribe Polystachyinae, which is a part of the tribe Vandeae, containing  Angraecum and Aerangis in addition to Vanda , Aerides , Phalaenopsis , Thrixspermum etc.  This genus is somewhat unique since it shows pan-tropical distribution (i.e. occurs in the tropics of A...

Last weekend was a big day.  It was Taiga's first fly fishing experience!  Well, it wouldn't be called as a big adventure by any means, but it was still a big deal for me and my 5 year old son, Taiga.  So I just wanted to write this down for myself before I forget. Somehow, fly fishing is a big deal to me; I'm probably romanticizing it for some reason.  It could be the influence from Norman Maclean's novel, A river Runs Through It , one of the first novels which I managed to read completely in English.  When the ultra-sound image showed the small bump between his legs, I didn't think much about a boy or a girl (we were happy with either).  But after a couple days, it started to sink into me, and a lot of thoughts started to flow through my mind.  Can he handle going through the somewhat cruel and hierarchical world of boyhood?  I was one of the smallest kids in the class.  I didn't get bullied much but I had to be "smart" to survive. ...