Orchid Modern by Marc Hachadourian

Today's book recommendation: Orchid Modern by Marc Hachadourian

Marc Hachadourian is the senior curator of the incredible orchid collection at the New York Botanical Garden, and his book, Modern Orchidsis outstanding. The subtitle for the book is Living and Designing with the World’s Most Elegant Houseplants - so true, Marc.

You can read for yourself in Marc's book about the history of orchids and all the different types of orchids, but most of us simply want to know the answer to one or two questions like 'how do I keep my orchids happy and healthy?' and/or 'how do I get them to rebloom?'

To Marc, the answer to those questions is pretty straightforward. In general, we simply need to understand the growing conditions that orchids prefer. Marc teaches us what orchids like by asking us the following six questions:

Does the location have natural sunlight?
How strong is the sunlight?
How long does the location, receive natural light each day?
What temperatures will there be throughout the year? In the daytime? In the night?
Is the air constantly dry or doesn't have some moisture
And finally, how often will I water and care for the plants?

If you have an orchid lover in your family, this is the book for them. It would make a lovely Christmas present.

In addition to learning how to care for the orchids, you will get Marc's top picks for orchids, and he has 120 of them.

And, Marc also shares some pretty amazing projects that will add to the decor of your home, including terrariums, a wreath, and a kokedama. There's also a project that teaches us to make an orchid bonsai tree that is absolutely stunning. All of Marc's crafts and projects are a level up from something you would typically see in a gardening book.

Marc provides a level of sophistication and elegance with his work that I just have not seen in a garden book in some time. When I can look at a project and learn something - whether it's a new tool or new product that I can source for working with my own floral arrangements - I'm so appreciative.

So, hats off to Marc for tackling a subject that most of us feel we could use more help with (orchids) and by not dumbing it down.

Overall, Marc shares super-helpful pro-insights and modern options for incorporating our most beloved houseplant: orchids.