Ground orchids

In late 2015, we purchased our second home. While our ultimate goal remains to build a home on Bull Run, in the meantime, investment property and more space motivated us to purchase a home as opposed to begin building one.

With it came the opportunity to nurture and recreate an already existing garden and landscape.

I know many women (and couples like us with a home and child(ren)) who view landscaping as frivolous and even a bit ridiculous. We do not. Our home is the center of our lives together, something my husband an I decided years ago, before pregnancy and family life even was a blip on our radar. We surround ourselves with what makes us happy. Earth is one of those things that makes us happy, and we're discovering it makes our son happy, too. Flowers and food abound in our back and front yards. We play, learn, and rejoice among our plants.

Our extremely mild winter this year coupled with a bit of effort has provided our early spring garden with a few surprises.

We have found at least 20 ground orchids in our backyard near our patio and butting up against our house. 

The bulbs/rhizomes are beautiful and easily transplantable, and I have potted a few and moved a few to other wet locations in my yard. I initially thought they were a rhizome plant like a ginger, which made them difficult to identify until they bloomed. 

The foliage is very hardy, which I'm learning is characteristic of this orchid. It also seems these plants will bloom in the spring, then peter off as the summer arrives, leaving the long green leafs in their wake. 

Supposedly, this is the easiest terrestrial orchid to grow, and we are glad they were left for us to care for. I'm also glad for their designation as easy, because a soon-to-be three year old is constantly yanking them out the ground. We're ok with that.