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Merkle's Orchids is owned and operated by Ed and Lydia Merkle of Nashville, Tennessee. We welcome you to our website, and we hope you enjoy your visit. We've put together this website just for you. Here you'll find the many photographs that Ed has taken, information on orchid culture, and a listing of the plants we offer for sale. So, whether you are seeking out orchids for the first time, or perhaps you already have a few on your windowsill, or you're thoroughly in over your head like we are, we hope you enjoy yourself here and ya'll come back anytime you please. Orchid growing is a fascinating hobby that is enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of people worldwide. There are nearly 30,000 different species of orchids in nature, and new ones are discovered every year...an almost endless variety. Man began hybridizing them in the mid-1800's and now there are well over 100,000 hybrids, with hundreds of new ones produced every year. The sale of orchid plants to the public has seen explosive growth recently with millions of plants sold in the United States each year and even more abroad. The world is going crazy for orchids. |
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Ed bought his first orchid, a white Cattleya, in 1976, while he was in college, and he immediately became enthralled. That first orchid plant has "blossomed" into a satisfying hobby, a part-time business, and an award-winning orchid breeding program. The orchids which grew on Ed's college dorm windowsill soon became a small collection that needed a fluorescent light shelf. The collection grew still larger until a whole basement was transformed into a grow-room with HID lamps. Finally, a greenhouse was built in 1996 and then replaced with a second, larger greenhouse in 1999. The photo at left is our 1000 square foot orchid greenhouse in bloom, spring of 2002. In 2000, we bought a digital camera to take photos of our orchids as they bloomed. We then shared our orchid photos with friends over the internet and soon people were emailing requests to buy our plants. Well, the need for a website became obvious, so Ed learned how to build a website and got our site on the internet in November 2002. We believe its a natural progression of our hobby and its opened our "virtual" greenhouse for the whole world to enjoy. |
| Ed made his first serious attempt at orchid breeding in 1994, when he bred two of his plants, Phalaenopsis Kuntrarti Rarashati 'Bunker Hill' and Doritis pulcherrima 'Lydia'. When the first of these plants bloomed in 1997, this hybrid, Doritaenopsis Pico Lady Ruby, won three Awards of Merit and the highly coveted Award of Quality from the American Orchid Society. Ed continued to breed orchids, and a second of Ed's hybrids won the Award of Quality in 2001. This time it was Phalaenopsis Jori Moore (named after Lydia's sister) a hybrid of the same Phalaenopsis Kuntrarti Rarashati 'Bunker Hill' crossed with tiny Phalaenopsis Zuma's Pixie 'Dark Forest'. More of Ed's special hybrids are currently blooming in our greenhouse and even more little seedlings are on their way. |  |
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We've had a lot of fun displaying our plants at orchid shows around the country. The photo at left is from the Nashville orchid show held in October 2001, and is just one of many dozens of ours over the years. Orchid shows provide a tremendous opportunity to see new varieties, find some good prices, meet new friends, and catch-up with old ones. There are orchid shows held every weekend of the year somewhere in the US, perhaps nearby, and you should really go see one. The next orchid show in Nashville, Tennessee will be in May of 2008. |
| We are members of our local orchid society, the Orchid Society of Middle Tennessee, which meets at Cheekwood Botanical Gardens here in Nashville, the 3rd Tuesday of each month, at 7:00 PM. We participate in the Society's many activities, including the orchid display at the Nashville Lawn & Garden show. The photo to the right is part of the 2001 display which was over 400 sq ft in size, and contained many of our own plants, lighting, and other materials. |
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| Here are our award winning 2005 Orchid Displays..... | |
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Our display at the Heart of Dixie Orchid Show in Huntsivlle, Alabama, April 2 & 3, 2005. We won trophy for best 25 sq ft display in open competition, our plant of Cattleya schilleriana won trophy for Best Cattleya Alliance, our plant of Wilsonara Kolibri won trophy for Best Oncidium Alliance, and many blue ribbons as well as 2nd and 3rd place ribbons. |
| Our display at the Smokey Mountain Orchid Show, Knoxville, Tennessee, April 16 & 17 2005. Our 25 sq ft display won the coveted American Orchid Society Show Trophy for Most Outstanding Orchid Display, our first time for this trophy! Our display also won the trophy for Best Display in open competition, Best Cattleya, Best Cymbidium Alliance, and Best Oncidium Alliance, as well as many blue ribbons and 2nd and 3rd place ribbons. If that weren't enough, our plant of Vanda cristata 'Lydia Merkle' won the coveted AOS Award of Merit AND the Certificate of Cultural Merit. |
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Our display at the Nashville Orchid Show, Nashville, Tennessee, April 30 & May 1, 2005. Our 50 sq ft display again won the coveted American Orchid Society Show Trophy for Most Outstanding Orchid Display, as well as trophy for best display in open competition, trophy for Best Cattleya Alliance, the Best Vanda Alliance, and the Best Grown Plant in Show, as well as many ribbons. In addition, our plant of Promenaea Meadow Gold 'Lydia Merkle' won the coveted AOS Award of Merit AND the Certificate of Cultural Merit. |
| Our display at the Alabama Orchid Society Show, Birmingham, Alabama, September 24 & 25, 2005. Oue 25 sq ft display won our third American Orchid Society Show Trophy for the year, as well as seven other trophies including: best display in open competition, best specimen plant, best Dendrobium, best Cattleya, best Phragmipedium, best Phalaenopsis, and best Paphiopedilum. |
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Our display at the Memphis Orchid Society Show, Memphis, Tennessee, October 29 & 30, 2005. Our 25 sq ft display won trophy for best display in open competition, best Cattleya, and best Phalaenopsis. The 23 plants in the display won 15 blue ribbons. |
| Click here to see our previous orchid displays..... | |
