Lady's Slipper Orchid

Ahhhh, Phaphiopedilum....my favorite Orchid.

Yes, a very common orchid here. :>))

Oh, stop it with that word!!!! "common" ;o}

Can't help it, if so many plants here are very common or commonly available! It's just the way it is here in California. I do say when a plant is rare...which seems to be very rare! Hehehe! LOL! :>))

Hehehe lol... :o)

On a serious note: California is the "must have" state. We have to have everything! It doesn't matter what sector you're speaking of...

California is a very wealthy state (even with all the horrible economic problems). There's still many multi-millionaires and billionaires. California just recently dropped down to the 8th largest economy in the world...it used to be the 7th largest economy for many years.

This explains a little more:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_California

I nearly bought one just like that on Tuesday!
Now that I know where it is I'll pop back in two or three weeks and grab it cheap!

Meanie:

That's if someone doesn't beat you to it! :>)

This place is a happy hunting ground for me - if it's past its best it doesn't sell and gets heavily reduced!

You are sooo lucky "I" don't live near you!!!

It has to be done!!

It sounds like you found great place!

It's what we refer to as one of the "sheds" Delonix - part of a large chain and full of all sorts of crap unrelated to gardening! As a result the majority of their customers wouldn't look twice at an out of bloom Paph, so they then get knocked out cheap.

Meanie:

I've never heard of the term "sheds" before. It sounds like a great place for bargains -- my kind of place.

The sheds are super expensive Delonix! They go under the moniker of garden centres, but stock so much other stuff that they tend to be of little interest to me. Plants tend to be the same in most of them, but because of their buying power they occasionally have plants of interest - hold back until they're out of bloom and you can grab a bargain!

Okay, it's a high-end store. That's even better to get a terrific bargain on quality plants.