Well Howard, lookee here, you want to go to Chicago. Lots of company. The thing with going back to NY rather than elsewhere, for me, is that NY is easy to get into and out of, I can do a RT in one day, don't need hotels, don't need to rent a car, don't need a pet sitter at home etc, etc, etc..... That and I don't feel like taking my vacations in the States going to orchid shows. If I'm going to go to the trouble of organizing a few days out of town, I want it to be well worth it. Albeit,it's fun meeting people from the forum. Not having Paul around anymore to take care of the dogs and birds, when I decide to disappear for a couple of days, just adds another "issue" to consider. At the moment,I don't have the energy.

I've wanted a clivia for years, but never found any locally and tried to get some seeds or plants on trade here in the exchange section with no luck. But recently I stumbled upon a clump of plants in a planting at work and grabbed two purple pods off a plant (yesterday). I'm now obsessing over getting them to grow and am reading through all the threads I can find. I hope to one day have the luck you have with your orange plant(s). They're Gorgeous!! If you ever find a need to... ahem... thin them out... :)

I'm not exactly an expert on getting clivia to bloom but I believe they would need a bit more fertilizer. I use Osmocote pellets in the spring which last for 9 months. After a summer outside with some protection from the hot burning sun which will bleach the leaves white in a short time I stop watering completely for 2 months. Indoors they don't need much light so outside they need shade for sure. This is a dry rest period. Resume watering and fertilizer again and you should get blooms. They also come with variegated striped leaves and in various colors beside deep orange there is a pale yellow, peach ect. Good Luck!

Electron is one of the bright colors of summer. Thank you for sharing.