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Community Corner

New Residents Show How to Bloom at Sedgebrook

“Show me an orchid that likes to be watered with ice cubes and I’ll show you an orchid about to die,” says Seymour Bartlett, master gardener in both Illinois and Florida, Orchid Doctor and recent new resident at Sedgebrook senior living community in Lincolnshire.

Bartlett needed only to attend a meeting held by the American Orchid Society (AOS) to be captured by the science and magic of these delicate flowers. Now it’s been a passion of his for decades.  While living in Boca Raton Florida, he volunteered at the AOS and became an Orchid Doctor.  He served as one of the authorities on how to care for your orchids when calling into the Master Gardener hotline.  At one point he tended 400 orchids at a time.  Just before moving to Sedgebrook, he had 150 of the precious plants.

His dedication to gardening and especially orchids will continue to blossom at Sedgebrook.  In fact, as soon as the dust settles from the couple’s move, he will give a talk on orchids and then start a class for residents to learn and tend to these exotic flowers.  His last class attracted all men but he expects a women too in the one he will give at Sedgebrook.

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Cattleyas are his favorite type of orchid.  It is one of approximately 24,000 varieties of the plant and comes in a variety of colors.  Scoring one of these plants could cost up to $20,000 according to Bartlett.  The color range for orchids is extensive and nearly 75% of them actually have a scent.   Most common now in the United States is the Phalenopsis Orchid because it is easy to care for.  Like all orchids, it likes bright light but not direct sunlight and should not be in standing water or it will die.  The vanilla bean and hence, vanilla extract, also comes from an orchid that bloom for less than one day.

Orchids became popular in the 1940’s and were a sought-after corsage flower for dances.  Bartlett has grown a variety of orchids in many of their natural habitats including on rocks, bare-rooted and in the ground. According to his wife, Idell, “If Seymour is nearby, the orchids will grow beautifully.”

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Sedgebrook is a continuing care retirement community (CCRC) offering a diverse lifestyle, maintenance-free living and outstanding amenities. Five-star rated Radford Green Health Care and Rehabilitation is located on the 92-acre Sedgebrook campus in Lincolnshire, Illinois.  Sedgebrook is owned by Senior Care Development LLC and managed by Life Care Services LLC. For additional information visit www.WelcomeToSedgebrook.com or call 847-901-3319.

 

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