lengwa_americaribe

02/04/2026

Bahama Breeze, the Caribbean-themed dining chain, is shutting down after a 30-year stint in the business. https://cnn.it/4qY1zyQ

02/01/2026

Happy Black History Month!

02/01/2026

First trail

01/11/2026

I’m trying something different. When Phalaenopsis orchid flower spikes start to grow, they will grow straight towards the light source (in this case a window). After the spike grew to a length of about 6-7 inches, I rotated the plant 180 degrees (usually, I wouldn’t rotate it at all, and just stake it at that point).

Initially, right after rotating it, the spike was pointing away from the window. But after rotating it, the flower spike then started to grow towards the window again and it formed the graceful arch that you see in the photo. I’ll see how this progresses, but it may allow me to not use a stake to support it at all. At this point, the spike is pretty firm and sturdy.

My only concern is that the flowers may be too close to the leaves but we’ll see once it continues to develop. If I need to, I can always stake it later to elevate the top of the flower spike a bit.

Whether you stake it or not, there is no right or wrong. It’s a personal preference depending on the space that you have available.

Sometimes if you need to conserve space, supporting the spike with a stake is a good solution, and there is nothing wrong with staking (some people get SO adamant though about not staking…..folks, there are much bigger problems in the world to worry about something so trivial, especially since it’s a personal choice.)

01/06/2026

12/26/2025

12/07/2025

10/31/2025

09/27/2025

09/26/2025

09/25/2025