Celebrity Orchids

Michelle Obama Story

< 2008 was a highly publicized election year in the United States and having presented namesake Cattleya hybrids to the last three First Ladies, we were under considerable pressure to repeat our feat. Barbara Bush, Hillary Clinton, and Laura Bush all had their orchids. Could we go four in a row? The answer came in early August when the leading candidate’s wife, Michelle Obama, was campaigning in Virginia. Though not yet First Lady, she was the odds-on favorite so we took a chance.

We were given a two minute photo opportunity during a reception at the Harrison Opera House in Norfolk where Mrs. Obama was to address a crowd of 1,200 supporters. Other guests included Virginia Governor Tim Kaine who had presented Queen Elizabeth II with her namesake orchid on our behalf in 2007. The music for the evening was provided by local singer/songwriter and Grammy award winner Bruce Hornsby.

The star of the show was undoubtedly the compact growing Lc Michelle Obama (C trianaei x Lc Mini Purple) which was displayed as a grouping of five plants in a fancy decorative container. With the addition of accoutrements curly willow and Spanish moss, the floral arrangement was threatening to upstage the politicians!

Just moments before the presentation was to take place, however, the secret service intervened, “The arrangement can not be in the picture!”

“Excuse me?”, I asked in complete disbelief.
“I’m sorry, but rules are rules” said the agent.
“But sir, we have been invited here for this purpose”, I tried to gently explain as my blood pressure started rising.
“Well, we haven’t scanned the object with our bomb detecting equipment.” said the agent.
“OK, no problem. I’ll just stand over here and you take as long as you need to scan it” I said confidently.
“Unfortunately, we don’t have the equipment here” he said sheepishly.
After a long silence in which I envisioned the entire presentation evaporating before my eyes, I said in desperation, “Can I pick off the flowers and present them?”
There was a big huddle of secret service agents using hand held radios. The answer, “You can present one flower”.
One flower,?” I asked in greater disbelief.
“OK, two. But that’s it.” said the agent having reached a generous compromise.

I carefully removed two of the small flowers from the formerly glorious arrangement and together with the framed RHS certificate approached Mrs. Obama. She was most curious at my offerings as it wasn’t exactly apparent what I held. I wasn’t even sure.

I was a little embarrassed and wanted to explain to her what had happened but, given the time constraint, opted for enthusiastically declaring that the flowers were named for her. She was very excited and gave me a big hug. Wow, I wasn’t aware that First Lady etiquette allows for such affection!

Now that the election is over, I’m glad that we took a chance on Michelle Obama. She is officially First Lady on January 20th and her social calendar is already overflowing with invitations to appear. My father, A.A. Chadwick, once told me, ‘Never mix business with politics.’ Orchids, however, transcend conventional boundaries and with four successive presidential administrations securely in the history books, the legacy of Classic Cattleyas will continue. Selected clones available 2012.

The Martha Stewart Orchid (Company Press Release)

Company founder Art Chadwick Sr., and his son Arthur (Chadwick & Son) appeared on Martha Stewart’s TV show, ‘Martha’, on Friday, April 21, 2006, to present her with an orchid that they named in her honor. The event coincided with the opening of the New York International Orchid Show and Martha Stewart’s review of the new Chadwick orchid book entitled ‘The Classic Cattleyas’.

The new ‘Martha’ orchid hybrid is a classic Cattleya with large purple flowers, distinctive splashes on the petals, and a sweet fragrance. Officially registered with the Royal Horticultural Society, the plant carries the botanical name Laeliocattleya Martha Stewart.

“Martha Stewart is the most well known gardening personality in the world and we are honored to personally present her namesake orchid” said company President Art Chadwick Jr.

Blc Margaret Thatcher 'Prime Minister'

It was seven years in the making. But the result, Art Chadwick says, was worth the wait. Chadwick, president of Chadwick & Son Orchids Inc. in Powhatan County, last month presented Margaret Thatcher with a cattleya orchid hybrid that was named in her honor. Cattleya orchids grow for seven years inside a greenhouse before they bloom. Then they bloom annually. "There's not much we can do about the seven years," Chadwick said. "We just have to wait. Once it blooms you realize why you waited so long. It's spectacular." The large blooms are often used in corsages because of their size. So Chadwick & Sons made a corsage out of the orchid named for Thatcher and presented it to her. She pinned it to her blazer. "She said it was lovely," Chadwick said. The ceremony took place last month during Thatcher's visit to the Jepson School of Leadership Studies at the University of Richmond.

Naming orchids in honor of famous women is nothing new for Chadwick & Son Orchids. Previous recipients include Laura Bush, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Tipper Gore and the late Princess Diana. The orchid named for Thatcher was registered with the Royal Horticultural Society in England. Theflowers are light lavender with a darker lip. They have a sweet fragrance. The botanical name is Brassolaeliocattleya Margaret Thatcher (Lc Princess Margaret x Blc Summer Bay). "This keeps the cattleya on the front pages," Chadwick said. "It's an orchid that is not as popular as it once was." The cattleya was popular in the 1940s and 1950s. It is not as easy to grow as other varieties, said Chadwick, whose orchid column appears monthly in Saturday's Home & Garden section. He usually has thousands in production at a time because of the seven-year wait for blooms. "You don't know until they bloom whether they will be any good," he said. "So you have to have a lot in production."

In addition to naming orchids for women in politics, Chadwick & Son has also named them after friends, as well as Indian tribes. "It's an exciting thing," Chadwick said. "Who wouldn't want an orchid named after them? It's such an honor."

Laura's Orchid (American Orchid Society Magazine July, 2006 )

The ‘Laura Orchid,’ grown and registered with the Royal Horticultural Society by Chadwick & Son Orchids Inc, of Powhatan, was presented to Laura Bush at the United States Botanical Garden in Washington, D.C. The event took place on Tuesday May 9 as part of the “First Lady’s Luncheon” which is an annual gathering of the wives of the U.S. Senators. Assisting in the presentation was the garden’s Executive Director Holly Shimuzu.

The new orchid hybrid is a classic Cattleya with medium sized white flowers, a contrasting purple throat, and a sweet fragrance. Designed to bloom twice a year on a compact plant, the official botanical name is Brassolaeliocattleya Laura Bush.

First Ladies have a long tradition of being honored with Cattleya orchids which dates back to the 1940’s’ said Art Chadwick, President of Chadwick & Son Orchids. Previous recipients of Chadwick hybrids include former First Ladies Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barbara Bush as well as former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and, most recently, Martha Stewart.

The First Orchid

It’s a safe bet that Laura bush isn’t often kept waiting but even the first lady can’t rush mother nature. And so she, along with art Chadwick of powhatan’s Chadwick & son orchids, awaits the blooming of a cattleya orchid that Chadwick registered with the royal horticultural society in honor of the first lady, in order to complete a presentation ceremony postponed last summer due to scheduling conflicts.

Brassolaeliocattleya Laura Bush features a white flower (sometimes over laid by a lavender starburst) with a dark purple lip and is only in bloom for a few weeks each summer. Chadwick’s growers are currently caring for about 20 of the prized hybrids. ‘I’m looking for several that look very good and very fresh’ says Chadwick, who hopes to let the first lady pick her favorite, which will be dubbed variety ‘first lady’.

This isn’t the first time Chadwick has presented a first lady with an orchid. He and his wife, Rebecca, presented then-first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton with her own namesake orchid. ‘She was the first first lady in history to be presented and photographed with her namesake orchid while in office’ says Chadwick, who notes that a tradition exists for naming orchids after first ladies such as nancy Reagan and bess Truman among those so honored. Laura bush should join them sometime in August, and may have by the time you’re reading this, says Chadwick. “It’s entirely up to the flowers.”

An Orchid for the First Lady

In the nearly century and a half that the world has been naming orchid hybrids, kings, queens, princesses, presidents and first ladies have been honored by having Click for full size imagesomeone register a beautiful orchid to bear their name. In the United States, C. Bess Truman, C. Pat Nixon, Lc. Mamie Eisenhower and Lc. Nancy Reagan are examples of first ladies so recognized. On October 21, 1995, a magnificent semi-alba Catleya was presented to current first lady, Hillary Rodham Clinton. This orchid, Blc. Hillary Rodham Clinton 'First Lady', is a hybrid of C. Kittiwake 'Brilliance' AM/AOS and Blc. Meditation 'Queen's Dowry' and is a cross originally mady by Carmela Orchids of Hawaii. The particular cultivar, 'First Lady', was raised and registered by Art and Rebecca Chadwick of Powhatan, Virginia, where they have a nursery named Chadwick and Son Orchids. The couple named it for Mrs. Clinton because of their admiration of her. The orchid in the form of three corsages was presented to the First Lady at the $500 per plate Kennedy-King dinner in Alexandria.

One would think it would be easy to name an orchid after someone, but the Chadwicks found that not necessarily the truth. First they had to obtain permission from Carmela Orchids, the breeder, to name the hybrid. Secondly, upon the recommendation of the Orchid Registrar in England, they had to obtain permission from Mrs. Clinton. How does one obtain permission from within the White House? A direct request to the White House and an appeal for help to their U.S. Senator failed to bring a response. Finally through the efforts of the Lt. Governer of Virginia, contact and permission were obtained. Now the concern was to find a time when the orchid was in bloom and when the Chadwicks could present the flower to Mrs. Clinton. A small opening in her busy schedule allowed the presentation to be made after she had spoken at the Kennedy-King dinner. Art and Rebecca have said that it was not an easy fete to achieve but experiencing the security, meeting the First Lady and seeing her pleasure made it all worth the effort.

Barbara Bush

Barbara Bush grew up at a time when Cattleya corsages were the standard for fashion in the United States. The 1940's, 1950's and 1960's saw cut-flower cattleyas at their heyday. She was the First Lady of the US from 1989 to 1993, wife of President H. George Bush and also mother of current US President George W Bush. Today she lives in Texas and at age 80 still travels the country supporting her favourite cause--education.

In 2005, she visited Richmond for a Virginia Literacy Foundation fundraiser and acknowledged receiving her namesake orchids with a hand written letter: "They are beautiful. Many thanks. I am so honored!" Brassolaeliocattleya Barbara Bush 'First Lady' is a November blooming semi-alba hybrid with white petals and a soft lavender and yellow throat.

A Special Cattleya

Flowers of Cattleya Tipper Gore (Pearl Harbor X General Patton) were presented to Tipper Gore on October 21, 1999. This grex, created by Chadwick and Son Orchids, Inc., of Powhatan, Virginia, and registered with the Royal Horticultural Society, bears impressive fragrant white flowers with a yellow throat. "We usually name orchid hybrids honoring first ladies and heads of state, but Al and Tipper Gore have been such a great inspiration to us through their environmental efforts that we just had to name an orchid after her," says Art Chadwick, president of Chadwick and Son Orchids, Inc.

The event took place at the vice president's residence at 34th Street and Massachusetts Avenue Northwest in downtown Washington, DC. The estate is part of the United States Naval Observatory and has been home to each vice president since 1974. The residence's greenhouse contains a variety of orchids, including six purple-flowered cattleya specimens that were in bloom when the cattleya flowers were presented to the vice-president's wife.

Lc. Princess Diana 'Kensington Palace'

In 2002, we were asked to name a cattleya after the late Princess by an adoring fan, Mrs. Philip Minor, of Richmond Virginia USA. She owns an original Diana dress that is currently on loan to Kensington Palace. The Collections Curator of the Palace, Beatrice Behlin, as well as the original dress designer, David Emmanuel, were on hand for the unveiling of the orchid which took place that summer at a large party at Mrs. Minor's estate.

Kensington Palace acknowledged the orchid in a letter. "We are absolutely delighted that there is now an orchid registered in the name of Princess Diana. It looks very beautiful and is a very apt tribute. As the Princess was a great lover of nature, as well as of people, I am sure she would have been deeply honoured for an orchid to have been named after her, which will bring joy to future generations."

The flowers are medium sized and round with two or three flowers per stem. Usually spring and summer bloomers, the seedlings are all lavender except variety 'Kensington Palace' which is a very pleasing blush.

Blc. Queen Elizabeth the Second

Central Virginia was all a-buzz as Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II arrived with His Royal Highness Prince Philip the Duke of Edinburgh on Thursday May 3, 2007 for a two day stint commemorating the 400th anniversary of the Jamestown settlement. The capital city, Richmond, hosted the couple for two hours with a tour of the Governor’s Executive Mansion followed by a ‘walkabout’ of the State Capital grounds ending with the Queen addressing the General Assembly. Tens of thousands of fans lined the streets to witness the Queen’s first visit since 1957.

Virginia Governor Timothy M. Kaine and his wife, Anne Holton, gave the tour which included the orchid presentation. The flowers of Blc Queen Elizabeth The Second (Blc Meditation x Lc Ecstacy) were displayed in a crystal vase along with the official Royal Horticultural Society certificate on a table by the front door and were one of the first things that Her Majesty saw as she walked into the Executive Mansion. The governor proudly explained that the lovely cattleya hybrid was made by a local Virginia firm in her honor.

Art Chadwick, Sr created the royal cattleya using two famous semi-alba parents; Blc Meditation ‘Queen’s Dowry’ which has a pale pink frilly open lip and Lc Ecstacy ‘Scully’s’ which has a solid dark purple closed lip. All the offspring were semi-albas, with a wide range of lip colors.

A letter from Buckingham Palace confirms that The Queen’s father, King George VI, also had an interest in the plants, and that there is currently a collection of orchids at Windsor Castle.