Cattleya purpurata Cattleya purpurata Cattleya purpurata, known in the past as Laelia purpurata and Sophronitis purpurata, is native to Brazil where it is very popular among orchid growers. It is an epiphyte that is found in the canopy of tall trees near coastal areas, in the Brazilian states of Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina and São Paulo. The orchid favors bright light and cool to warm conditions and is relative easy to cultive. C. purpurata has been used extensively as a parent in hybridizing with Cattleyas. Cattleya purpurata blooms from late spring to fall with three to five flowers on a
Flower plaque flower plaques with Chinese blessings: ke si yun lai (客似雲來) or sheng yi xing long (生意興隆) written with Chinese calligraphy. In the 1960s, Hong Kong craftsman discovered a new type of Chinese flower plaques which was a mechanical box. They were mainly made of motors, belts, gongs (鑼) and paper-mache dolls. The mechanical flower plaques performed a short play based on Chinese folklore and historical stories. They were put outside the bakery to attract customers. In 1975, Elizabeth II the queen visited Oi Man Estate(愛民邨). The first English version of flower plaques were placed and written “Welcome Queen and Prince”