#atlanta botanic garden

[pamietniko]

spring in the south

Atlanta, Georgia

[hometoursandotherstuff]

Shaggy Dog Topiary photographed at the Atlanta, Georgia Botanical Gardens.

[naturevalleybuildingsandthings]

[webdiggerxxx]

꧁★꧂

[fereldanwench]

Went to the Atlanta Botanical Garden yesterday to... Well, not touch grass, exactly, but look at it, at least. 🌿🪷🌱🌺 🍃 (The trolls are a temporary but very cool addition by Thomas Dambo.)

[sirlonius]

flora textures from the botanical garden visit

[luckydinosauur101]

Oops! Guess who went inactive

Anyways while I’m still here have some pictures from ✨ Botanical Gardens ✨

[jaidonschool]

Atlanta Botanical Garden + Aquarium

[disarmluna]

[travelella]

Atlanta Botanical Garden, Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Christopher Alvarenga

[sakeandmiyazaki]

Welcome to My Garden 🌱✨

[cardboardcamera]

A Moment in the Orchid Center 

[naturevalleybuildingsandthings]

[themonkeycabal]

Earth Goddess, Atlanta Botanical Gardens, Georgia

by Nicholas Lamontanaro

[spitchsblog]

[sharkcougarhawksnakescorpion]

If anyone’s in the area, The Atlanta Botanical Gardens are having an orchid exhibit. The have two vanilla orchids and when I went, there was a volunteer doing education who had vanilla pods grown in different regions and they popped the tubes open for me to smell and it was AWESOME.

woke up and someone spilled vanilla extract all over my dash, so as punishment you strange little beasties are getting all the VANILLA FACTS i know:

vanilla is the 2nd most expensive spice in the world (2nd to saffron)

which is why more than 99% of what we call "vanilla extract" is actually vanillin (vanilla's dominant flavor compound) and is not extracted from real vanilla.

luckily, even professionals struggle to tell the difference when it comes to things like baked goods. but there is a distinct difference in non-heat treated products like vanilla ice cream. real vanilla has a more complex, individualized flavor profile.

why is vanilla so expensive? because it is a ridiculously delicate & demanding crop. complete primadonna.

vanilla beans come from vanilla orchids. these crazy flowers bloom for A SINGLE DAY and have to be HAND-POLLINATED in a process that is exhausting, delicate, and requires specialist knowledge passed down over generations.

then, if you're lucky, you get vanilla beans.

which then require months of further specialized treatment.

the entire process takes about a year and can go wrong at any stage

vanilla has been cultivated for over 800 years (possibly much longer). the first known cultivators are the Totonac, an indigenous people of Mexico.

the Aztecs used it as a sweetener to balance out the bitter taste of cocoa. it was popular in a drink called xocolatl--the precursor to modern hot chocolate!

it is only pollinated by a very specific orchid bee!!!

which is why no fruit could be grown outside of Mexico until the 1800s

Edmond Albius, born into slavery, invented the pollination method we still use today--launching a global industry when he was just 12 years old.

today, the majority of the world's vanilla is grown in Madagascar

if you want real vanilla, read the labels carefully--it's harder to find than you think!

in conclusion, those tiny black specks you see in fancy vanilla ice cream? those are vanilla bean seeds! itty bitty orchid seeds!!! they are delicious and also a PRISSY BITCH!

(src)