Gallup & Stribling Orchids Visitor Center

Orchids, orchids, orchids, oh my. My mother loves orchids.
Gallup & Stribling’s orchid farm spans about 48 acres (according to their website). Remember the part in the 2008 Olympic opening ceremony when there were all those guys banging on those drums in unison? SCARY. I felt the same way looking out into the farm of orchids. It was pretty incredible, in a almost frightening kind of way. Yeah I know, they’re just flowers.
The visitor center is a large green house filled with– you guessed it – orchids for you civilians to buy. They specialize in Cymbidium orchids and they breed many other varieties of Cymbidium (s) — ??
There are some pretty good deals! There were designated tables with discounted/​clearance plants. We LOVE good deals, and were excited to find some here. I think all the orchids being sold in the visitor center were cheaper than what you’d find at your local nursery, but the ones on sale were particularly good deals (of course). My mom got a really pretty yellow Cymbidium for $ 10. My mom said they’re like $ 30 or something at Home Depot or Target. *Shrug*
Personally, I like the Phalaenopsis varieties, and when I walked in to the visitor center, I saw a table near the front that had some of these for sale, but I don’t know where they came from since they’re not bred here. Depending on the size of the potted orchids, prices range from $ 10 — $ 25 on average. A sale section with the smaller sized pots had a 2 for $ 15 sale. :D
This is a nice place to visit if you’re on the way to Santa Barbara from Covina to drop off your little brother at his dorm and your mom tags along and loves orchids. hahaha. Did I mention they specialize in CYMBIDIUM? Don’t say I didn’t warn ya!