Jim Fowler's photos with the keyword: wild orchids

For those of you who may not be friends with me on FaceBook, I want to notify you of a special item that's coming to your local US Post Office on Friday, February 21, 2020. It's a 20-stamp, double-sided stamp booklet featuring photographs of some of the many wild orchids I've photographed over the years. These are "FOREVER" stamps, which means that they are good for first class postage, forever -- even if the postal rate changes. Am I excited? Yes! It's truly an amazing honor to have my images appear on US postage stamps. For me, it is a trifecta: I am a photographer, wild orchid enthusiast, and a stamp collector. So what could be better!?! For my foreign friends, I'm sorry that you will not be able to purchase them at your local post office, but you can order them from the website: www.USPS.com/shop Just type "orchids" in the search box. Note that the above image has a USPS copyright. They have exclusive rights to the stamp designs although I retain all rights to the original images.

What a way to end the orchid season down in the Southeast. One of the main reasons for my going to the Green Swamp (on the Carolina coastal plain) was to photograph one of the scarcest ladies'-tresses orchids in the Green Swamp. Although we didn't find a large number of this species on the trip, what we did find was in perfect bloom. Along for the ride were David McAdoo , Skip Pudney , Ben Rostron , Jared Barnes , and me. Ben came all the way from Alberta, Canada, but this was not his first trip to the Green Swamp. He visited earlier in the year to photograph the wonderful fringed orchids found in the area. A great time was had by all, and we can hardly wait until the spring orchid season so we can all get together again...

What a way to end the orchid season down in the Southeast. One of the main reasons for my going to the Green Swamp (on the Carolina coastal plain) was to photograph one of the scarcest ladies'-tresses orchids in the Green Swamp. Although we didn't find a large number of this species on the trip, what we did find was in perfect bloom. Along for the ride were David McAdoo , Skip Pudney , Ben Rostron , Jared Barnes , and me. Ben came all the way from Alberta, Canada, but this was not his first trip to the Green Swamp. He visited earlier in the year to photograph the wonderful fringed orchids found in the area. A great time was had by all, and we can hardly wait until the spring orchid season so we can all get together again...

What a way to end the orchid season down in the Southeast. One of the main reasons for my going to the Green Swamp (on the Carolina coastal plain) was to photograph one of the scarcest ladies'-tresses orchids in the Green Swamp. Although we didn't find a large number of this species on the trip, what we did find was in perfect bloom. Along for the ride were David McAdoo , Skip Pudney , Ben Rostron , Jared Barnes , and me. Ben came all the way from Alberta, Canada, but this was not his first trip to the Green Swamp. He visited earlier in the year to photograph the wonderful fringed orchids found in the area. A great time was had by all, and we can hardly wait until the spring orchid season so we can all get together again...

What a way to end the orchid season down in the Southeast. One of the main reasons for my going to the Green Swamp (on the Carolina coastal plain) was to photograph one of the scarcest ladies'-tresses orchids in the Green Swamp. Although we didn't find a large number of this species on the trip, what we did find was in perfect bloom. Along for the ride were David McAdoo , Skip Pudney , Ben Rostron , Jared Barnes , and me. Ben came all the way from Alberta, Canada, but this was not his first trip to the Green Swamp. He visited earlier in the year to photograph the wonderful fringed orchids found in the area. A great time was had by all, and we can hardly wait until the spring orchid season so we can all get together again...

What a way to end the orchid season down in the Southeast. One of the main reasons for my going to the Green Swamp (on the Carolina coastal plain) was to photograph one of the scarcest ladies'-tresses orchids in the Green Swamp. Although we didn't find a large number of this species on the trip, what we did find was in perfect bloom. Along for the ride were David McAdoo , Skip Pudney , Ben Rostron , Jared Barnes , and me. Ben came all the way from Alberta, Canada, but this was not his first trip to the Green Swamp. He visited earlier in the year to photograph the wonderful fringed orchids found in the area. A great time was had by all, and we can hardly wait until the spring orchid season so we can all get together again...

What a way to end the orchid season down in the Southeast. One of the main reasons for my going to the Green Swamp (on the Carolina coastal plain) was to photograph one of the scarcest ladies'-tresses orchids in the Green Swamp. Although we didn't find a large number of this species on the trip, what we did find was in perfect bloom. Along for the ride were David McAdoo , Skip Pudney , Ben Rostron , Jared Barnes , and me. Ben came all the way from Alberta, Canada, but this was not his first trip to the Green Swamp. He visited earlier in the year to photograph the wonderful fringed orchids found in the area. A great time was had by all, and we can hardly wait until the spring orchid season so we can all get together again...

What a way to end the orchid season down in the Southeast. One of the main reasons for my going to the Green Swamp (on the Carolina coastal plain) was to photograph one of the scarcest ladies'-tresses orchids in the Green Swamp. Although we didn't find a large number of this species on the trip, what we did find was in perfect bloom. Along for the ride were David McAdoo , Skip Pudney , Ben Rostron , Jared Barnes , and me. Ben came all the way from Alberta, Canada, but this was not his first trip to the Green Swamp. He visited earlier in the year to photograph the wonderful fringed orchids found in the area. A great time was had by all, and we can hardly wait until the spring orchid season so we can all get together again...

What a way to end the orchid season down in the Southeast. One of the main reasons for my going to the Green Swamp (on the Carolina coastal plain) was to photograph one of the scarcest ladies'-tresses orchids in the Green Swamp. Although we didn't find a large number of this species on the trip, what we did find was in perfect bloom. Along for the ride were David McAdoo , Skip Pudney , Ben Rostron , Jared Barnes , and me. Ben came all the way from Alberta, Canada, but this was not his first trip to the Green Swamp. He visited earlier in the year to photograph the wonderful fringed orchids found in the area. A great time was had by all, and we can hardly wait until the spring orchid season so we can all get together again...

What a way to end the orchid season down in the Southeast. One of the main reasons for my going to the Green Swamp (on the Carolina coastal plain) was to photograph one of the scarcest ladies'-tresses orchids in the Green Swamp. Although we didn't find a large number of this species on the trip, what we did find was in perfect bloom. Along for the ride were David McAdoo , Skip Pudney , Ben Rostron , Jared Barnes , and me. Ben came all the way from Alberta, Canada, but this was not his first trip to the Green Swamp. He visited earlier in the year to photograph the wonderful fringed orchids found in the area. A great time was had by all, and we can hardly wait until the spring orchid season so we can all get together again...

A few years ago, David McAdoo told me where to find this diminutive orchid. He told me to go to Sims Pond (off the Blue Ridge Parkway), and look under the Rhododendron behind the lake. This rare species prefers to grow in the dark shadows of the Rhododendron that line the creeks and streams of the Appalachian Mountains. This year, we found more than two dozen plants, but only two were in bloom. These particular plants were no more than two inches tall, but were in perfect shape. I had to resort to using a flash to give me enough light to properly photograph them. We had set up a meeting with one of my flickr friends, Will Stuart, and I had told him to meet us at Price Lake -- a much larger body of water about a mile west of Sims Pond. We played phone tag for a while until we finally managed to meet up at Sims Pond. I felt bad for telling him the wrong location, but all turned out well...

A few years ago, David McAdoo told me where to find this diminutive orchid. He told me to go to Sims Pond (off the Blue Ridge Parkway), and look under the Rhododendron behind the lake. This rare species prefers to grow in the dark shadows of the Rhododendron that line the creeks and streams of the Appalachian Mountains. This year, we found more than two dozen plants, but only two were in bloom. These particular plants were no more than two inches tall, but were in perfect shape. I had to resort to using a flash to give me enough light to properly photograph them. We had set up a meeting with one of my flickr friends, Will Stuart, and I had told him to meet us at Price Lake -- a much larger body of water about a mile west of Sims Pond. We played phone tag for a while until we finally managed to meet up at Sims Pond. I felt bad for telling him the wrong location, but all turned out well...

A few years ago, David McAdoo told me where to find this diminutive orchid. He told me to go to Sims Pond (off the Blue Ridge Parkway), and look under the Rhododendron behind the lake. This rare species prefers to grow in the dark shadows of the Rhododendron that line the creeks and streams of the Appalachian Mountains. This year, we found more than two dozen plants, but only two were in bloom. These particular plants were no more than two inches tall, but were in perfect shape. I had to resort to using a flash to give me enough light to properly photograph them. We had set up a meeting with one of my flickr friends, Will Stuart, and I had told him to meet us at Price Lake -- a much larger body of water about a mile west of Sims Pond. We played phone tag for a while until we finally managed to meet up at Sims Pond. I felt bad for telling him the wrong location, but all turned out well...

These are just a bit early this year, but apparently all of the wild orchids are blooming early in our area. This particular one has a way to go, judging by the buds that remain, and it will be pretty for another week or so. Those green things in the background are Yelow Pitcher Plants ( Sarracenia flava ). They grow wild along the Carolina coastal plain...