Orchids in bloom

By LAUREN CHESNUT

Register & Bee staff writer

Saturday, January 15, 2005

YANCEYVILLE, N.C. - Orchid lovers will now be able to drop by and stroll the aisles of Willowbee Orchids’ new greenhouse three days a week.

Beginning this week, Mark and Diana Lee’s 3,000-square-foot greenhouse will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday through Saturday. The couple will continue to see customers by appointment at other times. Their new, larger greenhouse is located just a short distance from the road on their Route 86 property in Caswell County. Shoppers can park right by the greenhouse. The Lees have been able to stock 1,500 orchids in the structure, three times as many as they sold last year. Orchids require a cooling period prior to blooming, and Mark Lee said he timed the cooling last fall so that he will have plenty of orchids in bloom for Valentine’s Day. “I want every man in Danville to come and buy an orchid for his wife for Valentine’s Day,” he said recently.

The Lees primarily carry phalaenopsis orchids in shades of purple, pink and white. Prices range from $12 to $35. They also sell decorative items such as pots, raffia ribbon, moss and ornamental corkscrew willow. Orchid fertilizer and potting mix can also now be purchased at Willowbee Orchids. The Lees will rent out groups of the flowers for weddings and other special occasions and will board customers’ orchids during their required cooling period, if desired. “Diana and I are very customer-service oriented,” Mark Lee said.

Using their previous, smaller greenhouse, which was located a greater distance off the road, Diana Lee had to transport orchids to the kitchen of her house to spruce them up for customers. “I had to do the orchids on top of the washing machine,” she said. Orchids can bloom for up to four months and are easy to care for, the Lees said.

The Lees say they have a regular clientele of about 50 customers. They hope to be able to expand both retail and wholesale business with their new facility. “The goal is to have florists and garden centers come to me,” Mark Lee said. Willowbee Orchids is located at 6488 Route 86, south of downtown Yanceyville. The Lees can be reached at (336) 694-4795.

Contact Lauren Chesnut at lchesnut@registerbee.com or at (434) 793-2311, Ext. 3048.

Return To Home Page