Marie Selby Botanical Gardens debuted its annual orchid exhibition on Saturday, Oct. 5, but closed shortly after due to Hurricane Milton. However, the gardens announced that exhibition will reopen this week on Thursday, Oct. 17.

The Orchid Show 2024: PURPLE! combines a stunning display of purple orchids in the Tropical Conservatory, where purplish-colored films and fixtures also abound, creating a rich, vivid visual experience. 

The exhibit's flowers and foliage purple hues, which are common in the orchid family, can be found both in naturally occurring species orchids and in human-bred cultivars and hybrids. The prevalence of purple flowers is also a testament to their allure for people and pollinators alike.

Another exhibition of botanical prints and photographs in the Museum of Botany & the Arts explores the history of purple pigments and dyes, as well as the many and varied associations of purple, ranging from royalty and luxury to wisdom and magic.

The Orchid Show 2024: PURPLE! reopens Thursday, Oct. 17 and will run through Sunday, Dec. 5 at the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens downtown campus, 1534 Mound St., Sarasota.