Special to the Tribune

A dazzling display of exotic Hawaiian tropical flowers was on display recently at the Albert Lea Art Center.

Chuck Jay, a long-time friend of Shades of Jade Regional Garden Club President Les Schroader, shipped the flowers from Hilo for the display for the Tuesday meeting.

Expecting roughly a dozen of the exotic blooms, Schroader said he was surprised Monday to receive 52 flowers, which Jay had shipped on Friday.

The flora was sent in a bed of newspapers, shredded paper, a foam lining and covered with more newspaper. They arrived in excellent condition, Schroader said.

As the display was set up Monday afternoon, many people stopped by to admire the intense colors and the unusual shapes on display.

During the meeting, a number of guests, florists and members of the garden club were awed while viewing the small yellow and brown spotted Oncidium Orchid and the large, softball-size ‘Pink Mink’ Protea.

Schroader, a master gardener in Freeborn County, revealed many surprising revelations. For instance, Minnesota has at least 21 native orchids including the state flower, the Pink and White Lady’s-slipper, while the flowers shipped from Hawaii are mostly imported from such locations as Central America and Africa.

One of the Proteas is Macadamia Integrifolia which is farmed in Australia and Hawaii for its edible seeds, the Macadamia nuts.

Although the flowers on display are exotic by Minnesota standards, the waxen Valentine-shape of the Anthurium has many “cousins” in Minnesota. Its relatives include the native Jack-in-the-Pulpit, Skunk Cabbage, the tender Calla Lily and the house plant, Philodendron.

Perhaps the most surprising event was watching the multi-colored Bird of Paradise “hatch.&uot;