Singapore has an orchid hybrid named after Joe & Jill Biden

As the U.S. Presidential Election winds down, people on the internet are learning more about the next President-elect, Joe Biden.

Here's another throwback

During a state visit to Singapore in Jul. 2013, Joe Biden and his spouse Jill were presented with an orchid hybrid named “Dendrobium Joe and Jill Biden”.

According to Straits Times (ST), the couple was presented with the birth certificate of the orchid hybrid with purple flowers at the National Orchid Garden by the National Parks Board (NParks).

This orchid hybrid is "vigorous, free-flowering and long-lasting", NParks described.

The flowering sprays are about 30 to 50 cm long, bearing as many as 20 flowers each.

All floral parts are violet-blue for this hybrid.

Biden, who was then the vice president of the United States, was on a two-day state visit to discuss maritime issues and trade in Asia with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Singapore officials, reported ST.

PM Lee unveils orchid named after President Obama and his wife at White House state dinner

_{The Dendrobium Barack and Michelle Obama is a cross between two hybrids: the Hawaiian Dendrobium Pink Lips and Singapore's Dendrobium Sunplaza Park. PHOTO: MCI}

WASHINGTON - United States President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle now have a Singapore-grown orchid named after them.

The Dendrobium Barack and Michelle Obama was unveiled by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at the White House state dinner in their honour on Tuesday night (Wednesday morning, Singapore time).

"To mark the 50th anniversary of our relations, Singapore has named an orchid hybrid in honour of President and Mrs Obama," PM Lee said.

The toast to the presidential couple came with a quip about the conspiracy theories in the US that claim President Obama was actually born in Kenya.

"This is a hybrid of breeds native to Singapore and Hawaii, where the President was born, most of us believe," said PM Lee to laughter from the dinner guests, who included prominent US politicians and members of the Singapore delegation.

Dendrobium Barack and Michelle Obama is a cross between two hybrids: the Hawaiian Dendrobium Pink Lips and Singapore's Dendrobium Sunplaza Park. Each spray bears just over a dozen yellow blooms with purple lips.

The National Parks Board described the new hybrid as a "vigorous and free flowering" bloom.