Doors Open:  6:30pm

Venice Community Center, 7pm

Speaker: Rick Belisle

Topic: Welcome to VAOS

Rick Belisle has been growing orchids since 2009 when, in a meeting of the Newcomers of Venice, he heard, during a presentation by our own Carol Wood, that “orchids offer you the opportunity to have color year round.” Intrigued by that statement, he approached Carol and she, after some discussion, suggested he come to the next VAOS meeting.  At that meeting, he joined the Venice Area Orchid Society to learn more about orchids and how to grow them. Now, after many trials and tribulations, he has approximately 100 orchids in his collection. They include Dendrobiums (his personal favorite!), Cattleyas, Oncidiums, Catasetums, Stanhopeas, and a few Phaleonopsis.

He is an active member of the VAOS, is the Mentoring Program Coordinator for the club, as well as the Director of Education, Training and Outreach. He has taught classes on orchids and orchid care in orchid shows and to orchid clubs, garden clubs, and to many other service clubs. During our annual Show and Sale he is our Master of Ceremonies, welcoming our guests, reading off the hourly raffle winners, and teaching our classes.

His presentation will be not only for new members, but also more “seasoned” members, who might just wonder (or forget!) exactly what it is we, the Venice Area Orchid Society, are all about. The discussion will cover the Who, What, Where, How and When of all that we do.…and the list, after putting it all together, and as you’ll see, is quite extensive!

Orchid Envy will have orchids for sale

Doors Open:  6:30pm

Venice Community Center, 7pm

Speaker: Keith Emig

Topic: I Know My Plant is Awardable

This orchid journey all started with a trip to the dentist where, on the receptionist’s desk, there was a small plant with three leaves and an inflorescence with twenty blooms suspended above in a beautifully presented fashion. When asked, the receptionist replied that the dentist grew this orchid, and he was an orchid hobbyist. This multi floral Phalaenopsis captured my attention and it was on. Orchid fever is infectious, and all possible information and practice plants acquirable were obtained and the endless experimentation to better grow and flower these plants was a driving uncontrollable force.

As the passion grew, joining our local orchid society and the American Orchid Society opened the orchid world’s secrets.  There is no substitute for the company of other infected souls, with whom to share this fever.  Soon the passion of combining the attributes of two beautiful plants, by cross pollinating, stimulated the imagination. The flasking case was built and has been a fixture in the kitchen for almost 20 years now.  Over 1000 seed pods have been flasked to this point and it seems each season there is some new cross that has more exciting possibilities than anything before. We have now registered plants in the Oncidium, Cattleya, Phaleanopsis, Vanda, and Dendrobium alliances, and have created our own genera (Emigara). In recent years we’ve enjoyed going to judging and seeing everyone’s beautiful plants and bringing some of our plants too. We’ve been excited to have received over 50 flower quality awards, so far, including 9 awards on our original crosses.

It has been a great pleasure to have served on the board of directors of the Ridge Orchid Society for over a decade, including at least 7 terms as President. The highlight is the fellowship of the membership and sharing the passion of orchids with the orchid community.

Be sure to check out Keith’s article in the March 2017 Orchids magazine (pg 208). It is titled Luck of the Draw.

Winter Haven Orchid Nursery   We can be found on social media at fb.com/whorchids  or

Instagram.com/wh_orchids

Keith will have orchids for sale

Doors Open:  6:30pm

Venice Community Center, 7pm

Speaker: Dr. Lawrence Zettler

Topic: Orchid Conservation in North America

Dr. Lawrence W. Zettler is a professor of biology at Illinois College, and a research associate at the Chicago Botanic Garden.  He earned his B.S. degree from the University of Florida (1987) and Ph.D. in Plant Physiology from Clemson University (1994).  In 1996, he established Illinois College’s Orchid Recovery Program that enlisted the help of 100+ undergraduate students to conserve rare orchids throughout the world (e.g., Florida, Hawaii, Cuba, Ecuador). He has collaborated with researchers from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew in Madagascar, and is currently studying rare orchids in the Western Pacific (Palau) with researchers from SERC (https://global.si.edu/projects/palau-orchid-conservation-initiative  He has authored/co-authored 70+ peer-reviewed scientific publications, three book chapters, and illustrated two books in color including Dragonflies of North America (Scientific Publishers, 2000).  His research with students has been publicized on media outlets including National Public Radio, Huffington Post, and Radio Havana Cuba.  In February 2020, he presented a brief talk at the U.S. Postal Service’s unveiling of the Wild Orchid stamp series at A.O.S Headquarters in Coral Gables, Florida.  In 2022, he participated in the Chelsea Flower Show in London in a display that presented the late Queen Elizabeth II with a Vanda Platinum Jubilee Orchid. In May of 2013 he returned to Chelsea with a team of experts for a Ghost Orchid display that won a silver medal from the Royal Horticultural Society.  His latest project involves a book he co-authored (Saving Orchids: Their Future in a Warming World) with Phil Seaton in the UK that they hope to publish in 2024.