Author Archives: Jay Loeffler

Venice Community Center
(doors open at 6:30pm)
Speaker: Jeff Higel
Topic: Growing Better Orchids

Jeff has been fascinated with orchids for over 30 years, growing them commercially for nearly 20. He has served as President and Show Chair for the Venice Area Orchid Society. Jeff has a penchant for learning things the hard way, and would like to share some, or even most of, his hard- learned knowledge with you.
This program will discuss what he does, and why, to successfully cultivate these fascinating and sometimes frustrating plants. He will try to make it profitable for the novice as well as the most experienced grower.
Jeff will have a nice variety of plants for sale. These plants are grown locally under conditions that are easily duplicated.

Jeff’s greenhouse is located at Honey Bee Nursery, 2383 Englewood Rd. (Rt. 776) in Englewood (941-474-6866)

Joint EAOS/VAOS Meeting in Englewood                                                                    

July 10th (Monday)

Speaker:  Louis Del Favero,

Louis Del Favero Orchids, Tampa

Topic: “Growing Species”

Louis Del Favero received a V. Rothchildiana from a family friend for his 12th birthday. In 1968 he began working for Jungle Orchids after school, weekends and summers. They imported tree fern and orchids from Guatemala. A year later he established Louis Del Favero Orchids in Miami. It was also during this time that he took a collecting trip with Fred Fuchs to British Honduras (now Belize) and Honduras. After that trip, Louis was consumed by a desire to view orchids in their native habitat. This started 20 years of traveling to Mexico, Central, South America and the Caribbean. In 1981 Louis moved to his current location in rural Tampa where he used his extensive contacts to continue importing specie orchids from their native countries. He and his wife Bonnie have more than 13,000 s.f. of greenhouses open to the public of which approximately 50% are warm tolerant species, and the other half is comprised largely of Encyclias, Dendrobiums, Oncidiums, and compact to large flowered Cattleyas with an emphasis on fragrant orchids.