Category Archives: Meetings

VAOS will not have a meeting on July 3rd. NEXT MEETING IS WITH EAOS JULY 15th

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Location:  St. Davids Episcopal Church 400 S. Broadway, Engelwood, FL

Doors open at 5:30pm.  Meeting starts at 6pm

Speaker: Jake Bateman, Palmer Orchids

Topic: Brassavola Orchids

Jake works at Palmer Orchids in Bradenton, where they care for a little over 40,000 square feet of shaded growing space. After initially joining the team to help set up their e-commerce, he now assists with their feeding and pest management programs. He works alongside his wife, Ashley, and his father-in-law, Robert, to try and offer the widest variety of orchids that their greenhouses can accommodate, with the majority of their hybridizing being in the Cattleya and Vanda alliances.

 

VAOS Meeting June 5th, Venice Community Center (Doors open at 6:30pm)

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Location: Venice Community Center (Doors open at 6:30pm)

Topic: Paphiopedilum–Introduction and Care   
Thanh is an owner-operator of Springwater Orchids (Melbourne, FL).

Thanh is the owner-operator of Springwater Orchids, located in Melbourne, FL. He is an engineer by trade, but also has been collecting and growing orchids for 50 years. His orchid business began in 2001, mainly selling on the internet but gradually moved to orchid shows in recent years.

Thanh loves orchid species. And although he grows and sells all orchids genera, his forte has always been the genus of Paphiopedilum. He collects fine plants; grows, sells, breeds, and enjoys sharing his experiences with his customers and colleagues. His passion in paphs resulted in numerous award -winning plants and an on-going paphs breeding program using local lab work, and local growing environment. His breeding program recently extended to mini/compact plants, and interesting primary crosses. He also continues to breed species, improving overall plants and flower quality, and  broadening their growing conditions to make growing these orchids a joy, not an aggravation!

Give it a try, buy a seedling!

Thanh will have orchids for sale.

 

Meeting Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2017 – 7:00 pm

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Ted Kellogg:  Ribbon Judging – Putting Your Best Plant Forward

I’ve enclosed a picture of a ‘blue ribbon’ Cypripedium acule growing in Rhode Island.  Of cypacule1course, any orchid plant surviving in the wild and reproducing is a winner in Nature’s Show.  This plant, blooming in 2011, in a forest cemetery was among many others of the same genus.  No other species of orchid was in bloom at that time. It was the only one with the very dark colored pouch.  If a team of orchid judges had been asked to place blue, red and yellow ribbons on the best Cypripedium acule growing in this natural setting, the plant pictured would have received the blue ribbon.

But what if those judges were looking at an orchid show with many exhibits.  If they had been at the Venice 2016 show, they would have seen 214 plants entered for ribbon judging.  The registration committee had placed each of these plants into one of 90 groups (classes).  The classes held from 1 to 13 plants each.  A team of orchid judges looked at each class and awarded blue-1st, red-2nd, or yellow-3rd ribbons as they wished.  What criteria did they use?  Sometimes a class with 1 entry got a red or yellow ribbon, or maybe didn’t get a ribbon.  Why?  Sometimes the judges decided two plants in a class each deserved a blue ribbon.

What did the judges look at?  Why was one plant awarded higher than another?  I’ll try to explain what the judges consider in ribbon judging.  I’ll give suggestions for you to impress the judges that you have put your best plants forward.

Orchid Envy, one of our own local growers here in Venice, will have a great selection of quality plants for sale.

Venice Community Center.  Doors open at 6:30.