Meetings – Page 10 – Venice Area Orchid Society

Meeting Wednesday September 3, 2014, 7pm. Venice Community Center

Posted on 08/27/2014 by tmkellogg2010

Speaker: Alan Koch

Topic: Miniature Cattleyas in Warm Climates

Alan Koch owns and operates Gold Country Orchids where he specializes in miniature and compact Cattleya’s. Alan started growing orchids in 1969 with 3 Cymbidiums given to him by an aunt. While in
college, he became interested in other orchids and discovered many would grow outdoors in Southern California. He has moved five times as his orchid obsession has led to the need for more growing space. With the last move, he purchased 10 acres of land in Lincoln, California for his 300,000 orchids. He is recognized as an expert in the Brazilian Cattleya alliance and a trend setter in miniature Cattleya breeding.

Alan has been published in the Orchid Digest, and the American Orchid Society magazines. He has also been published in the proceedings of the World Orchid Conference. He is an internationally known speaker. He is a past member of the AOS Judging Committee, and the Research Committee, as well as an Accredited Judge and is Vice-chair and Training Coordinator for the California Sierra Nevada Judging Center. Alan also served two terms on the Orchid Digest Executive Committee and Board of Directors, and is one of the current directors, as well as a Trustee for the AOS.

Alan will have plants for sale.

Meeting Wednesday August 6, 2014 7pm. Venice Community Center

Posted on 07/22/2014 by cwood2010

Speaker: Courtney Hackney

Growing Cattleya

Professor Hackney is the Director of Coastal Biology at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville, Florida. He began growing orchids in the Florida Keys in 1962 while working for a small orchid nursery and has continued his interest in both orchid hybridizing and orchid culture since then. He grows many different genera, but his favorite is the Cattleya Alliance. He has about 500 mature cattleyas and even more seedlings, but his favorites are classic clones, some of which appeared in orchid collections over 100 years ago. He makes 8-10 hybrids and species sib crosses per year in various genera.

He wrote a Growing Tips column for 20 years, which ended in December 2013 that appeared in newsletters around the country and has published in Orchid Digest. In 2004, he published “American Cattleyas”, the culmination of a decade of study and interviews, which summarizes in old photographs and print how all of the modern cattleyas came to be. The book also describes what we know about cattleyas and cattleya hybrids, how to grow them, and what to expect from modern hybrids.

He and his wife Rose live in Jacksonville, Florida adjacent to a tidal swamp. Rose paints and he enjoys the Epi. conopseum growing in the trees in his backyard, while he conducts his research in the swamp. His orchids are now enjoying residence in a new 24’x25’ Florida shade house adjacent to the swamp.

Courtney and Rose will have plants and their books for sale.

Meeting June 4, 2014 – 7:00 pm

Posted on 05/15/2014 by tmkellogg2010

Steve Hawkins “Oncidiums”

Steve’s career started with a couple of Cattleya orchids on a windowsill in a Kansas farmhouse at the age of 15. After graduating college with a degree in horticulture, Steve started work at Rod McLellan Co., “Acres of Orchids”, in South San Francisco, first as a grower and later as hybridizer and sales manager over a 13 year period. Shortly after moving to Florida in 1988, he began his own nursery, Orchid Specialists, in Apopka, and grows a wide variety of orchids and some unusual tropicals in a 6000 square foot greenhouse.

His focus is on serving individuals and small businesses and educating the public with presentations to garden clubs and other organizations. He is a well-known speaker at numerous area and regional orchid societies and is a member of both the Central Florida Orchid Society and American Orchid Society. He does most of the work himself, but is helped by his hobbyist sister, Linda, at the many orchid shows and other venues where he exhibits.

He always saves time at the end of his presentations for questions and answers and will have a great selection of orchids for sale.