Speaker – John Budree     

Topic – Bulbophyllums

Meeting starts 7:00 – Doors open at 6:30.
Venice Community Center

Ramnarine John Budree was born in Trinidad and Immigrated to Florida some 23 years ago. Back then he grew many different types of plants and orchids and took part in collecting, growing and showing them at many of the shows, but there was always something more; he wanted to learn more about orchids, and wanted more of a challenge.  He wanted to study, grow and flower them. So, when he came to Florida, he got involved with orchids at all different levels. Now he was able to grow all of those types of plants that he could only read about and even meet all of those people that grew and wrote the articles that he had read in the AOS magazines.  So, he started out on his journey and adventure. He started to go to many of the shows and of course, what you do when you go to a show, YOU BUY ORCHIDS, which you know nothing about, in the hopes you can grow or flower them [yea right].

He always liked Paphiopedilums but was told he couldn’t grow them. This became a challenge to him and he found these plants very interesting as well. He met some of the biggest and best growers in the orchid business, Jack Schendowich, Warren Kelly {Orchid World}, Bob Skully {Jones & Skully}, Mr. Frank Smith {Krull-Smith} and Sheldon Takasaki {Carmela Orchids}.

These people really know how to grow all types of orchids; Paphiopedilum, Cattleya, Phalaenopsis, Dendrobium, and Oncidium.  At the 19^th  World Orchid Conference, in Miami in 2008, he was the only hobbyist to do a table top display and also  had the opportunity to work with Frank Smith on the KRULL-SMITH display.  He  tried to absorb as much of Frank Smith’s knowledge as possible, and because this, this is what he considered an lesson in life that he will never forget.  He started to grow many different types of orchids, Paphs of course, and as of today, has grown over 3000 plants as well as other types of orchids. He  has also lost count of the ones he has killed. In short, he has been growing Orchids for about 40 years, from flask to flower and has accumulated about 75 AOS awards.

John will have plants for sale at our meeting.

Speaker – Phillip Hamilton                                                

Topic – Broughtonias and their Hybrids

Meeting starts 7:00 – Doors open at 6:30.
Venice Community Center

Phillip was born and raised in Jamaica where he inherited his dad’s passion for orchids and grew up working in his parents’ orchid nursery, Hamlyn Orchids. Although his dad’s true orchid passion is with the Jamaican native Broughtonia’s and their hybrids, Phillip’s passion leaned heavily toward Phalaenopsis, which he has been growing and hybridizing since the age of eight.

He earned his undergraduate and graduate degrees in Environmental Horticulture at the University of Florida in Gainesville, and is an American Orchid Society (AOS) Accredited Judge.

Professionally, Phillip has worked for two major orchid production nurseries in Central Florida as a grower and grower/manager. In 2013 he formed his own business, Bredren Orchids, to facilitate the sale of some of the more unique Phalaenopsis and Broughtonia species and hybrids he grows and breeds. He now manages Bredren Orchids full-time since 2017, with the generous help of his wife, Liz.

Phillip will be bringing a variety of plants for sale, including: novelty Phalaenopsis species/hybrids and Broughtonia/Cattleya related species and hybrids.

October 5th 7:00pm

Location: Venice Community Center

The Speaker will be Fred Clarke of Sunset Valley Orchids.

Presenting: Aussie Dendrobiums

Fred has been growing orchids for 42 years and has been hybridizing for 38 of those years. With over 34 years as a professional grower and manager in the horticultural industry, Fred applies these skills at his orchid nursery; Sunset Valley Orchids, located in San Diego, California.

He is a passionate orchid grower whose curiosity in orchids is broad and varied. Although developing Cattleya hybrids has been his sustaining interest, he is also actively creating new Paphiopedilum and Aussie Dendrobium hybrids plus some others to be named if they work out!

His pioneering work in Catasetum intergeneric hybrids led to the development of several notable hybrids, most recently the grex, Fredclarkeara After Dark, which produced “the blackest flower ever witnessed”. This grex has received over 100 awards worldwide with nine FCC’s and thirty AM’s from the AOS judges!

Fred is an Accredited Judge in the Pacific South Judging Region. His plants have received hundreds of quality awards from the American Orchid Society.