Join us for our Annual Re-potting Clinic

Meeting Date: Wednesday, September 11^th at the Cheshire Senior Center.  Doors open at 6:30pm for socializing and the meeting starts at 7pm.

Where: The Cheshire Senior Center is located at: 240 Maple Ave, Cheshire, CT 06410

Event: Orchid Re-potting Clinic

Our September meeting will be a Repotting Clinic with orchid supplies for sale. At the last meeting we announced the new 25% members discount on all books and supplies, I would encourage everyone to take advantage of the discount, the prices for pots, mixes, and stakes are very reasonable and you are supporting your society with your purchase! The supplies list is posted under the ‘Supplies’ tab on our website, NOT on the sidebar under the calendar, that is an outdated supplies list that we can’t seem to delete! Please reach out ahead of time to, ctorchidsociety@gmail.com if there is anything you would like us to bring to the meeting for you. We will be bringing a selection of supplies but will not have everything on the list unless it’s specifically requested. As we head into the cooler months of fall many orchids are putting on new root and shoot growth, so take advantage of this and get some repotting done! We have everything you need from pots to stakes and everything in between.

If you are uncertain or intimidated about repotting your plants or just want to join in the fun this month’s meeting should be a popular event. Bring in your overgrown plants or plants in old potting media, our orchid experts will be on hand to coach you in how to repot or divide your plant. If you would like someone to re-pot your plant for you we can also do that for a small fee of $5 per plant. This is a hands-on event so be prepared to dig in and get dirty! We will have extra pruners and repotting tools, but strongly encourage you to bring your own if you have them so we have enough to go around.

Even if you don’t have any orchids to repot, come on out and join us at the September meeting, there is always something new to learn, and as always, we encourage you to bring your blooming plants for the Show Table! It’s always exciting to see what’s coming into bloom, looking forward to an awesome show table! See you there!

Please print and fill out the ID card for the show table here

COS Picnic Reminder

Join us for our annual Summer Picnic and Plant Swap at Black Rock State Park!

When: Sunday August 11th 10am-3pm – We are asking everyone to arrive around 10am for setup before a brief business meeting around 10:30am, followed by a barbecue lunch and socializing.The picnic is under a covered pavilion and will take place Rain or Shine

Where: Black Rock State Park Picnic Pavilion: 2065 Thomaston Rd, Watertown, CT 06795

Directions: From Route 8 north: take Exit 38. Turn left at the end of the exit ramp to first traffic light. Turn left at traffic light onto US Route 6 west. Park entrance is a 1/2 mile on the right on US Route 6.

From Route 8 south: take Exit 38. Go straight ahead at the end of the exit ramp to US Route 6 west. Park entrance is on the right.

You can use 2065 Thomaston Rd for your gps.

The pavilion is visible across the field from the Main Entrance and is adjacent to the parking & bathrooms. Very easy to locate, there should be staff at the entrance who can direct you if you have any difficulty finding the pavilion.

Picnic Info:

The COS will be providing Hot Dogs and Hamburgers and we are asking that everyone bring a side dish, appetizer, dessert, or drinks to share. Please respond to Karen KuzielKarenKuziel@pchiggins.com directly if you are planning on attending and have not already signed up with a dish or reached out to her! We need a rough headcount or burgers and dogs to plan food. If you are a member and want to bring a guest, please let us know so we can accommodate, there is a $5 guest fee.

There are picnic tables at the facility, but we encourage you to bring your own folding chairs if you would like something a bit more comfortable. Feel free to bring yard games for a bit of competitive sport!

Since we are not holding a regular meeting with a speaker this month we are planning on holding a plant swap! Bring along your extra divisions or plants to swap. Orchids are prolific growers and we always have a few extra divisions sitting around taking up space. This is a chance to open up some space for something new in your collection. So join the summer fun and swap a plant!

There will be a show table, so don’t forget to bring along your blooming plants for this month’s show table. It’s always exciting to see what’s coming into bloom, looking forward to an awesome show table!

Please print and fill out the ID card for the show table below 🙂

Orchid ID Cards for Show Table

Join us for our annual Re-potting Clinic

Meeting Date: Wednesday, November 8th at the Farmington Senior Center

Doors open at 6:30pm for socializing and the meeting starts at 7pm.

The Farmington Senior Center: 321 New Britain Ave, Unionville, CT 06085

Featured Event: Orchid Re-potting Clinic

The November ‘Re-potting Clinic’ is coming up early this month, we apologize for any confusion that that last minute meeting change caused last month, it was caused by circumstances out of our control. As a result, we are meeting in Farmington in both November and December!

If you are uncertain or intimidated about repotting your plants or just want to join in the fun this month’s meeting should be a popular event. We have a large amount of potting media that we mixed up for this event, with different formulations to suit a wide variety of plants. Media mixes, pots, and supplies will be available for sale to members at a reasonable price. Feel free to bring your own media and supplies, our orchid experts will be on hand to coach you in how to repot or divide your plant. If you would like someone to re-pot your plant for you we can also do that for a small fee of $5 per plant. This is a hands-on event so be prepared to dig in and get dirty! We will have extra pruners and repotting tools, but strongly encourage you to bring your own if you have them so we have enough to go around.

On the agenda this month is a vote for a proposed increase in membership dues. As we approach the new year this is a reminder that it’s time to renew your membership. This year we are proposing a dues increase to be voted on by the membership attendant at the upcoming November meeting. The annual membership dues were set back in the early 2000’s and as we all know the price of just about everything has gone up over the past 20 years. We are proposing an increase from $20 to $30 for the individual membership, $25 to $35 for the family membership, $200 to $300 for the lifetime individual, and $250 to $350 for the lifetime family. The increase in membership dues will allow us to continue booking amazing speakers for the upcoming year without breaking the budget. If you have anything to say on the matter please come out and vote at the November meeting.

Don’t forget to bring along your blooming plants for this month’s show table. It’s always exciting to see what’s coming into bloom, looking forward to an awesome show table! See you there!

Please print and fill out the ID card for the show table below

Join us for a presentation by guest Speaker Edgar Stehli from Windswept in Time Orchids

Meeting Date: Wednesday, September 13th at the Cheshire Senior Center.  Doors open at 6:30pm for socializing and the meeting starts at 7pm.

The Cheshire Senior Center is located at 240 Maple Ave, Cheshire, CT 06410

Presentation: Angraecoids!

Speaker Bio:

My interest in orchids began when I was just six or seven years old.  I found a plant growing in the roadside ditch near our house in North East Ohio.  When my father got home from work, I dragged him over to see my discovery.  He said “Oh! That’s an orchid.”  My first orchid find was a Spiranthes(probably cernua).  A few years later my family drove to Alaska and back.  On that trip, I found a Calypso bulbosa in Wyoming and several other orchids in Alaska and Canada.

While in high school, I began growing some tropical orchids, and soon had a small collection.  While in my final year at Case Western Reserve University my orchid collection moved to Florida with my parents.   Sadly, I never saw them again (the orchids that is!).  Also in my last year, I met Kim Sante who was working at the Cleveland Garden Center, now known as the Cleveland Botanical Garden.  Eventually Kim and I were married in Kenya Africa.  Shortly after we were married we built a sun room on the corner of our house.  This of course allowed my orchid collection to get a little out of hand.  Finally in 1999 we began selling our plants to area florists, then through the orchid shows. We called our new business – Windswept in Time Orchids. We now attend close to fifteen shows a year, where our plants and exhibits have won many awards

Meeting Topic: Angraecoids

In the orchid world, we often combine related genera of orchids into a larger grouping, called an alliance.  In the Case of Angraecum, Aerangis, Eurychone, and several other genera that group is often referred to as Angraecoid Orchids.  Angraecoidsare predominantly found in Africa and Madagascar.  The flowers tend to be white and fragrant at night.  The presentation on Angraecoid Orchids goes over some of the distinctions between Angraecum and Aerangis.  There are photos of many of the more commonly grown species.  Since we all want to become better growers, there is some cultural information in the presentation.

Don’t forget to bring along your blooming plants for this month’s show table. It’s always exciting to see what’s coming into bloom, looking forward to an awesome show table! See you there!

Please print and fill out the ID card for the show table here