Wednesday May 11, 2016
THE WAVERLY INN – Right next to Cheshire Senior Center
286 Maple Ave, Cheshire, CT 06410
doors open at 6:30pm, meeting starts at 7:30pm
Doug & Terry Kennedy of Orchids In Our Tropics will be discussing Lycaste
Orchids in Our Tropics – a hobby gone wild!
In Vandorf, Ontario, the greenhouse full of thousands of orchids offers Doug Kennedy and his wife Terry a little bit of tropics in the midst of frigid Canadian winters.
More than forty years ago Doug fell in love with Paph Winston Churchill ‘Indomitable’ FCC/AOS. For a while his collection did stay pure (as far as Paph growers are concerned). However, over the years Terry kept introducing new genera and Doug just couldn’t resist them. So the collection kept growing. .Most of these genera are still well represented in their greenhouse, and Doug’s present obsession is much more omnivorous. Paphs, Oncidium intergenerics, Brassias, Miltonias, Lycastes as well as Mini Cats and Pleurothalids continue to delight him.
Terry and Doug have exhibited their plants in numerous shows from coast to coast including the 11th. World Orchid Conference in Miami in 1984 and the 16th World Orchid Conference in Vancouver. Numerous AOS show trophies, AOS quality and cultural awards and the countless other trophies document the success of their participation in these shows. Travel to exotic places like Hawaii, Thailand, Ecuador, Guatemala, Columbia, Brazil , Japan, Singapore and South Africa has further expanded their acquaintance with many species and hybrids as well as their intricate requirements.
Take a look at their website <orchidsinourtropics.com> to get a flavor of what is in their greenhouse.
Terry is an accredited judge with the American Orchid Society. Currently she is Chair of the Toronto Judging Center. Both Terry and Doug are past presidents of the Southern Ontario Orchid Society, and have been on the organizing committee for the society’s annual show since its inception over 35 years ago..
Having taken early retirement, Doug now devotes full time to family and his avocation – orchids.
Both Terry and Doug lecture on a variety of orchid topics including several genera, culture, and travel logs. The travelogues not only are exciting adventures to exotic places but also offer insights into native orchid habitats and thus help explain why particular species and their hybrids require specific conditions.. With their enthusiastic presentations both have shared their passion with orchid growers all across North America.