December 10th Meeting at the Farmington Senior Center will be our annual Holiday Party

Nov20

Join us at our December meeting for our annual Holiday Party!


Meeting Date: Wednesday, December 10th at the Farmington Senior Center. Doors open at 6:30pm for socializing and the general body meeting starts at 7pm.

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

Event: Holiday Party!

This month it’s time to kick back and relax no need to take notes, it’s time to socialize, our meeting will be the annual Holiday Party at the Farmington Senior Center on December 10th at 6:30pm. As usual the club will be buying in entrees from a local restaurant and we ask that everyone bring either a side, salad, or desert. There will be a small fee of $20 per person to cover the cost of the food, and we ask that you please RSVP if you will be attending so we order enough food for everyone. If you want to attend and haven’t already signed up please do so here or reach out to Mary at ctorchidsociety@gmail.com. Last year a very merry time was had by all, join us for a dose of orchid cheer

We hope you will come on out and join us at the December 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

November 12th Meeting at the Cheshire Senior Center will be a talk on utilizing online orchid resources by Bill Bodei

Nov5

Join us at our November meeting for a talk by Bill Bodei on utilizing online orchid resources!

Meeting Date: Wednesday, November 12th 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: Digital Culture – Improving Orchid Outcomes using lessons learned from the world wide web

Digital Transformation is the use of new, fast, and frequently changing digital technology to solve problems. This change isn’t limited to business. Its impact is becoming ubiquitous in our everyday lives, including our hobbies. The web is an amazing resource for orchid hobbyists! This interactive talk charts a course that allows for the non-technical user to leverage digital resources simply and efficiently. Whether it’s identifying a pest or disease issue, sharing culture experiences, or becoming a more discerning buyer, there is something in this talk for everyone from the novice to the advanced.

Our speaker William (Bill) Bodei has been growing orchids for about 16 years, maintaining a collection of > 1500 orchids of various genera including Cattleya, Vanda, Cymbidium, Paphiopedilum, Phragmipedium, Bulbophyllum, Encyclia and many others.

Bill is currently President of Deep Cut Orchid Society, and is the creator of the website, deepcutorchidsociety.org. Bill also served on the Board of Trustees of the American Orchid Society for six years and chaired the AOS Marketing and Membership committee. Bill grew the AOS Facebook group to more than 250,000 members over six years. Bill led the two year long project to completely remake the American Orchid Society website, aos.org, which launched in the spring of 2024.

Bill’s day job is in technology and software sales. Always a little bit of an IT nerd, Bill enjoys sharing what he’s learned and talking about the intersection of orchid growing and technology.

We hope you will come on out and join us at the November 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

October 8th Meeting at the Farmington Senior Center will be our Annual Repotting Clinic

Sep27

Join us for our Annual Re-potting Clinic

 

Meeting Date: Wednesday, October 8th at the Farmington Senior Center.  Doors open at 6:30pm for socializing and the meeting starts at 7pm.

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

Presentation: Orchid Re-potting Clinic

Our October meeting will be a Repotting Clinic with orchid supplies for sale! As a reminder, one of the many benefits of being a member of the orchid society is a 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 on 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

 

 

September 10th Meeting at the Cheshire Senior Center Show Preparation

Sep2

Join us for our September meeting where we will be going over show preparations!

 

When: Wednesday September 10th at 6:30 pm

Where: The Cheshire Senior and Community Center 240 Maple Ave, Cheshire, CT 06410

Meeting Info:

Our show is just around the corner, we have been busy behind the scenes making sure preparations are underway for our Show and Sale ‘Orchid Harvest’ on September 27th and 28th at the Bristol Senior and Community Center. If it hasn’t made its way onto your calendar yet be sure to save the date.

We are asking all our membership to contribute volunteer hours to make this another successful show. If you have any availability that weekend we need your help and ask that you sign up for a volunteer timeslot. We will be sending out a volunteer signup sheet to the membership, please be sure to check your email and signup through the link provided. Setup will begin on Friday the 26th in the afternoon as we put together the show and sales area ahead of the arrival of our vendors and sister orchid societies. The biggest push will take place on Friday, but we will also need volunteers to staff the show on Saturday and Sunday, tasks will include manning the society sales area, front door greeters, show monitors, raffle facilitators, etc.

At our meeting on September 10th we will be discussing volunteer roles and going over the plan for setup on Friday. If you are planning on volunteering at the Show and Sale we strongly recommend that you attend the September meeting

There will be a show table, so don’t forget to bring along 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! Please print and fill out the ID card for the show table here

August 10th meeting at Black Rock State Park will be our annual Summer Picnic

Aug1

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

When: Sunday August 11th 10am-3pm – We are asking everyone to arrive around 11am for setup before a brief business meeting around 11:30am, 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. If you are planning on attending please check your email for the signup sheet that Mary sent out to all the members, the link went out with the summer newsletter email. 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!

There will be a show table, so don’t forget to bring along 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! Please print and fill out the ID card for the show table here

June 11th Meeting at the Farmington Senior Center will feature Tim Culbertson speaking on Masdevallias

Jun7

Join us for our June Meeting featuring a presentation on Masdevallia by Tim Culbertson!

Meeting Date: Wednesday, June 11th at the Farmington Senior Center. Doors open at 6:30pm for socializing and the general body meeting starts at 7pm.

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

Event: Masdevallias by Tim Culbertson

Our speaker this month will be Tim Culbertson, one of his passions has always been plants. He began growing orchids as an offshoot from working at Longwood Gardens in Philadelphia just after college. From the very beginning it was all about Paphs, particularly awarded and select clones of historic importance, of which his collection numbers nearly
3000. He currently manage the paphs at Sunset Valley Orchids, and does hybridizing in a wide range of genera. He is an accredited judge with the American Orchid Society, and has served in various capacities with various orchid societies in California and on the East Coast. He loves meeting other people who like orchids too, and doing so often finds him traveling to shows, vendors, and peoples’ greenhouses to see the latest and greatest in new hybrids and to get the best orchid gossip. He likes to be involved in plants as much as possible: in addition to Longwood, he’s worked at the Smithsonian Institution tending to their orchids, and for years for the United States National Arboretum, collecting rare plants and documenting cultivated species and hybrids for their herbarium. In short, he really likes plants.

For the meeting, he will be sharing a presentation entitled “Masdevallias You Can Actually Grow.” It’s been such a pity that these absolute gems trace most of their heritage to cold-growing, cloud forest species. Some modern hybridizers are pushing back on those temperature requirements to make new Masdevallia hybrids which are compact, floriferous, colorful, and that grow and bloom in normal intermediate conditions in mixed collections. These plants are easy to grow and flower, are vigorous, and have low demands on light and fertilizer, and as such are wonderful plants! He will help to identify important species in the backgrounds of historically important and modern Masdevallias, as well as
discuss the different directions of breeding warmth tolerance. By the end of this presentation, you will have a new appreciation of what goes into breeding trends for these types of plants, as well as an appreciation of their beautiful flowers and ease-of-growth.

There will be a show table, so don’t forget to bring along 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!

May 14 Meeting will be at the Cheshire Senior Center featuring a presentation on Dendrobiums by Alan Koch

Apr21

Join us for our May Meeting featuring a presentation on Dendrobiums by Alan Koch!

 Meeting Date: Wednesday, May 14th at the Cheshire Senior Center.  Doors open at 6:30pm for socializing and the general body meeting starts at 7pm.

Where: The Cheshire Senior Center

240 Maple Ave, Cheshire, CT 06410

Event: Understanding Dendrobiums  by Alan Koch

Our meeting this month on May 14th will be at the Cheshire Senior Center, we will be hosting guest speaker Alan Koch, who will be presenting on Dendrobiums. His talk Understanding Dendrobiums— will cover the Dendrobium alliance, which is one of the most diverse Genera in the Orchid Family. Learn the tricks to be successful with all of the different sections.

Alan will be accepting pre orders as outlined in the email to the membership if you haven’t looked at the email and are interested the Deadline for orders is 5-5-25. All orders receive free freight. Orders of 3 or more plants get a 10% discount & orders over $150 a 20% discount. Send your order to Alan at his email address:  gcorchids@aol.com When ordering make sure you identify yourself by name and Connecticut orchid society all orders will be presorted by society. Note this offer is for society members only.

Alan owns and operates Gold Country Orchids where he specializes in miniature and compact Cattleya’s along with miniature species. 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 250,000 orchids. He is recognized as an expert in the Brazilian Cattleya alliance and a trend setter in miniature compact and Cattleya breeding. Alan has been published in the Orchid Digest, the American Orchid Society magazine, as well as many International Publications. He has also been published in several 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 Emeritus Judge and is Training Coordinator for the California Sierra Nevada Judging Center. Alan also served two terms on the Orchid Digest Executive Committee and 3 terms on the Board of Directors, as well as two terms as a Trustee for the AOS. He is currently the First Vice President for the International Phalaenopsis Alliance. Alan is also well known for the many AOS auctions he has done.

There will be a show table, so don’t forget to bring along 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! Please print and fill out the ID card for the show table here

April 9th Meeting will be at the Farmington Senior Center featuring a talk by Jason Chang on Phragmipedium

Mar26

Join us for our April Meeting featuring a presentation on Phragmipedium by Jason Chang!

Phrag. Fritz Schomburg (besseae ‘OZ Selected’ x kovachii ‘Full Moon’)

 

Meeting Date: Wednesday, April 9th at the Farmington Senior Center.  Doors open at 6:30pm for socializing and the general body meeting starts at 7pm.

Where: The Farmington Senior Center

321 New Britain Ave, Unionville, CT 06085

Event: Phragmipedium by Jason Chang

Our speaker this month will be Jason Chang, who started growing orchids in the mid 1990s. He began this hobby as a windowsill grower, although he has occasionally supplemented with artificial lights in the past as well. More recently he has transitioned his collection into a basement greenhouse powered exclusively by LED lights, where he grows a wide variety of genera including cattleyas, paphiopedilums, phragmipediums, neofinetia, and catasetinae.

At the meeting Jason will be discussing one of his (many) favorite orchids, the popular South American “ladyslippers” of the genus Phragmipedium. He will be reviewing some of the more common species and hybrids, and will offer from a hobbyist perspective some historical and cultural notes.

There will be a show table, so don’t forget to bring along 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!

March 12th meeting will be at the Cheshire Senior Center featuring a talk by J & L Orchids!

Feb16

Join us for our March Meeting featuring a presentation by Cordelia Head from J&L Orchids on Miniature Orchids for the Home

 Meeting Date: Wednesday, March 12th at the Cheshire Senior Center.  Doors open at 6:30pm for socializing and the general body meeting starts at 7pm.

Where: The Cheshire Senior Center

240 Maple Ave, Cheshire, CT 06410

Event: Presentation on Miniature Orchids for the Home

Our March meeting will feature a guest speaker from J&L Orchids. Cordelia Head is one of three previous owners of J&L Orchids and is proud to be associated with the new owners, the Carreno family. She has been growing orchids for more than forty years. Cordelia is on many international orchid committees involving orchid conservation and orchid judging. She is an American Orchid Society accredited judge and served on the Awards Committee for several years.

Cordelia has been fortunate to travel extensively throughout Central and South America in search of orchids. She has discovered many new species and has three named for her. Cordelia has lectured both nationally and internationally, including the World Orchid Conferences in Miami, France, Malaysia, Vancouver, Glasgow and many others.

Preorders: will receive a 10% discount and can be placed by contacting us directly or through our website at https://jlorchids.com using the coupon code:

CTOS25

Email preorders should be sent to preorders@jlorchids.com or call 203-261-3772

Call by noon Wednesday with any preorder

The talk will focus on Miniature orchids for the home. An evergreen presentation that discusses the wide breadth and variety of orchid species that are suitable for home growing. This covers the origins of the different species and their environments, as well as some tips about how they can be grown

There will be a show table, so don’t forget to bring along 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!

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

 

January 8th Meeting will be at the Cheshire Senior Center: Ron McHatton on Pests, Diseases, and Troubleshooting Problems- Module 5 of the Masters Gardener Series

Jan1

Join us for our January Meeting featuring a viewing of an AOS webinar by Ron McHatton!

Meeting Date: Wednesday, January 8th at the Cheshire Senior Center.  Doors open at 6:30pm for socializing and the general body meeting starts at 7pm.

Where: The Cheshire Senior Center
240 Maple Ave, Cheshire, CT 06410
Event: AOS Webinar by Ron McHatton on Pests and Diseases
Our upcoming meeting is on the Calendar for January 8th at the Cheshire Senior Center, since the weather can be inclement this time of year, we have opted to use one of the many educational AOS Webinars in place of a live speaker. The one we have chosen is a talk presented by the AOS Chief Education and Science Officer Ron McHatton, on Pests, Diseases, and Troubleshooting Problems- Module 5 of the Masters Gardener Series. It has been a while since we have had a talk on something as practical as identifying and treating problems in our collections. This is a broad overview on how to properly manage pests and diseases, which goes into a fair amount of detail on how to deal with some of the most common ones you might encounter in your collection. I enjoyed it and even took note of some useful information that I am going to apply to my spray rotation program. We are planning to meet in person at the Cheshire Senior Center to view the presentation, should the weather threaten snow or icy conditions the night of the meeting, the board will decide on the Monday ahead of our meeting date if we will be switching to a virtual meeting format.There will be a show table, so don’t forget to bring along 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!

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