June 2013 - Ron Parsons

Miniature Species You Can Enjoy and Grow

Ron ParsonsWe are excited to welcome Ron Parsons who will speak to us on “Miniature Species You Can Enjoy and Grow”. Ron’s talk is based on a book he is writing, which will be published later this year.  His presentation will feature beautiful color slides of the subject matter, in-depth information, and first-hand knowledge about the species discussed. June’s plant opportunity table will be provided by Andy’s Orchids.

Like many of us, Ron is a true plant lover and has been growing orchids, cacti, and bromeliads for over thirty years, and carnivorous plants for ten. He grows an assortment of cool growing species under lights at his home in South San Francisco and a few more in an unheated greenhouse at his parents home in Burlingame. His collection is beautifully grown, and often the plants featured in his talks are from his own collection. He willingly shares his knowledge about plant habitats and suggestions for culture with all who are interested.

Ron Parsons is one of the finest flower photographers in the United States. His photography and encyclopedic knowledge of orchids is known both nationally and internationally. He has been photographing orchids, wildflowers, and almost every other kind of plant for over 25 years, and has a slide collection that numbers well over 80,000 slides! He went "digital" recently, and in this short time has taken thousands of photos of orchids, wildflowers and other rare plants. Ron travels extensively, photographing orchids and wildflowers in situ, visiting orchid and other plant enthusiasts’ collections, and most of all, taking photographs of plants and flowers that he likes. Several of his photos can be found on his highly informative website.  More recently, some of his orchid photos appeared on the front and back covers of the April, 2013 issue of Orchid Digest Magazine.

Ron is a member of the San Francisco Orchid Society, The Peninsula Orchid Society, The Orchid Society of California, and the Bay Area Pleurothallid Alliance. He is also a member of the San Francisco Succulent and Cactus Society, and the American Gesneriad Society of San Francisco.

Ron’s visit is being co-sponsored by POS and the San Diego County Orchid Society.  For those of you interested in “Orchids from China”, Ron will be talking to the SDCOS on that topic on Tuesday, June 4 at 7:30 pm. For more details and directions, visit the SDCOS website.