November 2015 – Phyllis Prestia

Phyllis PrestiaThis month, our guest speaker is POS member Phyllis Prestia.  She will discuss her trip to the World Orchid Conference, held last year in Johannesburg, South Africa.  

Phyllis will take us on a tour of the displays and orchids at the WOC, including those that received the highest awards at the conference. She will also discuss some of the orchids of the South African and Madagascar regions, which she saw and photographed.  Since Phyllis herself grows many of those species, her presentation will include details and tips on the culture of rainforest and savannah terrestrials.

Phyllis is a retired educator and middle school principal. She received a Doctorate of Education at Rutgers University, where she also served as instructor in the graduate education program.

Originally from New Jersey, she moved to California with her husband to retire in the sunny San Diego area and grow orchids. Her collection includes a variety of species and hybrids across several genera grown both in a small greenhouse as well as three outdoor growing areas under shade cloth.

In her orchid life Phyllis has been the president of the San Diego County Cymbidium Society and she currently serves as the vice-president of the Cymbidium Society of America.  She served as second vice-president for POS, as well as chairman of the annual auction committee for several years. She is active in several other Southern California orchid societies and is currently participating in the orchid judge training programs of both the American Orchid Society and Cymbidium Society of America.