October 2024 - Dr. Mitchell Schneider "Wonderland: Inter-generic Zygopetalums"

Dr. Mitchell Schneider

It is our pleasure to welcome Mitchell Schneider to our society for the first time. Mitch will speak on his efforts to develop novel intergeneric Zygopetalums to the orchid world.

Dr. Mitch Schneider’s interest in orchids started young in his teenage years. Mitch started orchids after seeing the orchid mania display in his hometown at the Cleveland Botanical Gardens. During his PhD studies, Mitch worked at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. While at Los Alamos, Mitch met Dr. Ron Midgett, who has been breeding orchids for over 55 years.  Mitch learned the art of breeding orchids from Ron. When Ron started considering retirement, Mitch became a co-owner of New Earth Orchids, and relocated operations from Santa Fe, New Mexico to Half Moon Bay, CA, after accepting a position to join the electron sources team for the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center (SLAC).

Mitch’s primary interest in breeding orchids is in the Cattleya alliance, Oncidium alliance, and Zygopetalum alliance. Mitchell has continued Ron’s work of producing compacted novelty size Cattleya’s who have plants no bigger than 18 inches tall with flowers that are 5 to 6 inches in natural spread in a wide variety of color forms including large full segmented cerulean, green with a white lip, spots and stripes, and his favorite the art shade lines. Mitchell also has started breeding to reintroduce high quality warmth tolerant Odontoglossum with the assistance of Bob Hamilton. Mitch is also working with a consortium of breeders to pioneer inter-generic Zygopetalum with full spectrum colors.

Mitch is active in the American Orchid Society Pacific Central Judging Center, has been serving on the SFOS show committee, and is now the Vice President. Mitch strives to encourage younger orchid growers to become more involved and to help partner them with experienced members to share their love of orchids, and to learn from each other.

This month’s plant table will be from some of the remaining plants of our sale including orchids from Ontario Orchids, Kalapana Tropicals and from Fred Clarke of Sunset Valley Orchids.

Mitch also will be selling some of his plants at our meeting. We look forward to seeing you on October 2nd at 4 p.m.