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Instead of of the general agenda, we will be using this month’s meeting as a training and orientation session for all volunteers for the upcoming auction.

The annual auction is POS’ main fund raiser and we depend on contributions from our membership to the event, namely plant donations and volunteer time. 

As this is prime re-potting time, please consider setting aside some divisions for the auction. Every year, member and vendor donations have enabled us to raise the money we need to pay for our meeting facility, our speakers, and the opportunity table.

We are fortunate to have a few very active individuals but we need your help for the auction! There are still a handful of responsibilities to be assigned and you are strongly encouraged to participate. Consider signing up some of your family members as well, this may actually be a lot of fun for them!

All volunteers will receive a plant at the orientation meeting as a token of gratitude. 

Whether you are able to volunteer or not, please join us on May 17 at the Pavilion and take advantage of the opportunity to purchase some very nice plants at very reasonable prices!

We are fortunate to have Fred Clarke as our speaker for March. Fred ClarkeFred is a long time, generous supporter of the Palomar Orchid Society and one of our most favorite speakers. Fred will be talking on “Growing Catasetums”. His presentation will describe catasteum species and hybrids and share with us tips on how to grow this very interesting class of deciduous orchids. Fred’s talk is not to be missed, as he is an excellent speaker who has lectured on many orchid subjects in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Latin and South America. Fred is also providing the plant table, which will likely include some of his new catasetums hybrids as well as novel cattleyas hybrids.

As many of you know, Fred is a passionate orchid grower and hybridizer whose curiosity in orchids is broad and varied. Accordingly, Fred has created many new hybrids across several orchid classes. Although developing new cattleya hybrids has been a long-standing, primary interest of Fred, he also has produced new Aussie dendrobium, bulbophyllum, paphiopedilum, sarcochillus and zygopetalum hybrids. Moreover, his pioneering work in catasetum intergeneric hybrids led to the development of several unique hybrids, including the grex, Fredclarkeara After Dark, which produced “the closest flower color to black ever witnessed”. To date, this grex has received eight FCCs and six AMs.   Read more »

Sandra Tillisch SvobodaWe are pleased to welcome Sandra Tillisch Svoboda, current President of the American Orchid Society, who will be speaking on "Breeding with Recently Described Paphiopedilums from Vietnam".  Sandra’s visit is jointly hosted by the Palomar and the San Diego County Orchid Societies.  Accordingly, she will present a talk on Tuesday, February 4 to the San Diego Society on “The Orchids of Bhutan” for those of you who are interested in that topic. This month’s plant table for will be provided by Casa de las Orquideas.

Growing up in Minnesota, Sandra's only exposure to orchids was that prom corsage. After graduating with a degree in nursing, she moved to California and ended up in Santa Barbara. She began her orchid life as a pot washer for her husband Al and became fascinated with the history of her husband's complex paph collection, which included many of the oldies like Paph. F.C. Puddle. Al's knowledge, love, and enthusiasm for orchids were contagious and when they built a second greenhouse, she decided it would be hers and that was the moment that orchids became an important part of her life.    Read more »

General

• Short days and cold nights in January will keep most of your orchids in a semi-dormant growth state but Fall/Winter blooming orchids will initiate spikes at this time.  Watch them very carefully and cut back on water and fertilizer as cooler days and nights prevail.
• Protect your outdoor orchids from winter rains.  Keeping them on the dryer side will allow them to tolerate the cold winter nights we tend to experience in Southern California.  Water and fertilize sparingly during winter warm spells.
• As watering and fertilizing practices diminish for winter, be sure to leach your plants thoroughly. Make your last thorough watering a leaching process in order to address 'salt built up' issues before diminished watering starts. Roots should readily be able to absorb the little water and nutrients that they may get during this period. Roots heavily encrusted with excess minerals are not able to absorb the ones they need and may develop deficiencies or even excess toxic levels during dryer conditions.
• Keep cold-sensitive, warm growing orchids (phals, paphs, tolumnias, most vandas and warm growing dendrobiums and cattleyas such as violacea, dowiana and their hybrids) inside or in a greenhouse to protect them from night temperatures below 50°F. An excellent article on ‘Cold Tolerance of Orchids’ by Sue Bottom of the St. Augustine Orchid Society can be found in their October Newsletter (pgs. 9-11)
• Cold loving orchids, including odontoglossums, miltonias, pleurothallids, masdevallias, draculas, will thrive in cool weather and respond by initiating growth so continue to water and fertilize them during this period but also protect from freezing temps. Take this opportunity to divide or repot them during their winter growth period to encourage new growth and avoid the stress of repotting during the warm season.
• Winter blooming cattleyas and cymbidiums should be in bud or full bloom by now. Provide adequate water and fertilizer, but do so in the mornings so plants dry out before nightfall. Stake cymbidium spikes to guide inflorescences for support of buds and blooms.
• Maintain good hygiene practices to minimize transmission of pests and viruses. Watch for fungus, bacterial rot and cold burn in cold and wet weather. Remove infected tissues and treat accordingly. More information on treating these disorders can be found on the AOS website.
• More details on monthly checklist items for specific genera can be found on the AOS website

General

• Shorter days and cooler nights in November will slow down the metabolism of your orchids and initiate spikes on Fall/Winter blooming orchids.  Watch them carefully and cut back on water and fertilizer as cooler days and nights prevail. Protect outdoor orchids from winter rains.
• Bring in cold-sensitive, warm growing orchids to protect them from night temperatures below 50°. 
• Fall/winter blooming cattleyas and cymbidiums are either in bloom or preparing for blooming. Provide adequate water and fertilizer but do so in the mornings so plants dry out before nightfall. Stake cymbidium spikes to guide inflorescences for support of buds and blooms.
• Maintain good hygiene practices to minimize transmission of pests and viruses. Watch for fungus and bacterial rot as weather cools and wetter conditions prevail.
• More details on specific genera can be found on the AOS website