DVOS Meeting

Steve Hampson

Now the days are getting shorter and the nights should sometimes need a blanket it is pleasant to daydream of travel to somewhere exotic, if only in an armchair.  Last month we went to Bahia, Brazil and since we had already made that long virtual flight I thought why not take in the Far East before we return next month.

October’s speaker, Steve Hampson, will be with us on Zoom on Thursday October 8. at 7:00PM to take us on a virtual visit to see the “Orchids of Southern China”.

Steve grew up in New York, and had a strong interest in plants from a very young age. He received a Masters degree in Horticulture at the Pennsylvania State University and after running an apple orchard and plant nursery in Western Pennsylvania as co-owner for several years he settled in Southern California. Although now mostly retired, Steve was senior horticulturist at the famed Roger’s Gardens in Corona del Mar where he is still a popular lecturer. He has a well-earned reputation for his knowledge of sweet peas, waterlilies, dahlias and daffodils as well as orchids. Our guest is very fond of The Pleurothallid Alliance and grows a extensive collection of those species.

In better times, Steve travels extensively looking at flowers in the wild. In his presentation, he will share two trips to China, one to Yunnan and the other to Sichuan, looking for slipper orchids and other species.

Ron Parsons

Our August speaker, Ron Parsons, will be with us on Zoom on Friday, August 14, again at 7:00PM. Ron has an outstanding reputation not only for his encyclopedic knowledge of orchids but also for his superb flower photography.  He is bringing us his new presentation on “The Genus Dendrobium” which, as he says himself, is “…beautiful”.

Ron has been growing orchids for more than 40 years and has been interested in species orchids for most of that time. His passion is to photograph orchids and most other flowers whenever he can, whether it be on trips to see them in nature or in collections. He loves to travel to see orchids in the wild, and does so as often as possible. Ron has more than 90,000 digital images, most of which are of orchids, and still retains an even larger slide library of botanical photographs. Over 4,000 of his images have been published in books, magazines, periodicals and journals. He has co-authored several books, all with Mary Gerritson, the most recent being The American Orchid Society Guide to Orchids and their Culture published in 2019.

Mary Gerritsen, Ph.D. is an independent biotechnology consultant who has been growing orchids (mostly species) on and off for more than 30 years, and since relocating to the San Francisco Bay area in 1997 started to a collection of small cool growing miniature species such as Masdevallias, Porroglossums, Lepanthes and other assorted tiny gems. She also has a second intermediate greenhouse, filled with larger species such as Angraecoids, Dendrobiums, Oncidiums, Laelias, Phalaenopsis and Bulbophyllums. She loves to see orchids growing in situ, and has made it her mission over the last few years to see and photograph as many as possible.

Masdevalia veitchiana

She is the co-author of several botanical books: Masdevallias, Gems of the Orchid World; Calochortus, Mariposa Lilies and their Relatives; A Compendium of Miniature Orchid Species; A Bay Area Guide to Orchids and their Culture; and the American Orchid Society Guide to Orchid and their Culture, with fellow San Francisco Orchid Society Member and well known photographer, Ron Parsons.

Mary is the chief financial officer of the Orchid Conservation Alliance, serves on the board of directors of Orchid Digest, and is a past president of the San Francisco and the Peninsula Orchid Societies.

The in person DVOS meeting at the Contra Costa Water District Building on May 14,  has been cancelled due to COVID-19 concerns.

Phragmipedium caudatum ‘Cow Hollow’

Dear Orchid Friends,

This months’ speaker was to have been Leo Schordje who grows his orchids, mostly under lights, in Zion City, on the shore of Lake Michigan about 40 miles north of Chicago. [At the thought of that location in winter, my orchids are already shivering!]
For health reasons unrelated to COVID-19 Leo could not have been with us personally, but with his kind permission we have developed a substantial slide presentation from his written material. It will be available for download on May 16. After only limited
editing of his actual words, the text portion very closely represents what he would have said in his planned talk on ‘The culture of hybrid Phragmipediums’. Having talked to Leo at length, I think his personality and humor are quite apparent and complemented by the many supporting images.

I will send all DVOS members the link and password in the next few days. Please look out for them.
I hope you enjoy Leo and his knowledge of Phragmipediums as much as I did trying to bring them to life!

Peter Ansdell

Phragmipedium besseae

Phragmipedium hybrid

Speaker’s Choice

Dear Orchid Friends,

The DVOS Board has discussed the COVID-19 concerns as they impact our upcoming meeting Thursday, March 12. We have decided to cancel this meeting. We have made this decision based on the document cited below.
Public Health Recommendations for COVID-19 – March 10, 2020 from the Contra Costa Health Sevices https://cchealth.org/coronavirus/pdf/COVID-19-Interim-Guidance-for-Social-Distancing.pdf Excerpt:
• Cancel or postpone large gatherings such as concerts, sporting events, celebrations, conventions, religious services and community events where 50 or more people are within arm’s length of each other.
• Cancel or postpone events for or attended by older adults or others who are at higher risk for severe illness.
I know that we are all interested in attending this meeting but our health and disease containment are the most important factor. Stay safe. I send you my greetings and will see you when this risk is past.

Regards,
Diane

Debra Attwood will give this presentation at a future time.

Debra Attwood: “It’s out of the pot, now what?” A practical demonstration of making the best choices for re-potting

Founder of Napa Valley Orchids, Debra Attwood is a third generation Napan who grows Angraecoids, species Phalaenopsis, Neofinetias, Maxillarias, Encyclias and what ever else catches her fancy. Her greenhouse maintains an intermediate temperature range and her plants thrive in the Mediterranean climate of Napa. In addition to caring for a greenhouse full of beautiful orchids, she consults, is a regular speaker at orchid societies and garden clubs and performs greenhouse maintenance for clients. She has taught orchid classes for many years, and still conducts workshops as time allows.

The Plant Table will be supplied by the speaker.  Debra Attwood will also bring some plants to sell.

Our no-host Speaker Dinner will be  at 5:30 p.m. is at Aung MayLika 1050 Contra Costa Blvd, Concord, CA 94423

If you have any orchid related question in need of an answer, our February meeting is for you! There will be a total of five speakers; Dennis Olivas; Eileen Jackson; Peter Ansdell; Sung Lee Han and Tom Pickford, all members of DVOS. Eileen, Peter, Sung and Tom will form a panel to answer your questions and Dennis will act as moderator with full powers to intervene.

Eileen Jackson

Eileen grows her Cymbidiums and many other award-winning orchids in Vallejo.

Peter Ansdell

Sung Han Lee

Peter is an inveterate Walnut Creek windowsill grower of Phalaenopsis species and hybrids.

Sung has won so many awards at DVOS with his Castro Valley Cattleyas and other species he is now hors concours and

Tom is an American Orchid Society judge growing innumerable different orchids, many of them beautifully mounted, in his greenhouse in Bolinas.

Tom-Pickford

Dennis will be accumulating written questions at the beginning of the evening or you may ask the panel “live”. Please do not bring plants. If your question involves a specific plant, please bring the clearest possible colored image. If you think the plant may be sick or has a pest, the panel would appreciate a typical leaf and/or an example of the pest in a closed plastic bag.

Dennis Olivas

The Plant Table will be supplied by the club.

Learn the basics about how to take care of your Sarcochilus orchid!

Dennis was born on the island of Kauai, Hawaii. As a lad he helped his mom grow her orchids and got hooked. He joined the Future Farmers of America and his project was raising and selling orchids.
In 1980 he moved to the mainland and swore off the orchid family; not for long, as he was introduced to Rod McLellan’s ‘Acres of Orchids’. First, he filled his home with upwards of 6,000 plants. Later he leased greenhouse space for his collection. A glutton for punishment, he continued to add to his collection, overflowing the 3,000 sq. ft. greenhouse in Half Moon Bay. Currently his greenhouse (D&D Flowers) is in Daly City.

Dennis has been president of Peninsula Orchid Society, San Francisco Orchid Society, Diablo View Orchid Society and the Santa Cruz Orchid Society. He is an accredited judge of the American Orchid Society. Dennis belongs to over 14 orchid societies and tries to assist them whenever possible.  

The Plant Table will be supplied by Dennis Olivas

Note Change in VENUE AND TIME for the December Meeting

6:00 pm – 10:00 pm at Pleasant Hill Community Center, 320 Civic Drive, Large Room

Gift Exchange and Small Auction

Setup at 6:00 pm with Dinner beginning at 7:00 pm

Turkey and ham and soft drinks will be provided by the Board … the rest … by you, our members! We have a liquor license, so you can BYOB!

For the potluck, bring a side dish, salad or desert … enough for 8 … according to the beginning letter of your last name…

A-G Desert, H-O Salad, P-Z Side Dish

For the Gift Exchange bring a nice plant (bug free) or an orchid related item (a pot, gardening tool etc … something that you would like to receive yourself).

There will also be a small auction for some very special items!

Note: This is a members only event… spouses/partners are welcome, too.

The 2020 dues should be paid by the January meeting, but feel free to pay at the party! ($30)

Holiday Party Bonus: The first 40 people who have paid dues for 2020 will receive a free plant grown by Dennis Olivas!  Please bring the completed form with your check. Renewal Form

Carol Klonowski as been growing orchids since the 1980s when a friend in Berkeley, California gave her a cattleya orchid and it bloomed out with three big, dark lavender flowers and an intoxicating fragrance. She built an entire greenhouse in her backyard to accommodate the precious plant, which only led her to buy more orchids. Then another friend gave her a gift membership to the Orchid Society of California, and it’s been a serious hobby eve since.

Carol has served as director, vice president, and president of the Orchid Society of California for most of the past two decades and is currently a fully accredited judge with the American Orchid Society in the California Sierra Nevada Judging Center.

The History of Unifoliate Cattleyas

Carol Klonowski will explore the discovery, cultivation, and popularization of labiata-type cattleyas. She’ll start with their discovery in the jungles of Central and South America, follow them through the floral industry trade, and share how their popularity has re-emerged in recent years. Aside from Phalaenopsis, no other orchid comes to mind as quickly when someone mentions the phrase orchid flower. The culture information from the talk can easily apply to most other orchid genera.