June 27th, 2017 (Tuesday) Meeting

Program & Agenda 1

Show and Tell Winners 2

Announcements/Event Calendar 2-4

2017 VCOS Officers 4

Advertisements 5

Culture Corner 6

37Th Annual SBOE/Cal Orchids 7

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Volume 29 Issue 6

June 2017

The Ventura County Orchid Society (VCOS) will meet on Tuesday, June 27th. The meeting location is the Ventura Townehouse located at 4900 Telegraph Road in Ventura, 7th (top) Floor.

Agenda:

6:30 PM Room Available: Set-up and Silent Auction 6:50 PM Cultural Session 7:15 to 8:15 PM Speaker 8:15 PM Break—Silent Auction and Plant Judging 8:30 PM Business Meeting 8:45 PM Results of Plant Judging Meetings will be held on the 4th Tuesday of the month at the Ventura Townehouse January through October. A Birthday dinner is held the month of November.

Speaker: James Rose James attended UCSB as an anthropology major. In 1971 he began working at Santa Barbara Orchid Estate. After 16 years there, and becoming manager, he left to establish his own nursery with his wife, Lauris. In 1987 they purchased Orchids By Rowe, a 2 acre cymbidium nursery a mere 2 blocks from the Pacific Ocean. After only a few years, James and Lauris totally redesigned the former cymbidium cut flower range to what is now (29 years later), a world famous orchid nursery that provides one of the larg-est varieties of orchid species and hybrids in the U.S.

Cal-Orchid maintains an active breeding program and stud collection built upon decades of international travel. James is very well known for having a distinctively selective 'eye' for the new unusual plant, and Cal-Orchid's new and long-time customers enjoy reaping the benefits.

The nursery's inventory features the Cattleya, Cymbidium, Odontoglossum, Epidendrum, Lycaste, Pa-phiopedilum alliances as well as a good assortment of African species. James and Lauris have become recognized for their superior 'Pacific' line of reedstem Epidendrums, which have evolved over 12 years of selective breeding and have garnered awards around the world.

James has published in the AOS, Orchid Digest, and CSA magazines, and is well respected for his vast knowledge as well as his distinctive sense of humor. He lectures all over the world…from Japan to South Africa, to Europe, South America and at orchid shows and World Orchid Conferences.

He is a Cymbidium Society of America Judge, former member of the AOS Conservation Committee, and active member of the Japan Grand Prix Organizing committee where he has judged every year at the world famous Tokyo Dome.

Refreshments Reminder: Lucy Saito

Betty Nailor

Marc Goldman

Diane Perkins

June Program: “Interesting Mexican Orchids and How to Grow Them”

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2017 May Show and Tell Winners

President’s Message and...

Dear Members, A big thank you to Jim Kindig for chairing the Green Thumb Demonstration. He reported about 20 people were in attendance at the beginning and were interest-ed in both Cymbidiums and Phaleanopsis orchids. He also gave a talk on or-chids in general. Hopefully some of those in attendance will come to our meet-ings in the future. Put your thinking caps on for ideas for our Fair Exhibit. The theme this year is "Rooted in Tradition". Rich will have a planning meeting on Sunday June 25th, see announcement.

Jean Everett

VCOS President

1st: 3rd: 2nd:

If anyone has the results of the May Show and Tell Winners AND photos, please email them to me and I will include them in the July newsletter. THANKS

Townehouse Front Desk Orchid: Thank you Jean Courtnier and Rich Pisor

3

Orchid Society of Santa Barbara (OSSB) Annual Fall Orchid Show “Falling for Orchids”

November 18 and 19 at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History

VCOS Library

Don't forget we have a fabulous library of Orchid books that can be checked out from our Librarian, Nancy Tristan. The listing of books is in the directory.

V OLU ME 29 ISS UE 6 Page 3

Announcements

Mark Your Calendar JUNE

10-Jun: Green Thumb Demonstration

10-Jun: 15th Orchid Digest Speakers Day Huntington (Saturday)

27-Jun: VCOS Meeting—Jim Rose

JULY

14-16 Jul: 37th Annual Santa Barbara Orchid Estate Summer Open House—Cal Orchid is open too!

25-Jul: VCOS Meeting:

AUGUST

2-13 Aug: Ventura County Fair:

13Aug: Cal Orchid Picnic

22-Aug: VCOS Meeting:

SEPTEMBER

26-Sep:VCOS Meeting:

JANUARY

24-Jan: VCOS Meeting: Doug Overstreet

FEBRUARY

25-26 Feb: Pacific Orchid Exposition Orchid Show, Golden Gate Park, Hall of Flowers

28-Feb: VCOS Meeting: Jim Sloniker

MARCH

17-19-Mar: 72nd Santa Barbara Internation-al Orchid Show, Earl Warren Fair-grounds, “Orchid Mystique”

25-Mar: VCOS Board Meeting

28-Mar: VCOS Meeting: Tim Culbertson

APRIL

1-Apr: Green House and Garden Field Trip & Tour

25-Apr: VCOS Meeting : Kyra Rude

MAY

23-May: VCOS Meeting: Culture Session: Sloniker, Kindig, Saito

TBD-Sep: Fascination of Orchids Show and Sale

OCTOBER

24-Oct: VCOS Meeting:

NOVEMBER

4-5 Nov: 59th Annual Santa Barbara Orchid Estate Fall Open House—Cal Orchid open too!

TBD: Birthday Dinner

18 & 19-Nov: Santa Barbara Orchid Society Show at SB Museum of Natu-ral History- ”Falling for Orchids”

The 2017 Ventura County Fair

Planning Meeting, Sunday, June 25th There will be a planning meeting for this years Ventura County Fair at the home of Richard Pisor on Sunday, June 25, at 3 PM. The theme this year is "Rooted In Tradition". All ideas are welcome. If you can’t make it to the meeting, call in with your idea.(805) 648-2639; 2231 Palomar Ave, Ventura.

Set up will be July 30 and 31.

Thank you

Richard Pisor, Display Chairman

5th Annual Cal Orchid Field Trip and Picnic, Sun-day, August 13, 2017.

Cost $18.00 each includes plant and barbecue of tri tip, chicken, beans and bread. Please sign up and bring a salad or dessert of your choice.

Cal Orchid is normally closed Sundays but they will be open only for the Ventura Orchid Soci-ety members for the barbecue and to tour the green houses. In the past, there has been special pricing on this day for plants.

Thank You, Jean

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President: Jean Everett (805) 642-4815 jeansflowers20@yahoo.com

1st Vice President: Lucy Saito acelarj@msn.com (805) 484-8880 & Sherrie Basham (805) 218-6876 rkd17@sbcglobal.net

Directors: Marian McWilliams mem-cwilliams@netscape.net (805) 870-4196 Penny Harvey Harveypen-ny73@gmail.com Jon Wallace jon.wallace@gmail.com

2017 Officers

Committees Librarian: Nancy Tristan nancytris-tan@ymail.com (805) 701-8208 Hospitality: Jean Everett (805) 642-4815 jeansflow-ers20@yahoo.com Newsletter Editor: Jennifer Poulakos jenpoulakos@ gmail.com (805) 479-6721

2nd Vice President: Janell Beck janellb1957@gmail.com (805) 643-3361 Acting Treasurer Carl Rhoads Open Position

Secretary: Jan Hunter (805) 654-8381 jh9patch@yahoo.com

Ventura County Orchid Society has a FaceBook page! Please visit our FaceBook Page—search the Face Book website with “Ventura County Orchid Society”. The page is updated monthly with the speaker information. Please visit the page and enter your comments. Our FaceBook page is edited by Jen Poulakos and Brigitte Campbell.

Announcements (cont.) Reminder: TOWNE HOUSE FRONT DESK ORCHID PLANT As of January 1, 2016, if you sign up to provide a blooming orchid plant at the front desk of the Towne House, the month you bring the plant, you will receive 1 bonus ticket to be redeemed at the orchid society meeting.

This is a win - win for all of us. The Towne House always has a beautiful orchid plant on display which many of the resi-dents enjoy seeing, plus you get a bonus ticket for the 1st drawing of the raffle table. In return The Towne House provides “free rent” as well as coffee and water each month for our meetings. This saves our society over $750/year.

Sign up schedule is at the back table.

VCOS has a WEB PAGE! http://vcorchidsociety.weebly.com/ A big THANK YOU to Jon Wallace for setting this up!

2017 VCOS Annual Dues $25 for a single member and $40 for member family

Please make checks payable to VCOS and submit to Jean during the meeting or mail to: Jean Everett, 4391 Vasser Street, Ventura, CA 93003. A Green Thumb Card and VCOS membership card will be distributed to active members.

Advertisements

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Place an ad in the VCOS newsletter: 1 month—$5.00; 10 months—$42.50

Diamond Award Recipients: 2008: Rich Pisor 2009: Jean Everett 2010: Jeri Bond 2011: Sherrie Basham 2012: Marian McWilliams

2013: Jim Sloniker 2014:Charlie Uvari 2015: Jen Poulakos 2016: Ralph Ramirez

Sign-up Sheets: Please sign up to bring refreshments or plant-of-the month and support our society. The sign-up sheets are at the back table with Jean Everett. A blooming plant is needed every 2 weeks.

The TowneHouse does not charge VCOS for the use of the room in return for a blooming orchid at the front desk. Hopefully, everyone can help out during 2017.

Field Trips/House Tours for 2017 If you would like to visit nurseries, orchid growers, members’ growing areas, etc., please inform Jean Ever-ett, Event Chairwomen and she will try to coordinate field trips. If you would like to volunteer to host VCOS

Thank You to Jean Everett I would like to thank Jean for printing out the newsletter and posting the VCOS Newsletter to members who do not have email and providing newsletter input. Jen Poulakos, Newsletter editor

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Culture Corner by Marian McWilliams Photographing Orchids

For Your Information By

Ben Boco

Convenience and Simplicity. That's the best way to describe the rise in the use of smartphone cameras. When I visited the Santa Barbara International Orchid show in March, I was amazed to see approximately 80 percent of the attendees were using the smartphone cameras to take their orchid photos. The compact-ness of the smartphone camera makes it easy to carry easily where ever you go. Accessories are no long-er needed and gone is the cumbersome camera bag of the past which is no longer needed.

It is also possible to electronically connect your smartphone to your home computer. Photos that you take then can be transmitted back to your computer. And these will be waiting for you when you return. They can then be sent to friends by email or printed for your enjoyment. At a recent show I used a smartphone and was thrilled by the quality of the photos. And the pictures were waiting for me on my home computer and made everything fun. It has been personally rewarding to me to watch people become comfortable with their camera and see them enjoying taking beautiful pictures. The smartphone has become a part of our everyday life. The fact that we have a camera with us at all times means that we can record life's spe-cial moments with convenience and simplicity.

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37th Annual Santa Barbara Orchid Estate Open House

Guest author Thomas Mirenda

The open house at the Santa Barbara Orchid Estate will be held July 14 - 16, 2017. Friday and Saturday from 8 AM to 5 PM and Sunday 9 AM to 4 PM. Celebrating the Exotic and Fragrant beauties of summer. The Large flowered Catleyleas (Laelias of Brazil, the Stanhopeas and En-cyclias of Central and South America, and many other genera.

Of Course they will have the $7.50 specials of seedlings, bare-roots, and Wayne's special annual pick of sprouted cymbidiums backbulbs, select and awarded species and hybrids, standards and hybrids. Questions call 800 553-3387 or www.sborchid.com.

Thomas Mirenda will give a lecture in the evening. He is well known to American Orchid Society members for his "Tom's Monthly Checklist, column at the beginning of every issue of Orchids Bulletin for the American Orchid Society. He is formerly the Orchid Collection Specialist at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC and will soon become the Director of Horticulture Edu-cation and Community outreach at the Hawaii Tropical Botanic Garden just north of Hilo on the big island of Hawaii. He has just written a book :The Book of Orchids." It will be available for purchase for $55.00.

Lecture by Thomas Mirenda Friday, July 14, 2017 Ti-tle: A Costa Rican Orchid Fantasy The Santa Barbara Cymbidium Society and the orchid So-ciety of Santa Barbara invite their orchid compatriots from all other orchid societies to this talk, which includes a travelougue and insights into orchid culture from knowledge of habitats.

Cal Orchid to Hold Open House in July

Just around the corner indeed Lauris and James Rose of Cal Orchid are smack nab in the throws of the season, and are traveling all over the place to hit shows. But before you know it the sum-mer event of the year is upon us July 14 - 16 is the time to visit Santa Barbara for the annual fes-tivities. Cal Orchid will have guest vendors from Columbia and Australia as well as in informal Saturday July 15 seminar on the Japanese style of Neofinetia falcita judging. Entries for review are encouraged. Savory details will be sent soon to our email list but we want to be sure to invite all of our Orchid Society friends. J

Ventura County Orchid Society C/O Jennifer Poulakos 3917 Ocean Drive Oxnard, CA 93035