On a rare Sunday off, I traveled to Pasadena to The Huntington to visit their fifth annual orchid show and sale. Every orchid society in southern California participated with displays and volunteer staff during the event.
The Huntington has served as the location for American Orchid Society judging for many years. To become an A.O.S. judge, requires six years of training and mentoring before one receives accreditation. Long-term judges have faced a tremendous learning curve since the advent of DNA technology. Many plant species have been shifted to other categories or been re-named based on their DNA profiles. A.O.S. judges also receive yearly continuing education to maintain their status.
Flowering trees in the parking lot.
Closeup of the Silk Floss Tree, Chorisia speciosa 'Monsa'
The display halls were in upstairs and downstairs rooms, and represented Orchid societies and several vendors. Orchid shows often have a preview night where photographers can work their craft unhindered by spectators. I find people to be a charming addition to photos as they admire the exotic displays.
The website for the San Fernando Orchid Society has adopted the motto: "Learning about Orchids in the company of friends," which should be the essence of every Orchid society. Their fine display attracts the attention of a future A.O.S. judge.
The reason why there are Orchid shows all during the year, is the seasonality of different flowers. Cal Orchid of Santa Barbara never disappoints with displays or offerings for sale. This is an assortment of fall-blooming Cattleyas.
A display by Ambriz Kingdom of Plants, who was also a vendor in the sales tent.
This stunning display by the Orchid Society of Southern California was big enough to require more than one shot.
I inadvertently missed the name of the society who created this fine display.
Fine offerings by the Orange County Orchid Society.
A specimen of Cattleya bowringiana var. albescens
The Newport Harbor Orchid Society won many ribbons on their fine display.
A fine arrangement by the Thornton Conservatory
The Conejo Orchid society added to their already burgeoning events calendar with this beautiful diorama.
The San Diego County Orchid Society not only spent a lot of time and effort on this great display, they had to travel a long distance to do so.
Sunset Valley Orchids of Vista, California set up this fine display, then worked their booths in the sales tent for three days. Ruben and Carlos, who hosts their Youtube channel, assisted me while I was there in selecting three semi-alba plants of the Cattleya alliance.
A fine specimen by the Vietnamese orchid Society
A beautiful mural background for this display by the Malibu Orchid Society
Norman's Orchids not only provides a stunning display, they always bring irresistible offerings for sale. Using considerable foresight, Norman acquired the domain name "orchids.com" for his fine website. His nursery, one of the last retail orchid nurseries in California, is located in a residential area of Montclair, California. Presumably he lived during the startup of his operations. Norman's hard work and success makes him an inspiration to all entrepreneurs.
I attempted no photography in the sales tent, which was a sea of people. In spite of five days of exhausting work, all of the vendors were kindness personified.
A tranquil scene adjacent to a vendor from Ecuador, where I had a pleasant chat in Spanish.
I found this large division of (Blc. Liu's Joyance x Blc. Village Chief Triumph) at Norman's Orchids booth, and brought it home with me. It resembles a plant I had briefly over 40 years ago.
After the show, it was lunch time. I wanted to sample local Korean offerings and found this place close to the Huntington. One of the banchan was an intriguing Zucchini Kimchi that was spicy with an underlying sweet and sour pickle flavor. This dish was a good balance to spicy barbeque chicken, and has already sent me searching for a recipe.
The interior of the restaurant, so typical of those L.A. places that send us Bakersfield people over the Grapevine for a meal.
My Soapbox Rant About Orchid Societies
You will notice that every Orchid society represented in this article is on the Internet with at least a Facebook page. Some businesses and societies have very elaborate web pages that are up to date with latest events and offerings. This requires a volunteer to maintain the web page.
Some of the Orchid Societies are 501-C3 organizations. This requires a lot of work in the beginning, also done by volunteers.
Then there are the events, often hosted in members' homes. To have a successful show, like the Huntington, requires groups of people who work well together.
Every time I go to an Orchid nursery or attend a show, I find myself explaining to a vendor or Orchid society member why we do not have any Orchid societies in Bakersfield. They are always incredulous at my explanation.
I was president of the Bakersfield Orchid Society when it closed after almost 50 years. It was originally chartered in 1946. When I got involved there in the late 70s, it was a healthy society with monthly meetings and a yearly bus trip to surrounding nurseries. By the early nineties, officers were recycled every year, and all the work was done by three people. There were no more trips due to lack of interest. All the other members of the society had plenty of complaints and suggestions, but none volunteered. The dialog, fortified by alcohol, was even more aggressive at the annual Christmas party and summer barbeques.
I also served as president of the Golden Empire Orchid Society, which had been founded as an alternative to the Bakersfield Orchid Society and survived it by almost 20 years. The two societies, estranged from each other by personalities, existed concurrently with each other for a time. There were some people who held dual memberships. The Golden Empire Orchid Society finally ended by attrition. Members quit using their rare expendable hours to attend a meeting that was always upset by one very obnoxious individual.
Who knows what the future may bring to Orchid growers in Bakersfield?
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