(My apologies to everyone for not having the March meeting information posted. The website was having problems and it wasn’t able to be fixed in time for the March meeting.)

From GNTOS President Tim Brown:

Dear GNTOS members and friends,

We wish to inform you that the Greater North Texas Orchid Society will not hold its regularly scheduled meeting on Saturday, April 5, 2025, as this date coincides with Easter Sunday weekend.

We recognize that many of our members and friends will be spending this time with family and friends, and we want to honor this important holiday. Our next scheduled meeting will take place on Sunday, May 3, 2026, at our usual time and location.

We appreciate your understanding and look forward to seeing you in May for another engaging and inspiring gathering.

Warm regards,

Tim Brown, President
Greater North Texas Orchid Society

Our February program will be presented by Manny Aybar. He’ll be telling us about the surprisingly diverse world of beginner-friendly orchids, challenging the common misconception that orchids are difficult to grow.  His talk will highlight hardy and adaptable genera that thrive with minimal specialized care in a typical home environment. Success with these resilient plants is achievable, provided a few basic needs are met. Manny is an Accredited Judge for AOS and is this year’s vice-chair of the Dallas Judging Center. He has grown orchids for over 25 years and has participated in research on orchids from his native country, the Dominican Republic.

A REMINDER:  Our February Orchid Show is the following week, February 13-15.  The weekend after that is the GNTOS Plant Sale.  Both events are at the DeGolyer House at the Dallas Arboretum. The House is located in about the middle of the Arboretum.  IF YOU ARE BRINGING ORCHIDS FOR THE GNTOS display – you MUST bring them to the DeGolyer House between 2-5pm on Thursday, the 12^th.  The show opens to the public Friday through Sunday 9am-5pm. 

More Information for the SHOW CLICK HERE

Katherine Brown will be leading our January program about ways to get more orchids into less space, with ideas from members of GNTOS. Sooner or later, we all manage to have more orchids than our original growing area can hold, especially those of us growing in our homes. There can be several creative ways to make more growing area in the same space. Katherine is collecting ideas from members to be shared at the meeting, along with “how-to’s”. She is our Vice President for 2026 and has been growing orchids for more than 20 years. Come join us! We’ll have our usual table judging of member’s orchids and a raffle.

Orchids 101 will be at 2pm in the greenhouse.  Lorna will talking about growing phragmipediums, a slipper orchid.

Come support the Greater North Texas Orchid Society at our end-of-year auction to benefit our non-profit society!  This is a special event, filled with beautiful orchid plants, orchid growing paraphernalia, and great company.  Our auction is open to anyone interested in orchids, whether you’re a seasoned orchid enthusiast or just looking for a unique meeting event.  Don’t miss this opportunity to acquire a new orchid treasure while contributing to our society. Every bid directly supports the operation of our society, orchid conservation, education, and research.

Help out further by donating something to the auction. Go through your collection and bring a double or something you haven’t been able to bloom – someone else may want to try! Also, bring some finger foods to share – we’ll be eating together and visiting, and then biding to raise funds for the society. There is no table judging, raffle, or Orchids 101 – just the auction!

Katherine Brown will be talking with us about the history of orchids, one of the largest and most diverse families of flowering plants on Earth! They grow on every continent except Antarctica. Their evolutionary history is ancient, with traces found dating back as far as the dinosaurs. Katherine will be showing us their incredible diversity, which allows them to grow in all kinds of different climates. She is a master gardener, a retired librarian, and has been growing orchids for over 20 years, having killed many (but with many survivors). She enjoys growing many different genera. So join us as we learn the history of orchids!

Orchids 101 will be in the greenhouse at 2pm, with Charlie leading a Q&A session.

Now is the time to begin getting ready for our Winter Auction at the December meeting. The auction helps raise funds for our annual shows and other society expenses, PLUS IT’S LOTS OF FUN! We need your donations to have orchids to auction, so look over your collection and see if you’ve got duplicates or other orchids you want to donate. Maybe you’re having trouble flowering some and don’t know what else to do – bring it to the auction and give someone else a shot at flowering it. Then you’ll have room for some new orchids you can bid on at the auction!

Preparing to set up an orchid show involves careful planning and execution. Emily Quinn will be presenting information on selecting your best plants, ensuring they are healthy and free of pests and diseases, and grooming them for optimal presentation. She will also share volunteer roles – we need your help to have a great show!  Emily is an AOS judge with the Dallas Center and is currently the Training Coordinator for AOS.  Her greenhouse contains the broad spectrum of species and hybrids of a person who never saw an orchid she didn’t like!

Orchids 101 will be in the greenhouse with Charlie leading a Q&A discussion. Bring your questions – Charlie will bring the answers!

OUR SHOW is set for October 10-12! Friday the 10th is setup. Please pay attention to signups being handed out at the meeting as we need your help to arrange tables and chairs, and get our vendors in the door with all their orchids and supplies. During the show, we need society members to help man the GNTOS table and be on hand to answer questions, etc. We also need clerks to help with the judging taking place Friday evening. SO – please sign up (and have some fun too!). There is a $1 entry fee for non-helpers and the public, but it enters them into a drawing for a beautiful orchid!

Tim Carr will present our July topic on Big Lip or peloric phals.  The term “Big Lip” refers to a specialized petal that often differs in shape and color from the other petals and sepals, caused by a genetic mutation. This results in the lip resembling the petals. He will be showing us what this unusual variety looks like – they are fairly easy to recognize.  Tim has been growing orchids for thirteen years and has been a member of GNTOS since 2015.  Tim is also an American Orchid Society Judge attached to the Dallas Judging Center. Our usual table judging and raffle will take place after Tim’s talk.

Orchids 101 will be back also with a Q&A in the greenhouse at 2pm, led by Charlie.

REMEMBER: The Cedar Ridge Preserve (7171 Mountain Creek Pkwy, Dallas, TX 75249) is now hosting a series of surveys every Monday through mid-July.  Contact [email protected] if you are interested in helping with this. See a previous post (An Opportunity to Survey Orchids…) for more information on what to bring, parking, etc.

(Be sure to check out the article below this one – you have an opportunity to be involved in orchid surveys in the Dallas area this summer!)

Yes, it’s that time of year when we meet at 2:30pm for a snack fest and then an orchid and orchid paraphernalia auction! There won’t be any plant judging – if you bring orchids, they are going to auctioned off!  There will not be any Orchids 101 in the greenhouse prior to our meeting either.  Those two events will resume in July.

The auction depends on you bringing orchids and orchids supplies to put up for auction, so be checking over your collection and supplies to see if there’s something old that you’d like to replace with something new you’ll be bidding on at the auction!

If you are bringing orchids or orchid supplies for the auction, our president, Tim, asks that you email your list of what you’re bringing to [email protected] before 9pm Thursday, May 29.  Tim will return the list to you with numbers assigned to each item.  When you bring your orchids/items on auction day, put those numbers on your plants, just like we do for the show and tell tables.  THANK YOU!

SEE YOU AT THE AUCTION!!