Palomar Orchid Society

Welcome to the Palomar Orchid Society!

The Palomar Orchid Society, incorporated in December of 1965 was formed when a few people banded together to talk about orchids. We then grew and bloomed into the roughly 200-member group of orchid enthusiasts that we have today. We represent everything orchid in North San Diego County! Come and join us!!

The Palomar Orchid Society is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the understanding and cultivation of both hybrid and species orchids. We welcome members of all levels to join us for orchid fun and learning! Our mission is to promote interest in the appreciation of orchids and to provide an opportunity for their display and the exchange and dissemination of information relating to their culture.

Next Monthly Meeting

Next general meeting: August 5, 2026

The Palomar Orchid Society generally meets at 4:00 pm the FIRST WEDNESDAY of every month in the Activity Room 108 of the Pine Avenue Community Center located at 3209 Harding Street, Carlsbad, CA 92008.

IMPORTANT NOTE: For June, July, and August of 2026 the meeting location and time have changed: due to a conflict in scheduling, we are temporarily meeting at the Senior Center (799 Pine Ave, Carlsbad, CA 92008) adjacent to our current Pine Avenue Community Center location with the meeting running from 5-8 pm. There is ample parking and the meeting room is slightly smaller but will work for the 3 months listed. Starting September, we are back at the Community Center and the regular time slot from 4-7pm.

November 2012 – Gil Ho

Wed, 11/07/2012 6:30pm – 9:30pm

Stanhopeas are the upside-down jewels of the orchid world. They are not often cultivated but fairly easy to grow in our Southern California climate with a few basic rules. These plants are highly fascinating as their pendant flowers are among the most highly evolved and specialized of all orchid flowers. The flower spikes emerge through the bottom of the growing basket to hang freely like birds in flight. With an emphasis on the roughly 70 species currently recognized, Gil's talk will cover basic information about different Stanhopea growing conditions in nature and the origins of Stanhopea collecting and identification. Hybridizing… [Continue Reading]

October 2012 – Alex Nadzan

Wed, 10/03/2012 6:30pm – 9:30pm

An Amateur’s Attempt at Orchid HybridizingOctober’s speaker will be our own Alex Nadzan who has been collecting and growing orchids for over 20 years with emphasis on Cattleya, Oncidium and Cymbidium species and hybrids. Alex was first bitten by the orchid bug in the late 1980’s when he attended an orchid show at the Chicago Botanic Garden and purchased from Orchids by Hausermann, Inc. two orchids, a Cattleya and Oncidium, both of which he still owns and manages to bloom on a yearly basis. His orchid collection, which now consists of a few thousand orchids, expanded after he and his… [Continue Reading]

September 2012 – Fred Clarke

Wed, 09/05/2012 6:30pm – 9:30pm

We are fortunate to have return one of our favorite speakers and long time member and supporter of the Palomar Orchid Society, Fred Clarke of Sunset Valley Orchids, who will speak to us on “Growing the Best Orchids”.Fred’s talk will cover multiple aspects of growing orchids including general orchid culture, repotting, potting materials, lighting, fertilization, what orchids grow best together, etc. Fred’s power point presentation will review the ‘best practices’ for growing a variety of orchids and include pictures of some of his novel hybrids and species. The presentation should be of considerable interest to both the novice and advanced… [Continue Reading]

July 2012 – Arthur Pinkers

Wed, 07/11/2012 6:30pm – 9:30pm

We are delighted to welcome Arthur Pinkers as speaker for our July 11 (please note the date change!) meeting. Arthur’s talk is entitled “Miltoniopsis, Pansy’s of the Orchid World: where they started and where we are now”. The genus Miltoniopsis (Mltps. or Mps.) consists of six species native to Costa Rica, Panama, Venezuela, Ecuador and Columbia. They are cool to intermediate growers and like moist conditions. Hybridizers have produced many magnificent and very colorful hybrids for orchid hobbyists and the general consumer. Arthur’s talk should be very informative on a subject that we have not had in recent history. Arthur will… [Continue Reading]

June 2012 – Nico Goossens

Wed, 06/06/2012 7:00pm – 8:30pm

"Indoor and Outdoor Orchid Growing Structures for Southern California and Beyond"Nico Goossens is a grower and co-owner of Lico Orchids and Flowers, Encinitas, CA. Since 1982, he has also worked in the construction industry. His first exposure to orchids came in 1978 when he was given custodial care of a shipment of bare root central American orchids that had been inspected by US Agriculture, fumigated, held in quarantine, and warehoused for over two months, and finally refused by the consignee. In spite of total degradation, with time and lots of research on orchid care, Nico managed to bloom some of the… [Continue Reading]

May 2012 – Paul Tuskes

Wed, 05/02/2012 7:00pm – 9:30pm

Our speaker this month is Paul Tuskes, who will present the topic "Encyclias and their Relatives". Encyclias are a widespread and diverse genus of orchids that consist of about 240 species, which occur from Florida to Argentina. With such a wide range of habitats, it is not surprising that many do well outdoors here in San Diego. All the species grow on tree or shrub branches in the wild and prefer climates that have distinctive wet and dry seasons. Many species have foliage and growth characteristics similar to Cattleya species. Not surprisingly, Encyclia orchids readily breed with other members of… [Continue Reading]

April 2012 – Bruce Kidd

Wed, 04/04/2012 6:30pm – 9:30pm

We are delighted to welcome Mr. Bruce Kidd who will speak to us on “Pest Management in Orchids”. Although Bruce is a retired professional pest control expert, his talk will be geared toward preventative measures for the hobbyist to avoid pest problems in orchid collections, be they large or small. This is a very timely talk and should not be missed, since we are entering the spring and summer growing seasons when such pests become more active and require proactive steps to avoid problems.It’s been said that the only orchid growers who don’t have pests like scale and mites are… [Continue Reading]

March 2012 – Fred Clarke

Wed, 03/07/2012 7:00pm – 9:30pm

Aussie Native Dendrobiums and their Cultivation[img_assist|nid=406|title=Fred Clarke and his black orchid Fredclarkeara (FCC)|desc=|link=node|align=right|width=150|height=200]We are delighted to welcome back one of our favorite speakers and long time supporter of the Palomar Orchid Society, Fred Clarke of Sunset Valley Orchids, who will speak to us on “Aussie Native Dendrobiums and their Cultivation”. Aussie Dens are quite attractive orchids in that they are easy to grow, tolerant of heat and cold, have fragrant flowers, and re-bloom from the old bulbs!!! They grow well with Cattleyas and, in frost-free areas, they are perfect plants for the shade house. Orchid growers from down under have been… [Continue Reading]

February 2012 – Peter Lin

Wed, 02/01/2012 6:30pm – 9:30pm

Mini-Catts: Delightful Cattleyas in MiniaturePeter T. Lin will be presenting a talk on one of his favorite topics: Mini-Catts, also known as miniature Cattleyas. Peter will be sharing a fast-paced Powerpoint presentation on these charming orchids. The journey will begin with a review of the miniature species, early hybrids, and then to some of the relevant hybrids of today. He will also review how to grow these wonderful plants.Due to limited growing space, Peter has specialized in miniature orchids, both species and hybrids, for which he has received numerous AOS awards. His other interests in orchids include Dendrobiums, Angraecoids, and… [Continue Reading]

January 2012 – Barbara Rudvalis

Wed, 01/04/2012 6:30pm – 9:30pm

Hybridizing and Selecting Cymbidiums for the Cut Flower BusinessOur speaker for January is Barbara Rudvalis , owner and operator of Rudvalis Orchids, Inc., located in Carlsbad, California, less than 30 miles north of the San Diego airport. Barbara will speak about hybridizing for cut flowers, how she selects stock for this, the difference between this and what hobby and growers look for in their crosses. She will have actual flower examples instead of pictures and will supply plants for the POS opportunity table. This is a presentation not to be missed by anyone who has interest in Cymbidiums.Rudvalis Orchids has been a… [Continue Reading]