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 2024 – Cindy Hill “My Top Ten Favorite Orchids and How to Grow Them”

Wed, 11/06/2024 4:00pm – 7:00pm

We are delighted to welcome for the first time to our society Cindy Hill who will speak on ‘My Top Ten Favorite Orchids and How to Grow Them’. Cindy is very experienced, well-respected orchid hobbyist and AOS judge who has won several Best of Show and AOS awards for her beautifully grown orchids.Cindy's lifelong love of nature and wildlife led her to major in Biology in college. She's been growing orchids for pleasure for almost 50 years, beginning on her kitchen windowsill in St. Louis. She moved to San Diego in 1982 and began growing plants outdoors on her small… [Continue Reading]

October 2024 – Dr. Mitchell Schneider “Wonderland: Inter-generic Zygopetalums”

Wed, 10/02/2024 4:00pm – 7:00pm

It is our pleasure to welcome Mitchell Schneider to our society for the first time. Mitch will speak on his efforts to develop novel intergeneric Zygopetalums to the orchid world.Dr. Mitch Schneider’s interest in orchids started young in his teenage years. Mitch started orchids after seeing the orchid mania display in his hometown at the Cleveland Botanical Gardens. During his PhD studies, Mitch worked at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. While at Los Alamos, Mitch met Dr. Ron Midgett, who has been breeding orchids for over 55 years. Mitch learned the art of breeding orchids from Ron. When… [Continue Reading]

September 2024 – Peter T. Lin ” Mini-Catts: Delightful Cattleyas in Miniature”

Wed, 09/04/2024 4:00pm – 7:00pm

We are pleased to welcome back one of our favorite speakers Peter T. Lin, who 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.Peter started growing orchids over 30 years ago, but then stopped due to school and starting a career. It wasn't until about 14 years… [Continue Reading]

August 2024 – Gil Ho, MD “Orchids in Flight: Stanhopeas Around the World”

Wed, 08/07/2024 4:00pm – 7:00pm

It is an honor to welcome back Dr. Gil Ho, our former POS President, who has previously spoken to the society before about Stanhopea species and hybrids. This month, he will be presenting a fun, updated presentation on Stanhopeas based on a new theme. Wait to find out what it is.For the past 15+ years, Gil has been an avid grower and collector of prominent new world orchids, namely Stanhopea and related genera, and Lycastes in Carlsbad, CA. Gil is obsessed about anything Stanhopea or Lycaste. Although he collects some species in the genera, these days he is more focused… [Continue Reading]

July 2024 – Pot Luck Dinner and Orchid Plant Exchange

Wed, 07/03/2024 4:00pm – 7:00pm

Happy 4th of July to all! For the July 3rd meeting we will be having a Pot Luck Dinner and Orchid Plant Exchange instead of a regular speaker.Please note that at least for the remainder of this year our meetings will be held from 4 pm to 7 pm in the Gowland meeting room (same room) due to a change in the library’s policy.If you have not already signed up for the pot luck at last month’s meeting, please contact Bill Wong by June 28th at billtcwong@att.net (or call at 760-931-0502). For those of you who have signed up, please… [Continue Reading]

June 2024 – Tim Culbertson “Laelia purpurata, Varieties and Hybrids”

Wed, 06/05/2024 6:30pm – 9:30pm

We are delighted to welcome back Tim Culbertson who will speak on Laelia purpurata, the Queen of the Cattleyas. Tim will be showcasing the history and incredible diversity of forms of this species and discuss some of the more interesting hybrids. Although large, these spectacular cattleyas grow well outside in Southern California, and with their myriad colors and a relatively unique blooming time, these are great plants for every collection, extending the blooming times in the Cattleya Alliance through July. With more and more Laelia purpurata clones and seedlings coming in from Brazil, and large grexes being bred in the United… [Continue Reading]

May 2024 – Jose Carlos Lopez “The Hidden Life of Catasetinae”

Wed, 05/01/2024 6:30pm – 9:30pm

We are delighted to welcome back Jose Carlos Lopez from Sunset Valley Orchids, one of our favorite speakers. Carlos will present to us his new talk on ‘The Hidden Life of Catasetinae’, a genus of orchids that many of us find a bit challenging to master. From species to hybrids, Catasetinae Orchids have an allure that has captivated orchid growers from all around the world and has rewarded them with floriferous blooms that come in an array of colors! The Catasetinae alliance includes the genus Mormodes, Clowesias, and Cycnoches, just to name a few. At first glance, this family of… [Continue Reading]

April 2024 – Ron Midgett “Kaleidoscope: Breeding with Cattleya Horace ‘Maxima’ AM/AOS”

Wed, 04/03/2024 6:30pm – 9:30pm

Our society is delighted to welcome back Ron Midgett from New Earth Orchids. Ron is a shared speaker with our sister society, SDCOS, and will speak Tuesday, April 2nd in Balboa Park on “Green with Envy: Green Cattleyas—Origins” On April 3rd, Ron will speak to us on his breeding experiences with Cattleya Horace ‘Maxima’ AM/AOS. He will explore the fascinating range of colors that crosses with this fabulous parent can create. Ron has personally done crosses with C. Horace with strong yellows among others to create an array of colors. This attribute of breeding with C. Horace seems to be unique… [Continue Reading]

March 2024 – Jerry Spencer and Alex Nadzan – Repotting and Dividing Your Orchids

Wed, 03/06/2024 6:30pm – 9:30pm

As we begin the 2024 orchid growing season, our first culture meeting of the year will focus on the basics of repotting and dividing orchids and provide demonstrations on repotting orchids that are easy to grow in our Southern California climate. The presentation will feature two of our very experienced growers, Jerry Spencer and Alex Nadzan. Alex will begin the session with reviewing repotting basics that should help both beginners and more seasoned growers prepare for the busiest part of our orchid growing season. He will provide tips and valuable sources for supplies and will pot and divide a cattleya… [Continue Reading]

February 2024 – Donna Ballard

Wed, 02/07/2024 6:30pm – 9:30pm

Our society welcomes for the first time Donna Ballard of the San Fernando Valley Orchid Society who will talk to us on ‘Growing Orchids in the Middle of a Drought’. Although we are not under drought conditions at this time, most of our summers and falls in Southern California experience serious drought conditions and we can clearly benefit from Donna’s experience and suggestions for managing our orchids under such conditions. Donna is a shared speaker with our sister society SDCOS and she will be speaking on ‘The Difference Between Orchid Seedlings and Meristem Clones’ on Tuesday, February 6th in Balboa… [Continue Reading]