September 2018

Is it just me, or does it seem like our fall season has arrived early this year? My orchids are showing signs of fall, which means reduced growth, some older leaves beginning to yellow and drop, and a major lull in all these great summer spikes and buds that have been coming along. I always hate to see my phalaenopsis collection begin to lose that summer lustre, but yet I know the fall and winter seasonal affects on my plants are equally as important as those of spring and summer. Our plants respond to these changes and triggers, so don't be alarmed like I used to be many years ago at this time of year. A good strong fall and winter will pay dividends with the orchids come next spring and summer. 

How about that great guy from California, Fred Clarke? Wow, that was another awesome visit with him. I don't grow anything that he grows and breeds, but he's such a great expert and speaker that I think i'd love to have him back annually. Hoping all of you who were able to attend were also able to take home something new from his breeding program. I can't believe it, but I now have a handful of mini-catts on my phalaenopsis bench. UHG!

Please allow me once again to remind you of the needs our society has moving forward in 2019! I believe we are still looking for another new board member. Thank you to those of you who have "sat in" on recent board meetings to gain a feel for how we operate in our meetings. Our elections will take place in November, and the board of officers will soon be presenting you with their slate of officers and nominees. Our next 2 year term for these roles begins 1/1/19. Perhaps even more exciting than that is our need for someone to step up to take on the exciting role of "display chair". Primarily, leading and working with our team of members who support the overall concept, theme and design of the WNCOS display in the 21st annual, 2019 Asheville Orchid Festival. We have been so fortunate to have incredible folks heading this up over recent years, and the last couple of years have been exceptional. We've got some things in place here, however for 2019 we have not yet had a member sign up and commit to being the chair of this committee. This is your chance to become more involved, show off your creativity and do something super fun with our exhibit. Please speak to one of us at the meeting on Sunday, and let's discuss your skill set and interest level. Aside from these needs, we'll have plenty of opportunity for our members to become involved with our 2019 event.

How about that outstanding new website of ours? Have you all stopped to take a look yet? New member, and future board member, Grace Ide can build one heck of a website. Please take some time to review www.wncos.org and provide feedback to us. We've got more updates coming, and there's a lot of great content there. Please join me in thanking Grace for her hard work and job well done.

Show and tell: Bring in your best and favorite blooming orchid for a brief show and tell on 9/9. You'll receive a free raffle ticket for your effort, and this activity helps all of our members understand what we're all growing at home. We only ask that you keep it brief and keep this activity moving as we want to give as much time to our guest speakers as possible.

Sunday afternoon, 9/9/18, 2pm downtown at our usual meeting space at the Avl Visitor Center, special guest Jim France of Oakwood Orchids in Dayton, Ohio! Jim and his wife will be traveling here on the road, and will be camping out in our gorgeous Blue Ridge Mountains. Jim will be speaking on Phrags and will be selling plants as well. Please remember that we work incredibly hard and spend good money to bring in the best speakers in the world. We are so very fortunate to be in such position. Your support by simply attending does a lot for us all, so please keep this in mind when you're debating to watch the big game on TV, get out in the garden, or attend your monthly orchid society meeting. We want to see everyone here! Sadly, I will miss Jim's program this Sunday as I am flying up to New Hampshire and New York as the featured speaker at 2 different International Phalaenopsis Alliance regional symposiums. Looking forward to visiting this part of the country again, but I will unfortunately miss seeing you all this weekend. 

Thank you,

Mike Mims, WNCOS President