About the Orchid Society of Canberra

The Society
Joining the Society
Meetings
Our Emblem
Our Constitution
Presidents
Life Members
Awarded Members
Popular Vote Winners

The Society

The Orchid Society of Canberra was formed in late 1983 by about 20 orchid enthusiasts to exchange information and provide assistance with orchid growing in Canberra conditions. Membership now stands around 100; meetings are informative and well attended. Monthly meetings feature interstate and local speakers, hints and problem discussion, an extensive library, trading table and the ever beautiful plant display and popular vote.

The trading table provides an opportunity for members to sell plants which are surplus to their needs or which they have raised for sale. A small commission is charged on sales. Also on sale are various orchid supplies (pots, cork etc). These supplies are for purchase by members only.

Members display flowering plants at the meetings. The popular vote involves all members present voting for the plant they consider the best in each category and the plant they consider the best overall.

The Society organises an annual spring show. The show is usually held on the middle or last weekend of September. Information on the next show.

Social activities for members are regularly organised, including bus trips, Open Greenhouses, bushwalks and workshops for beginners. Walks are also organised to look for and photograph local native orchids.

The Society publishes a bulletin six times a year that is full of orchid news and growing tips.

The Society has recently published a second edition of its book Growing Orchids in Cool Climate Australia: with Special reference to Canberra . This book provides a wide range of information on orchids for those parts of Australia which experience frosty winters and hot dry summers.

Committee Members 2022-23

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Society Meetings

The Society meets:

New members and visitors are always welcome.

Advance notice of meetings is placed on our events page and in our Bulletin.

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About Our Floral Emblem

In 1989 the Society adopted Petalochilus fuscatus (syn. Caladenia fuscata) as its floral emblem. Beautifully ornate and colourful flowers are a feature of Caladenias, and Petalochilus fuscatus is no exception with its bright pink blooms borne atop 20 cm stems. It is a deciduous terrestrial, native to our region and flowers locally from September to October. A walk on the hills around Canberra city, especially Black Mountain, should reward the observant hiker with a sighting of Petalochilus fuscatus*.

Like all Petalochilus, it grows from subterranean tuberoids (which are dormant throughout summer) and produces a solitary leaf which emerges in late Autumn. Although nursery raised Petalochilus are available from specialist nurseries, the majority of species are difficult to raise in cultivation. Detailed culture notes, distributed by the society, may help you achieve flowering.

Many of our members have specialised in native terrestrials and exhibit pots of magnificent flowering colonies each spring. Come along to a meeting and discover their secrets.

* NB all Australian orchids are protected species

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Constitution of the Orchid Society

At the 2014 Annual General Meeting the Society adopted a new constitution. The new constitution follows closely the Model Code of the ACT Office of Regulatory Services.

2014 constitution

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Presidents of the Orchid Society

Period of presidency extends from June of the first year to May of the second. Under the Society's constitution, a member can serve as president for no more than three consecutive years, but can more than one term as president.

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Life Members of the Orchid Society

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Awarded Members of the Orchid Society

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Winners of the Popular Vote

At each meeting when plants are benched, members attending vote for the plant they consider is the best in each category and the best overall. The award goes to the member/s who have the highest aggregate for the year.

Prior to 2012 the winner held the Graham Phillis trophy for the next 12 months. With the move away from perpetual trophies, separate trophies are presented each year.

In 2018 the Society also introduced a Popular Vote for novice growers to encourage them to bench plants.

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