March '25 Meeting
March 20, '25: Tillandsias for Beginners
Wheather you are new to Tillandsias or a well seasoned grower. we can always review tillandsias. Raquel Ergas will take us through Tillandsia facts and tips from their native habitats, the different types of tillandsias and their care and cultivation .
Raquel Ergas has been working at the Green Acres Nursery going on 4 years now. She is currently the Buyer and Head of the Houseplants and Decor department at the Roseville store. Her favorite plants include Begonias, Philodendrons, Euphorbias and of course Tillandsias.
Raquel left behind a career as a personal and executive assistant becauseshe was burned out. Spending all of the daylight hours inside an office just felt wrong. Now she spends her working hours surrounded by plants and couldn’t be happier!
Raquel Ergas
February 20, 2025: Introduction to the Orchid Conservation A
The Orchid Conservation Alliance partners with organizations and foundations in orchid rich regions to protect the native habitats of orchids. Creating reserves preserves numerous orchid species, often including undiscovered forms, as well as the ecosystem in which they exist. Critical for orchid conservation in the wild, preservation of habitat protects pollinators as well as birds, amphibians, mammals, other plants, and even fungi.
Through partnerships with local organizations and foundations, the Orchid Conservation Alliance has preserved nearly 4600 acres of pristine, biodiverse orchid rich habitat. To date, these reserves have been created in Ecuador, Colombia and Brazil, and we are open to supporting the creation of reserves in other orchid rich regions of the world. MORE
Trichocentrum
January, '25 Meeting
January 16, 2025: Hechtias the Terrestrial Xerophytes with Brian Kemble
Brian Kemble, curator at the Ruth Bancroft Garden in Walnut Creek will present a discussion on Hechtia, a xeric genus endemic to Mexico with scragglers in Central America. Noted for their fierce fishhook defenses and their varieties of color and textures hechtias have now become more available in the bromeliad trade. Species can be leathery or succulent rosettes of velvety silver or shiney red polka dots on yellow backgrounds. The flowers can be delicate sprays of white or cream but can surprise us with transluscent pastels of lavender and rose. Some species are even dioecious as in that's the male or female plant of the species. Unusual in bromeliads.
Brian will also be giving us tips on how to grow them, carefully.
Bruce McCoy