May 4, 2026 Meeting – T.J. Hartung – The History of Vanilla
May 4, 2026 Meeting – T.J. Hartung – The History of Vanilla
A s our Society collectively “recovers” from what was our hectic – and ultimately very successful – Spring Show, we welcome author and orchidist T.J. Hartung to our last regular meeting of the orchid season.
T.J. will be presenting “The History of Vanilla.” Vanilla, as we all know, is derived from the seeds of an orchid plant, Vanilla planifolia, which is native to Mexico, as well as to parts of Central and South America.
T.J. is on the board of directors of the Vallarta Botanical Garden in western Mexico. In recent years he has given talks to orchids societies in the US, Canada, England and Scotland. He has written two books: Vanilla – The Gift from Mexico that gives Flavor and Aroma to the World” and Stop and Smell the Orchids – plus a number of articles for Orchids magazine, published by the American Orchid Society.
Since our speaker will not be bringing plants to sell, members are free to bring in their own orchids for sale or trade.
Beginners Meeting starts at 5:30 p.m. – all are welcome!
T.J. Hartung
Our Meetings
The Genesee Region Orchid Society (GROS) is a 501(c) non-profit organization based in Rochester, NY.
Our regular meeting night is the first Monday following the first Sunday of each month. We occasionally change the meeting date as our schedule requires, but we always list the correct date well in advance both on this website and in our monthly newsletter. Our meetings are open to everyone without charge – feel free to attend and find out what our Society is all about!
Meetings typically consist of a brief business meeting to conduct our club’s routine activities, a special presentation on an orchid subject, an orchid raffle (2 tickets for $1), and a Show Table where members can display their flowering plants for everyone to see. For more information, please contact any of our officers.
See our entire meeting schedule with all locations and maps here.
Membership
Membership includes:
- Free admission to our annual Spring Show
- Notices of special vendor discounts and pre-ordering opportunities
- Voting privileges for officers and constitutional changes.
Click here to see our Bylaws.
The dues for single membership are $20. Family membership dues are $25. You can download a membership application here.
You can also join online here and pay securely with PayPal – you don’t need to have a PayPal account, and can pay with your credit or debit card.