Sept. 11, 2023 Meeting – Luis Matienzo – “Latin American Slippers”

A s our summer season gradually winds down, we’ve been fortunate to have escaped a lot of the severe weather that has afflicted many other parts of the country this year. Granted, some folks who summer their orchids outdoors have had to cope with terrific heat and violent thunderstorms, but for the most part, our plants have emerged mostly unscathed.

We’ll kick off our Fall season as Luis J. Matienzo, B.Sc., M.Sc., Ph.D. heads up from the Southern Tier Orchid Society to present “Latin American Slippers”. The talk will focus on the world-wide evolution of lady slippers from their early appearance and on the bio-geographic effects that limit the habitat of those species found within Latin American boundaries. A general overview of types of orchids, their discovery, typical habitats and geographic distributions for selected species will be given. The recent discovery of new species with spectacular colors and dimensions has rekindled the interest in these orchids. New hybrids have been created and new species continue to be discovered.

Luis has been involved with orchids as a hobby for more than 40 years. He’s served in many positions in the Southern Tier Orchid Society and is a virtual member of the Peruvian Orchid Club (Club Peruano de Orquideas). As an avid orchid grower, Luis has a special interest in orchid species, miniatures and lady slipper orchids, and raises many plants under lights. He has visited and photographed orchids in their natural habitats in North and South America and has presented lectures to orchid societies and other organizations in the U.S. and overseas.

Luis will be bringing some plants from his collection to sell at the meeting – so members may not bring their own plants to sell or trade at the meeting. Please note: Luis will be accepting cash or checks only for payment.

The doors open at the JCC at 6:00 p.m., and the meeting will get under way at 6:30 p.m., as usual. Don’t forget to bring in your flowering plants for the Show Table – We’ll see you there!