Dr. Martin Motes: “Temperature Tolerant and Low Light Vandas”
Virtual Zoom Meeting – June 7, 2021 at 6:30 PM

In his talk, “Temperature Tolerant, Low light Vandas” Dr. Motes shows that choosing the right parents allows Vanda hybrids to be created which will thrive under conditions in temperate greenhouses, windowsills and under lights. These hybrids come in an array of colors and are smaller than the standard types which have dominated past breeding.

Martin Motes is a second generation orchidist who has been growing orchids for over 60 years. He is president of Motes Orchids, a major producer of vandas. He has bred hundreds of new hybrids, for which he has received scores of American Orchid Society awards including three FCC’s and three Awards of Quality.

He is an accredited American Orchid Society judge. The annual Martin Motes Breeders Award is given by the AOS to the best Award of Quality or Award of Distinction. Martin’s frequent articles have appeared in The Fairchild Garden Magazine, The Kew Bulletin, The South Florida Orchidist, The Orchid Digest, The Orchid Review, The Malayan Orchid Review, Lancasteriana and Orchids.

He has traveled extensively in the Mediterranean and has observed wild orchids in Ambon, Australia, the Bahamas, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Britain, the Cayman Islands, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Florida, Guatemala, India, Ireland, Jamaica, Java, Malaya, Moluccas, Mexico, Nepal, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Thailand, Venezuela, the Virgin Islands and Yugoslavia. Martin has been interviewed by both print and TV journalists on topics ranging from community issues in southern Florida to horticultural therapy and orchids. He is featured in The Orchid Thief and served as a consultant on the film version, Adaptation. Dr. Motes is an appointed member of the Miami-Dade Agricultural Advisory Board. He is a research Fellow at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden.

Martin Motes initiated the Redland and Tamiami International Orchid Festivals, America’s two largest orchid events; he is currently working on finishing a monograph of the genus Vanda in which he has described several new species.

Please note: send your Show Table photos to Carol Butcher, in the usual manner; she needs to have them by Sunday, June 6. The speaker will begin his presentation at 7:00 p.m., and we will have our business meeting and Show Table sessions immediately following.