Looking around at the hundreds of orchids in bloom on the back patio of her Weston home, Sara Singer is hard-pressed to pick a favorite from her beloved collection.
There are the highly prized vandas, the pastel dendrobiums and the flat-flowered phalaenopsis. And don’t forget the paphiopedilums, commonly known as the lady slipper, that have pouches for pollination purposes.
“I have every single type of orchid,” she said, laughing. “It’s awesome to just come outside and take a look at it.”
This weekend, South Florida orchid enthusiasts and hobbyists are invited to just come inside for the Fort Lauderdale Orchid Society’s 65th annual Orchid Show and Sale, taking place Friday, Jan. 10, through Sunday, Jan. 12, at the Charles F. Dodge City Center in Pembroke Pines.
“This is a milestone year for the Fort Lauderdale Orchid Society,” said Singer, the show’s organizer. “We’ve been bringing the joy of orchids to the South Florida community with this annual show for 65 years. This is the same amazing orchid show that we staged for years at the War Memorial [Auditorium] in Fort Lauderdale.”
The group moved the event west after War Memorial renovations, which included adding the Baptist Health IcePlex, began more than three years ago.
Singer said the 74-year-old nonprofit is bringing in orchids by the thousands from major growing centers from around the country and world, including Hawaii and Taiwan. Representatives from award-winning Florida orchid growers such as Soroa, Krull-Smith and Quest Orchids also are expected to attend.
“We’ve had longtime vendors that have been exhibiting at our show for years and years and years. We have very, very strong roots in the orchid community, and the orchid community is very large and thriving here because we have a subtropical climate,” said Doreen Christensen, who has been a member for four years, taking on roles including advertising and publicity chairwoman for the show, corresponding secretary and conservation chairwoman.
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“When you go somewhere else like western North Carolina or Atlanta or New York, it’s very difficult to grow orchids in those climates in the winter unless you have very specific greenhouse conditions,” she added. “Here, you can grow orchids year-round, which makes South Florida the perfect place to grow orchids.”
The 300-member group goes beyond filling the venue with a treat for the senses — eye-catching exotic blooms and their sweet and spicy scents — by providing free classes and answering orchid-growing questions.
“There is something for everyone from beginner to expert,” said Singer, a 12-year member who also serves as the organization’s programs chairwoman, bringing in speakers for their monthly meetings.
Visitors will find orchid-themed gift items, books and supplies available for purchase at the show, which is the nonprofit’s biggest fundraiser, helping its members continue the mission of “providing education in the culture and conservation of orchids and supporting other area orchid organizations and botanical gardens.”
CHOOSING A THEME
While previous editions of this event have whisked attendees away to paradise and to the jungle, this year’s theme is all about an “Orchid Renaissance.”
No, the inspiration wasn’t Beyoncé’s 2023 world tour but rather “Orchidae,” a 1904 Enlightenment illustration by artist Ernst Haeckel, that piqued the interest of one of the society’s board members. The piece, which depicts a variety of colorful orchids and is now in the public domain, is being used as the promotional poster for the event.
“That theme will be carried through the whole show,” Christensen said. “The exhibitors will use the theme to build their exhibits that the American Orchid Society will be judging, so you’re going to see that being repeated over and over in the auditorium,” including in artistic displays from area elementary schools.
Individual plant entries and displays from orchid societies will be awarded ribbons and cash prizes, she said.
CONSERVATION EFFORTS
Since 2017, the Fort Lauderdale Orchid Society has partnered with Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden’s Million Orchid Project on a native orchid reintroduction program for South Florida.
“We will have a booth and we will help people understand how they can plant native orchids into their landscape,” Christensen said. “The Fort Lauderdale Orchid Society has planted more than 10,000 native orchids back into the South Florida landscape through our conservation program and partnership.”
The California-based Orchid Conservation Alliance also will be on hand to raise awareness on its efforts to preserve native orchid habitats around the world.
So, why are people drawn to orchids in the first place?
“It’s because they’re so beautiful,” said Christensen, who is a fan of the Encyclia tampensis, known as the butterfly orchid, which is primarily found in Florida, Cuba and the Bahamas. “And there are so many varieties, and they make you so happy. When somebody gives you an orchid or you bloom an orchid, it just makes your heart sing.”
NEXT MEETING
The Fort Lauderdale Orchid Society will have its first meeting of the year at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 13, at Christ Lutheran Church Social Hall, 1955 E. Oakland Park Blvd., Oakland Park. Ron Kaufmann, chairman of the American Orchid Society Conservation Committee, will present “101 Ways to Kill an Orchid.”
“We always invite the public to come experience the meeting and come and learn how to grow orchids,” Christensen said. “The best way to learn how to grow orchids that you buy and to keep them alive and rebloom them is to join your orchid society,”
IF YOU GO
WHAT: Fort Lauderdale Orchid Society’s 65th annual Orchid Show and Sale
WHEN: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday-Saturday, Jan. 10-11, and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 12
WHERE: Charles F. Dodge City Center, 601 City Center Way, Pembroke Pines
COST: $15 general admission; free for guests age 12 and younger
INFORMATION: flos.org