Fred Clarke has dedicated over 44 years to developing orchids hybrids and producing select species for the orchid enthusiast. These hybrids are one-of-a-kind plants, like original pieces of art. Fred began growing orchids and built his first greenhouse in 1977. He is committed to the education of orchid hobbyists from around the world in the culture of their plants. He is also a professional grower and manager in the horticultural industry; he applies these skills at his orchid nursery, Sunset Valley Orchids, located in San Diego, California. He is a passionate orchid grower whose curiosity in orchids is broad and varied. Although developing Cattleya and Catasetinae hybrids has been his sustaining interest, he is also actively creating new Paphiopedilum, Australian Dendrobium, Zygopetalum, and a few others to be named if they come out good! His pioneering work in Catasetum intergeneric breeding has led to the development of many notable hybrids, including the grex, Fredclarkeara After Dark, which produced “the blackest flower ever witnessed”, and received an amazing number of awards with 17 First Class Certificates and over 100 awards worldwide! Fred is an acclaimed speaker and travels extensively within USA, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, and Central America. He is an accredited American Orchid Society Judge. His hybrids have received hundreds of quality awards for orchid enthusiasts from the American Orchid Society and Orchid Judging organizations from around the world.