Wednesday, April 9th. 7:00 - 9:00 PM. Judges Training Forum - Dendrobium, 2 Sections

Northeast Judging Center Accredited Judges

Judging Latouria Dendrobium - Presented by Cordelia Head and Lucas Carreño

A discussion on the merits and complexities in judging Latouria Dendrobiums, both in the current depth of breeding lines and commercial availability, with special consideration given to examples which deviate from the well-established standards for Nobile- and Phalaenopsis-type Dendrobiums. We challenge the notion that Latouria section Dendrobium hybrids should be predominantly awarded for culture and are inherently precluded from flower quality awards.

Dendrobium section Oxyglossum - 'Great Presents Come in Small Packages' - Presented by Bob Winkley

Recently, there's been renewed interest in the group of Dendrobiums formerly ascribed to the section Oxyglossum (Schlechter). While the most famous species in this section, Dendrobium cuthbertsonii, has a deep and broad award record with the AOS, other species and hybrids are making their way to the judging table with increasing frequency. In this presentation, I'll take a look at this enchanting group of New Guinea natives with the goal of becoming more familiar with these plants, as well as developing criteria that will assist judges as they evaluate these plants for botanical, flower quality, and cultural awards.

Friday, April 11th - Orchid Conservation - A Vital Endeavor

1:00 PM - Janice Yates - 'Treading Lightly: Tales of Citizen Conservation and Education'

Short stories of individuals including one who serendipitously found orchids on his family homestead and became an avid conservationist, one who looks at unused public land and sees conservation potential, one who is trying to restore native orchids to an area that was poached and others trying to shift the odds in favor of more viable habitats for native orchids.

Janice Yates' orchid credentials are evidence of a hobby gone haywire. Professionally, she produced television newscasts in Cincinnati and Kansas City Then she upended her career, going to law school, and then working in various areas including federal appellate judges & the Justice Department. Along the way, I began growing tropical orchids and became an accredited AOS judge. Although she still raises and judges ‘the tropicals,’ she is enamored of our native orchids, some flashy, many not; nearly all endangered from suburban sprawl, warming temperatures, indifference to their presence, the list of threats is extensive. As a member of several native orchid hobby groups and currently president of the Native Orchid Conference, Jan has found these organizations invaluable in sharing the joy of looking for native orchids, supporting research that improves our understanding of how they might thrive, and might, just might improve the odds they will be here in the future.

2:00 PM - Sarah Hedean and Amy Highland - 'Orchid Conservation at Smithsonian Gardens and the United States Botanic Garden'

Join leaders representing gardens with two of the largest orchid collections in the United States. With many thousands of orchids between both organizations, learn about these orchid collections: how they are managed; and a wide variety of research, education, and conservation projects.

Amy Highland is curator at the United States Botanic Garden. Nearly two decades of public garden experience has provided her with a wealth of knowledge on North American native plants.

Sarah Hedean is the Living Collections Manager at Smithsonian Gardens and has worked in public gardens for over twenty-five years. Sarah has served as President of the National Capital Orchid Society since 2024.

3:00 PM - Peter Zale, Ph.D. - 'Native Orchid Conservation Efforts at Longwood Gardens'

Successful orchid conservation requires a multidisciplinary approach that supports both in situ and ex situ conservation. Longwood Gardens initiated a native orchid conservation program in 2015 that focuses on horticultural aspects of ex situ orchid conservation including seed propagation, seedling establishment, and collections development, that is balanced with in situ restoration, population assessments of rare species, and field work to catalogue previously unknown orchid occurrences.  Peter will present on the development, successful outcomes, and future aspirations of the program.

Peter Zale is Director, Conservation Horticulture and Collections, at Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, PA. He leads a team of scientists and horticulturists focused on conservation horticulture, plant exploration, plant breeding, and living collections through a combination field, garden, and laboratory-based approaches. His primary effort at Longwood has been the development and implementation of a comprehensive conservation horticulture program focused on U.S. native orchids that encompasses seed banking, in vitro seed germination, development of living collections, and restoration of orchid populations. He has also planned and participated in over 30 plant exploration expeditions throughout the U.S., Azerbaijan, China, Japan, Myanmar, Uzbekistan, the Republic of Georgia, Tanzania, and Vietnam, many of which have been focused on orchid conservation activities.  In 2024 he was awarded the Philip E. Keenan Award in recognition of contributions made to native orchid conservation in the U.S.

Saturday, April 12th - Orchids Uncovered: Guardians, Extremes, and Conservation Dreams

1:00 PM - Melissa K. McCormick, Ph.D. - 'Conserving our Native Orchid Heritage'

Roughly 10 percent of the world’s plant species are orchids. This huge family has long fascinated scientists and been prized by collectors for its strange and often showy flowers. However, orchids are often among the first casualties from environmental degradation. Of North America’s approximately 230 native orchid species, 1 in 4 are globally threatened and nearly half are threatened at the state or federal level. Orchids’ dependence on specific mycorrhizal fungi and pollinators makes their conservation and restoration especially challenging. The North American Orchid Conservation Center (NAOCC), based at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC), was founded to help conserve native orchids using research on orchid-fungus relationships, populations, and pollinators. In this lecture, Melissa will talk about how advances made by current research are helping to identify critical points in orchid life cycles to help safeguard orchid populations.

Melissa K. McCormick, Ph.D. is a Senior Ecologist at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC) and is the Director of the North American Orchid Conservation Center (NAOCC). She earned her B.S. degree Trinity University (San Antonio, Texas, 1992) and Ph.D. in Ecology, Evolutionary Biology and Behavior from Michigan State University (1999). Melissa joined SERC in 1999, first as a postdoctoral researcher, then a research scientist, and now as a senior ecologist. Her main research focus is on associations between plants and mycorrhizal fungi, with a strong focus on orchids. In 2011, with Dennis Whigham, she co-founded NAOCC at SERC. The goal of NAOCC is to safeguard the native orchids of the US and Canada, through propagation, preservation, and education. She has authored over 60 peer reviewed scientific publications about orchids, their mycorrhizal fungi, their pollinators, and other drivers of plant distribution. Melissa has served on the AOS research committee since 2021.

2:00 PM - Hope Brooks - 'Doggone Orchid Hunters – How Man’s Best Friend Can Help Sniff Out Orchids'

Since the dawn of time, humans have loved orchids and sought them out in the many environments they are found in. Often, the flashiest and largest orchids are the most easily found by interested humans, whether due to their elaborate flowers or their size. Yet, there are numerous small and non-descript orchids living in anonymity. These orchids are frequently harder to find either due to their stature, plentiful lookalikes, intermittent dormant periods, and dispersed populations. Even so, dedicated human orchid enthusiasts spend countless hours searching for any and all species of orchid. Regardless of this immense cumulative effort, the small and non-descript orchids can be and are passed over by their most ardent hunters. So, how can orchid hunting level up and catch the missing orchids on the landscape? Enter man’s best friend—the dog—as a partner in sniffing out orchids. In this presentation Hope will share stories of successes where dogs have located orchids in immensely challenging habitats to survey. She will also discuss some of the modes of failure and challenges in using dogs to locate orchids. Expect lots of photos and videos of cute canine coworkers and the rare orchids they remain on the hunt for!

Hope Brooks currently works the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy as a PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources environmental reviewer for projects funded by PennDOT, NRCS, and mining projects. Prior to her current employment, Hope worked for the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center under Dennis Whigham and Melissa McCormick studying native orchids, orchid mycorrhizal fungi, wetland plant ecology, and invasive plant management and ecology. Hope graduated from Penn State College of Agriculture with a degree in Plant Sciences and pursued graduate studies in ecology at the University of Pittsburgh. In her spare time, Hope can be found underground exploring caves across the United States or pursuing botanically-minded adventures.

3:00 PM - Bob Sprague - 'Orchids, Whales and Polar Bears'

Join Bob for a wonderfully illustrated overview of the unique tundra habitat in and around Churchill, Manitoba, the overland trip to get there, a sampling of the plant and animal life in the Churchill area with an emphasis on orchids including several that grow north of the Arctic circle.

Bob Sprague is a Long Island native, Muhlenberg College graduate, former Navy Supply Corps officer and retired business executive. He and his wife Amy travel extensively in pursuit of orchids and birds. Bob has been growing tropical orchids for 20+ years, and he is a past president of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Orchid Society. He is also a self-taught authority on North American native orchids and a past president of the Native Orchid Conference.

7:00 PM - Dennis Whigham, Ph.D. - 'The Botany of Desire' (And How I got Hooked on Native Orchids) - Keynote Speaker at the Annapolis in Bloom: An Orchid Celebration Banquet.

Dennis will discuss how he became enthralled with native orchids, the conservation approach employed by NAOCC and his hopes for the future.

Dennis Whigham, Ph.D. is Distinguished Emeritus Scientist, Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, and the Founding Director (retired) of the North American Orchid Conservation Center (NAOCC). The ecology of plants has been Dennis’ primary interest, and his research led to journeys through forests, fields, and wetlands around the world. His explorations have guided him to studies of woodland herbs – including orchids, vines, wetland species, invasive species, and studies of forests in the tropics, temperate and boreal zones. Long-term studies of interactions between orchids and fungi, resulted in exciting research directions and well as initiation of continental-scale effort to conserve native orchids. Dennis founded the North American Orchid Conservation Center (NAOCC), an initiative of the Smithsonian and the United States Botanic Garden, with a goal of assuring the survival of native orchids for future generations.

Whigham obtained an undergraduate degree from Wabash College and a Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina. He joined the Smithsonian in 1977, retiring at the end of December 2023 and receiving the Smithsonian’s first Distinguished Service Career Medal. In retirement, he continues to be involved in research and conservation efforts, especially supporting the mission of NAOCC. During his almost 47 years at SERC, he also was a Professor of Landscape Ecology at Utrecht University (The Netherlands). Whigham and his collaborators published more than 250 peer- reviewed articles in journals and co-edited 11 books.

In addition to this amazing Speakers Lineup. We will hold two Hands-On Workshops:

Friday - 4:00 PM - "Repotting, Dividing, and Mounting." with Jay Balchan. While included with meeting registration, Space is Limited to 50. Supplies will be provided to those who pre-register for this workshop. There will be a separate registration/sign up for this event.

Saturday - 4:00 PM - "Orchid Viruses" with Ron McHatton, Ph.D. Sponsored by Agdia. While included with meeting registration, Space is Limited to 50. Supplies will be provided to those who pre-register for this workshop. There will be a separate registration/sign up for this event.

Register HERE