Save the date! Tuesday, February 8, 2022 at 9:30am at the Liberty Center will be the next SCA Garden Club Meeting.
Sun City Anthem resident and orchid author and horticulturist, Alec Pridgeon, Ph.D. will be presenting "Bizarre Orchids: Tales of the Unexpected.
Alec writes: "All of us are familiar with the world of beautiful corsage and centerpiece orchids distinctive for their form, color and lasting quality.
But there is also a bizarre side to the 2nd largest plant family, a sometimes grotesque side, an orchid world populated by masters of sexual deceit. We label some orchids bizarre chiefly for their appearance, less so for their fragrance, but both of these are inextricably bound up with the attraction of potential pollinators, sometimes from miles around, or with the pollination process itself. They have been the fascinating subjects of BBC nature series narrated by Sir David Attenborough. You will never look at orchids the same way again."
Alec has published several books, most notably "The Illustrated Enyclopedia of Orchids". Details on this book can be found below.
Please bring and wear your mask and you SCA ID card to show at the front desk.
If you haven't already done so, please plan to set aside a few minutes of your time when you arrive at this meeting to complete our 2022 Member Interest Survey. Your responses to this survey help us meet your gardening needs as we plan upcoming meetings!
The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Orchids
by Alec Pridgeon (Editor), Alasdair Morrison (Foreword by)
4.49 · Rating details · 37 ratings · 0 reviews
This handsome reference, now available in paperback, is sure to delight gardeners with a casual interest in orchids as well as the committed enthusiast and professional. Encompassing a wide spectrum of orchid genera, over 1100 species and hybrids commonly in cultivation are detailed. With an authoritative but accessible text written by acknowledged experts of international renown, the book features all the pertinent topics which guide the reader to an understanding of these wonderful flowers: orchid habitats, distribution, classification, hybrids, pollination, cultivation, and conservation. The alphabetical "Orchids A–Z" section includes descriptions, taxonomy, currently accepted names and synonyms, geographic distribution, notes on culture, and hundreds of color photographs of the best-known species in cultivation.