Suffolk Orchid Society

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Suffolk Orchid Society

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We are a small friendly group that meet on the last Wednesday of the month except July/August & December. Our monthly meetings open at 7p.m for a 7.30p.m start.

We meet at Saint Michael's Church centre, Martlesham Heath, Ipswich, IP5 3PL. We welcome all orchid enthusiasts, beginners and more experienced alike The meetings usually comprise of a guest speaker or sometimes a plant clinic for members to bring along any plants that they would like advise on and general orchid discussion. During the evening we serve tea and coffee and have a raffle. There is a display table where members bring in their flowering plants for other members to admire. There are also 2 competition tables, 1 for novice growers and 1 for members that have previously won the novice table. During the evening members are asked to vote on the orchid they love the most, at the end of evening votes are counted, then over the year points are collated and the 2 members with the most points wins a trophy which they each hold for the year. We hold an annual show at Martlesham displaying members plants together with commercial growers that bring in a vast array of orchids to sell, from beautiful flowering orchids to seedlings for you to grow on. The members also put on a beautiful display at the Suffolk Show each year in the flower marquee.

28/10/2026

SEPTEMBER 2026 MONTHLY MEETING – 45th ANNIVERSARY OF THE SOCIETY

David Barton, one of our founder members, gave us a brief history of the Club. The Society started on 5th September 1981. John Hyatt wrote a letter for the Spring issue of the OSGB (Orchid Society of Great Britain) enquiring whether anybody was interested in starting a club for people interested in orchids. David saw this and went along to Oddfellows Hall. 10 other people turned up.

The first meetings took place on the 1st Saturday of each month at Oddfellows, but it then moved to the last Wednesday as it was becoming increasingly difficult to find speakers for a Saturday.

As the membership increased, the meetings were moved to Copleston High School, then to Kesgrave Community Centre, the smaller hall at St. Michael’s Church and eventually to our present venue in their larger hall.

We have had over 350 meetings with many good speakers including Henry Oakley, Bala Kampala, Tom Hart D**e and many others from Orchid Societies and commercial growers.

In July 1984 we had our first public display as part of the East Anglian Horticultural Show at Christchurch Park and we continued with them until 1995, winning ‘Best in Show’ in 1988. This show was discontinued in 2000 due to rising costs. In 1994 we were approached by the Suffolk Show organisers to put on a display there and we went on to win ‘Best stand’ three times, 2005, 2024 and 2025. At that time the public had to pay extra to get into the flower tent. Since then, we have had stands at various other shows, including Peterborough International Show in 2007, Norwich, Newbury and BOC Birmingham this year.

In March 2000 we had our own Spring Show and have continued with this almost yearly (not possible during Covid).

David had on display many of our certificates and trophies for best plants both in Shows and our monthly meetings that have been won over the years. There was also a picture of a tile showing our logo which is included in a wall display of orchid societies’ logos at the Vallarta Botanical Gardens, Mexico. T.J. Hartung was one of our speakers and said if we could supply a photo of our logo, he would have it printed on a tile for the wall which was to be part of the revamping of the Gardens.

We have had many outings over the years to garden centres, orchid growers, etc., one very memorable one to Kew Gardens Orchid House. We also have a garden party most years at one of our members’ homes.

We celebrated our 25th Anniversary in 2006 with a lunch at Fynn Valley Golf Club.

After David’s talk, we had a break and celebrated our 45th with ch*****ne and cake – the former donated by Lynda and Tony Newson, the latter by Andy Gissing.

After we had indulged, Bill showed some slides of our display stands at various Shows including our own Spring Shows.

Then the OSGB and BOC salvers were presented to the winners for the year 2025/26 of our monthly Winners and Novice competition tables – Paul Eaton and Tony Weavers respectively.

Bill Gardiner won the Winners Table with his Stenoglottis longifolia. There were no entries for the Novices table.

Note from the webmaster: the photos are a bit of a jumble, apologies. Facebook has changed the way of working with photos to be much harder and has also removed the ability to add captions. Go to https://suffolkorchid.co.uk/uncategorized/september-2026-monthly-meeting-45th-anniversary-of-the-society/ to see them as I intended.

16/08/2026

June meeting report (better late than never):

This was our AGM with Chris and Marian Stephens giving a talk together with photos on ‘Bees, Honey & Flowers’. This was very interesting and they brought some of their honey to sell. They did not want a fee but we gave a donation to the Green Leaf Trust which helps young people with mental health problems and who work with Chris and Marian with the bees as well as helping to maintain the surrounding area and learning about conservation.

Tony Tweed won the ‘Novices’ table with his Thunia Gattonensis, and David Kohn won the ‘Winners’ table with his Laelia tenebrosa.

The International Orchid Show at BBC Gardeners’ World was also in June where we were invited by the BOC to put a small display on their stand. Andy took our orchids and set out the stand whilst Bill followed to help him man the stand during the show. When it came to the judging (all classes are amateur, not trade) our exhibits did exceptionally well:
In the Dendrobium class Bill won a 1st for his Dendrobium unicum – much admired for its vivid colours. He got 3 ‘Highly Commended’ awards for his Dendrobium cuthbertsonii hybrids and 1 for his Anguloa Blanche Pierre.
Andy received a 1st with his Bulbophyllum eberhardtii [subsequently reassigned as B. annamense], which also was voted Best Amateur Species in the show, as well as a 2nd with his Coelogyne nitida. In the Pleurothallidinae class he got a 1st with his Scaphosepalum verrucosum (for those of you who remember Bill Haldane, this orchid was one of his and has been in flower ever since). In the Masdevallia class he won a 2nd with his Masdevallia Pat Akehurst. AND as if that wasn’t enough, the cream of it all was when Andy was asked to put the Bulbophyllum in front of the RHS orchid judging committee and received a Certificate of Cultural Commendation.
Didn’t they do well! And as Andy says, the only problem now is that little old Suffolk Orchid Society has a lot to live up to! (Reports by Carol Tweed).

A video of our stand at GWL is here: https://suffolkorchid.co.uk/uncategorized/june-monthly-meeting-and-gardeners-world-live/

14/08/2026

May meeting report (better late than never):

In May we were treated to the exploits of Bill and Andy on their trip to the World Orchid Show in Dresden! I gather they really enjoyed themselves and despite neither speaking German they managed to make themselves understood on their journey to the Show – the misunderstandings had begun before their trip! On arriving at their hotel they found their booking was for a room with a double bed! But they met many people from the Orchid World and had taken many photos of Old Town Dresden as well as displays at the Show. The stand of the Orchid Society of Germany Dresden was quite outstanding with lights all around the bottom of the display and large ‘insects’ across the top. Old Town Dresden was destroyed during the war but had been rebuilt fantastically in its original form, the buildings looking really old.

May was also the Suffolk Show and our stand once again was beautifully displayed with orchids. We won a Large Gold even though we didn’t have quite as many orchids as usual due to the early few days heatwave which brought many in flower too early whilst others were not quite yet ready to flower. David does a marvellous job setting up the stand as does everyone who helps to set out the display and those who bring their orchids. David Kohn’s Capanemia superflua was judged by Laurence Hobbs to be the best orchid on our stand. [Reports by our Secretary, Carol Tweed].

A video of our Suffolk Show stand is here:

https://suffolkorchid.co.uk/uncategorized/may-2026-monthly-meeting-and-suffolk-show/

There were no display tables at this month’s meeting, as all our plants in flower were on our Suffolk Show stand.

26/06/2026

A little late...my report on the April 2026 monthly meeting of the Suffolk Orchid Society:

Our guests at our April meeting were Colin Thorburn and Bryan Adams from the Orchid Society of East Anglia, both accredited British Orchid Council (BOC) judges, who gave us an introduction to orchid judging. The basics are as follows:

- All plants must have a label and be free from pests or diseases.
- Compare the plants on the table; pick the best four, then rank them in order.
- Judging is based on the plant as it is presented, not as it was or will be.
- Take your time – examine each plant carefully.
- Divide your assessment 50:50 between the plant as a whole and its flowers.
- A perfect plant is very rare.

When comparing a mixed group, look for:

- how the plants rate compared to their potential;
- progressive growth, e.g. successive increase in size of pseudobulbs;
- presentation (staking etc., but not the pot);
- number of flower spikes;
- number of flowers on spikes open and not gone over.

Judges may disagree! But their decision is final.

After this introduction, we formed into small teams to practice judging on a table of Cymbidiums and a mixed table. We could then compare our verdicts with those of the accredited judges.

Well done to Colin and Bryan (with the help of our own Andy Gissing), who made what might have been a rather dry topic stimulating and interesting. Any member interested in becoming a BOC judge should speak to Andy.

Tony Weavers won the Novices table with his Zygopetalum hybrid. Paul Eaton won the Winners table with his Calanthe Brimstone.

25/06/2026

Best Amateur Species at Gardeners World Live; Bulbophyllum eberhardtii was first described in 1992.

This species is named after Philippe Albert Eberhardt a French botanist and explorer in the early 1900s, who collected hundreds of unique plant and orchid specimens.

It is found in Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and southern China at elevations of 1000 to 1500 meters.

BBC Gardeners' World Live Suffolk Orchid Society

25/06/2026

A little late...my report on the Suffolk Orchid Society Annual Show 7th March 2026

An early date for our Show this year in no way affected our members’ ability to deliver the goods, and once again we put up a prolific display – ably supported with a lovely display by our friends from the Orchid Society of East Anglia. The trade stands of Lawrence Hobbs Orchids and Orchid Alchemy, the botanical drawings of Guy Wiiliam Eves, David Mittell’s hand-made wooden baskets and pot stands, our own tombola to which members generously donated prizes, and our top-quality catering, combined with the headline displays to create a rich and memorable experience for all who came to our Show.

The BOC Trophy for Best in Show went to Bill Gardiner for his Dendrobium kingianum, which also won Best Species. Andy Gissing won Best Hybrid for his Cymbidium Novia.

25/05/2026

March 2026 monthly meeting

Our guest speaker this month was Simon White, who is now retired after a career of 43 years working for a single company – Peter Beales Roses (now part of Bells Horticultural). After introducing some of the horticultural sundries that he had brought for sale, Simon described the process used to produce roses commercially, based on budding (a form of grafting) onto rootstocks that are then grown on. He illustrated the various types of roses with pictures and advised how best to cultivate them. Clay soils are best for roses, with the addition of organic matter. When planting, the union (where the rose joins the rootstock) should be buried about 5cm below the soil surface – this discourages the rootstock from forming suckers. The problem of ‘rose sickness’ in positions where roses have previously grown can be overcome by burying a cardboard box filled with fresh soil and planting the rose in that; the box provides a temporary barrier that gives the rose time to establish. ‘Climbing’ roses can be encouraged to flower by training the stems horizontally. After his well received talk, there was a lot of interest from our members in the roses and sundries that he had brought for sale.

Cymbidiums carried the day on our competition tables this month; Tony Weavers won the Novices table with his un-named Cymbidium hybrid, and Phil Broom won the Winners table with his Cymbidium Western Rose ‘Pink Lady’.

27/02/2026

NEWS (February 2026 meeting)

We ask members to rally round to support our Annual Show on 7 March, in particular:

Help with catering, to provide cakes etc. – Grazyna has a list.
Volunteers to help run the kitchen, tombola etc. This is a pressing need, as a number of members who would ordinarily help are away.
Orchids for repotting demonstrations – a good opportunity to have that moribund orchid given a new lease of life!
Orchids in flower for the show table – anything respectable! Tidy them up first – remove dead leaves, sheaths, bracts, cut off dead leaf tips. Also foliage houseplants for background. Please bring plants 8-9am on Saturday to give time for the show table build.

Discounted tickets for this year’s International Orchid Show at Gardeners’ World Live, Birmingham are available via our Treasurer, Lynda.

We’re looking for a member to host our Summer Garden Party this year. If you’d like to consider this, please speak to Grazyna who will tell you what it involves.

If any member has access to a minibus or has an idea for a Society outing, please speak to our Secretary, Carol.

Any member interested in becoming an accredited British Orchid Council (BOC) judge should speak to Andy, who is currently undertaking the training. Our April 2026 meeting will no doubt be of help. Also, the BOC is currently looking for someone to act as its Vice-Chairman; it’s a worthy organisation, but it needs people to run it and has come perilously close to folding through lack of support in recent years.

Finally, Paul Atkin won the 2025 BOC photo competition (see https://britishorchidcouncil.org.uk/photographic-competition/). This is the third year in a row that a member of Suffolk Orchid Society has won this competition, David Kohn having won it in 2023 and 2024.

GUEST SPEAKER

Our guest speaker this month was Leif Bersweden, who presented (via Microsoft Tems) an account of his quest to see all of the UK’s orchids bar one during his gap year summer (2013). (The exception was the Ghost Orchid, which has only been seen in the UK twice this century – see https://www.positive.news/environment/britains-rarest-wild-orchid-discovered-again-after-15-years-of-searching/). Obsessed with plants since childhood, the Collins Complete Guide to British Wildflowers brought Leif a narrower focus on Britain’s native orchids. There are 50-60 orchid species native to the UK; the exact number is dependent on taxonomy and chance introductions from the Continent. It’s a very charismatic group with great variety, and their rarity adds to their appeal.

The challenge

Leif had seen 30 species by the time he finished school and decided to take a gap year to see all of them in one summer. This entailed a lot of planning during the preceding winter, and the acquisition of an old car and a tent. The hunt started in April/May 2013.

The journey

The various species’ populations are located all over the UK, and visits of course had to be when they were in flower. The journey went from South Wales, to Salisbury, to East Kent, to Gloucestershire, to North Uist (Shetland Islands)… Leif focused on the Fly Orchid (Ophrys insectifera, found on the Burren, County Clare) and its exploitation of male digger wasps to effect pollination; and on a hiccup on the way to see the Lesser Twayblade (Neottia cordata) near Newcastle, when his car broke down irretrievably and the AA took him home; his father then stepped in heroically to return him to Newcastle to see the orchid! The rest of the search had to be done using a hire car. In total, Leif travelled nearly 10,000 miles on his quest.

The book

Leif subsequently wrote a book about his quest, ‘The Orchid Hunter: A young botanists search for happiness’, that was published in 2017 (see https://leifbersweden.com/books/). To conclude his talk, he read a short extract from the book, describing how he absconded from a family gathering in order to see the Burnt Orchid (Neotinea ustulata).

25/02/2026

NEWS (January 2026 meeting)

This month we had our Plant Clinic, where our experienced growers Bill Gardiner and Andy Gissing (and anyone else able to contribute) gave advice to mermbers about problem plants they brought to the meeting.

Tony Weavers won the Novices table with one of his Paphiopedilums; Andy Gissing won the Winners table with his Lycaste skinneri rosea.

25/02/2026

NEWS (November 2025 meeting)

This was our annual social evening – we took part in a ‘Round the World’ Picture Quiz, won by Sue and John, then shared a buffet meal. Ken Frost won the ‘Novices’ table with his Dendrobium hybrid, and Paul Eaton won the ‘Winners’ table with his Masdevallia cucullata x Hercules.

Address

St Michael's Church, The Drift, Martlesham Heath
Ipswich
IP53PL

Website

https://suffolkorchid.co.uk/

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