Monday, August 11th, 2025
OSMT Meeting in person at Cheekwood Botanic Gardens in “Massey Hall” (In Person and Online (via Zoom))

7PM CST: “Dendrobium nobile” – Melissa Garner

The August, 2025 Orchid Society of Middle Tennessee meeting on Monday, August 11th at 7PM in Cheekwood’s Massey Hall; will feature a program about the very interesting orchid genus, Dendrobium nobile by Melissa Garner of Memphis, TN.

About Our Speaker

Melissa Garner (Memphis, TN) – Melissa is an avid hobbyist, Accredited AOS Judge, and an amateur hybridizer who has been growing orchids for about 16 years and has earned 36 AOS awards from show trophies to the elusive FCC.   Her orchid motto is, “If you aren’t killing them, you aren’t growing them!”  She and her husband, Paul, grow together as a team.  He focuses on mostly miniatures and the important daily care of the greenhouse, while Melissa devotes a lot of time to the plants and flower quality.  She believes that it is crucial to have a critical eye and to cull the greenhouse frequently. 

Though her favorite orchids are the sun loving Papilionandas, she branched out into the nobile Dendrobium hybrids after realizing their growing conditions are similar to her deck Papilionandas during the summer.  A few years ago, she started making her own Papilionanda crosses. She then expanded into Dendrobium crosses after researching and discovering the Yamamoto patents in the USA had expired and the Yamamoto Nursery in Hawaii closed permanently.  She is introducing new crosses, and is hopeful this will reignite interest in these beautiful, hardy, and easy-to-grow orchids.

CLICK HERE!!! for Zoom Meeting Link -> Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87359058097?pwd=l0D6WhHJPHnJpb0Tnz8LHf0Ca47RYc.1
Meeting ID: 873 5905 8097
Passcode: OSMT2025