At the conclusion of another wildly successful Redland event ( compliments to Robert Randall and his team! ), I was thinking what makes this one of the greatest, if not the greatest, orchid trading occasion of the year. In the five years I have been able to attend, the attendance of international vendors and US major orchid players has continued to increase. The timing is right for selling bare root plants, the buyers are flush at the end of the show season and the vendors bring new and exciting, rare orchids that help keeping this country at the forefront of the orchid world. Where else in a five minute walk could one buy blooming size plants of C. warscewiczii var alba from Colombia, L. purpurata var alba from Brazil and a cross like Renanthera Penang X Phalaenopsis equestris from Malaysia? Of course you have to put up with the "tire kickers" like Left Coast Iris and Chuck (the no show with his Renanthera) but most of the attendees are great folk with a real enthusiasm for their orchids and keen to expand their collections. The weather this year was perfect and I suspect the Miami Show in March and this Fair in May are going to become even more of a must attend occasion as the South Florida WOC approaches.
Andy Easton
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