Orchids In Their Native Habitat And In Your Home

On Wednesday, October 14, Connie Ballado will offer a presentation on orchids for the Town and Country Garden Club of Newtown. Her program will begin at Newtown Senior Center, 14 Riverside Road in Sandy Hook, at 7:30 pm.

Ms Ballado has over 25 years of experience in the care and merchandising of orchids. Her first nursery was established in Mexico in 1985, then she moved to California, and in June 2003, the family opened a business in Berlin.

At Ballado Orchids they cultivate mostly cattleya orchids that are sold potted and mounted on manzanita wood. Each purchase also includes information about repotting and dividing.

Ms Ballado travels around giving programs and sharing her knowledge about these popular exotic plants. In addition, she holds orchid seminars at her business location on the first Friday of each month. She has also participated in judging events such as the Japanese Grand Prix, and recently at the World Orchid Conference in Malaysia in 2002 where she worked with Joseph Arditti, a renowned author of several orchid books.

Ms Ballado is well known for her Mexican orchid species lectures.

Her program in Sandy Hook is open to the public, free of charge.

For information about the program or Town and Country Garden Club, contact Emi Lydem at 426-5495.