OrchidTalk - Let's Talk Orchids! – Details, episodes & analysis

Welcome to Orchid Talk, the podcast for anyone who’s ever said, “I’ll just buy ONE orchid”… and then somehow ended up with a jungle. In this trailer, Mandy gives you a sneak peek into the wonderfully chaotic world of orchid growing — from supermarket Phals to rare species that cost more than your rent. Expect laughs, plant confessions, wild orchid facts, and a whole lot of blooming enthusiasm. If you’re ready to learn, laugh, and maybe accidentally start a massive collection, hit play and let the orchid madness begin! 🌿

If you have an orchid related question that you want answered, send me an email, at orchidtalkpod@gmail.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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On this very first episode of OrchidTalk, I sit down with Kevin Chen, the grower behind Wilshire and Western Botanicals and a beloved figure in the SoCal orchid community. Kevin shares his very first orchid, his highest AOS awarded plant, and growing slipper orchids (paphiopedilums) indoors in LA.

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🔗Show Links🔗:

Picture of Kevin's Paphiopedilum sanderianum

Picture of Kevin's Awarded flower Paphiopedilum Regine Plows 'Alien Superstar' AM/AOS

Picture of a Sibling of Cattleya Warscewiczii coerulea 'Marquesa de Yolombó' x self.

Kevin can be found at:

W.W. Botanicals instagram

W.W. Botanicals Etsy Shop

Resources/Growers that we mentioned:

Fred Clarke / Sunset Valley Orchids

Rusty Exotics

William Green / MyGreenPets

Stephen Van Kampen-Lewis

SlipperTalk Forum

American Orchid Society - Orchid Culture Sheets

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Please Review and Rate this Podcast

🌸Follow OrchidTalk on instagram!🌸

Want to be on the show? Have a question? Feedback? Email me: orchidtalkpod@gmail.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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On this second episode of OrchidTalk, I sit down with Carol Buele, a Emmy-winning costume designer and American Orchid Society accredited judge. Carol shares how she got into orchid, her lasting love with Japan and Neofinetia falcata (the famed wind orchid) and how she grows her collection in the San Fernando Valley.

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🔗Show Links🔗:

2025 Fuukiran Meikan Board (with English explanations): 2025 Meikan Board

Japan Fuukiran Society

American Orchid Society Article on Growing the Wind Orchid (Neofinetia falcata)

Carol can be found at:

Carol's Website: FirstHouseFurnishings

Carol's Etsy Store: NishibachiByCarol

Carol's AOS Page: Carol Buele - Speaker Center

Resources/Growers that we mentioned:

Peter T. Lin / Diamond Orchids

Peter Lin / Big Leaf Orchids

American Orchid Society - Orchid Culture Sheets

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Please Review and Rate this Podcast

🌸Follow OrchidTalk on instagram!🌸

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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On the very first bonus episode of OrchidTalk, I dive into the wild, true story of Cattleya labiata — the orchid that launched Victorian orchid mania, vanished for 71 years, and reappeared thanks to a bug collector who wasn’t even looking for orchids. It’s a story time packed with botanical drama, misidentified specimens, forgotten directions, and the orchid that became a queen. 

🔗 Show Links below🔗 

Link to purchase the book that inspired this story time / The Classic Cattleyas by AA and Arthur Chadwick

Link to the Cattleya labiata article by Chadwick and Son Orchids

Link to AOS Article on Cattleya labiata

Link to Cattleya Culture Guide (AOS)

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Please Review and Rate this Podcast

🌸Follow OrchidTalk on instagram!🌸

Want to be on the show? Have a question? Feedback? Email me: orchidtalkpod@gmail.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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On the second bonus episode of OrchidTalk, I dive into the golden yellow (fever) of Cattleya dowiana— the large flowered yellow Cattleya, with a bright, sunny nature immediately lights up every room or greenhouse that they are in.

🔗 Show Links below🔗 

Link to purchase the book that inspired this story time / The Classic Cattleyas by AA and Arthur Chadwick

Link to the Cattleya dowiana article by Chadwick and Sons

Link to AOS Article on Cattleya breeding influences

Link to Cattleya Culture Guide (AOS)

🌿🌿

Please Review and Rate this Podcast

🌸Follow OrchidTalk on instagram!🌸

Want to be on the show? Have a question? Feedback? Email me: orchidtalkpod@gmail.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

🌿🌿

On this third episode of OrchidTalk, I sit down with Luis Ortiz Jordan, who leads the curation of the McKee Botanical Gardens orchid collection. Luis shares how he got into orchid, his collection of cloud forest miniature orchids, how to grow them and the species he discovered in Puerto Rico.

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🔗Show Links🔗:

McKee Botanical Garden

Luis's FCC/AOS Cattleya walkeriana 

Luis's New Orchid Species Publication - Eurystyles luisortizii

Luis can be found at:

The Orchid Cabinet Instagram

Luis's LinkedIn

Resources/Growers that we mentioned:

American Orchid Society - Orchid Culture Sheets

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Please Review and Rate this Podcast

🌸Follow OrchidTalk on instagram!🌸

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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On this fourth episode of OrchidTalk, I sit down with Cody Mathers from Zenith Orchids. Cody shares how he got into orchids, his collection of novelty phalaenopsis orchids, how to grow them in the freezing plains of Saskatchewan, and orchid breeding from a hobbyist prospective.

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🔗Show Links🔗:

Phalaenopsis micholtzii - Internet Orchid Species Encyclopedia

Phalaenopsis lueddimanniana - Internet Orchid Species Encyclopedia

Cody can be found at:

Zenith Orchids Instagram

Resources/Growers that we mentioned:

Peter Lin / Big Leaf Orchids

Orchidex

American Orchid Society - Orchid Culture Sheets

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Please Review and Rate this Podcast

🌸Follow OrchidTalk on instagram!🌸

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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On the third bonus episode of OrchidTalk, I dive into the history of Cattleya Bow Bells— shaped by war, loss, resilience, and the quiet determination of growers across three continents. It is a hybrid born in the shadow of bombed greenhouses, carried across oceans, preserved in distant sanctuaries, and woven into the fabric of modern cattleya breeding.

🔗 Show Links below🔗 

Link to purchase the book that inspired this story time / The Classic Cattleyas by AA and Arthur Chadwick

Link to the Cattleya Bow Bells Article by Chadwick and Son's Orchids

Link to Sandra's Garden - Flowers Fit for a Queen

Link to Virtual Orchids - Cattleya Bow Bells 'July'

Link to SlipperTalk Thread on C. Bow Bells 'Purity' FCC/AOS by NESlipper

Link to AOS Article on Cattleya breeding influences

Link to Cattleya Culture Guide (AOS)

🌿🌿

Please Review and Rate this Podcast

🌸Follow OrchidTalk on instagram!🌸

Want to be on the show? Have a question? Feedback? Email me: orchidtalkpod@gmail.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

🌿🌿

On the sixth episode of OrchidTalk, I sit down with Morgan Jamesson. Morgan shares how she got into orchids, her collection of phragmipedium orchids, how to grow them and her advice from an orchid hobbyist to another.

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🔗Show Links🔗:

Guide to "Semi-Hydroponics" growing for Orchids - First Rays

Growing Slipper Orchids (Phragmipediums and Paphiopedilums) indoors - AOS

Morgan can be found at:

Morgan's Slippertalk Profile

Morgan's Instagram

Resources/Growers that we mentioned:

K-Lite Fertilizer - First Rays

OrchidRoots - Look up your Hybrids!

American Orchid Society - Orchid Culture Sheets

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Please Review and Rate this Podcast

🌸Follow OrchidTalk on instagram!🌸

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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On the Fifth episode of OrchidTalk, I sit down with Eric Sauer from River Valley Orchids. Eric shares how he got into orchids, his collection of Maxillaria orchids, how to grow them and his orchid adventures down in South America.

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🔗Show Links🔗:

Photos and Cultural information on Maxilliaria tenuifolia, the Coconut Orchid - AOS

Maxillaria, an unfinished monograph, Book by Eric Christenson - ResearchGate

Book Review of Eric Christenson's Maxillaria monograph - AOS

Eric can be found at:

River Valley Orchids

Eric's Instagram

River Valley Orchids Facebook Page

Invite Eric as a speaker to your local orchid society - AOS Speaker Center

Resources/Growers that we mentioned:

New World Orchids

American Orchid Society - Orchid Culture Sheets

🌿🌿

Please Review and Rate this Podcast

🌸Follow OrchidTalk on instagram!🌸

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.