Orchid show season is always associated with the bitter cold days of winter, but there are two great shows in the fall.
Chicagoland Orchid Festival
The Chicagoland Orchid Festival has long been a favorite show among midwestern growers. Natt’s Orchids in Naperville, IL and Hausermann’s in Villa Park, IL each host other orchid vendors which means you get to go to two excellent greenhouses to buy orchids and other stuff from six or seven vendors. I call that an orchid feast! Enjoy the food and prizes and great atmosphere. It’s so much fun that some societies rent a bus and come for the whole weekend. Others put together a carpool and come for a long day of shopping, eating, and orchid enabling.
Unlike most shows in the midwest, this is a three day show that runs Friday Sept. 20 (8-5), Saturday Sept. 21 (8-5), and Sunday Sept 22 (10-3). I highly recommend you come Friday for the best selection, but I guarantee there are still a lot of great orchids left on Sunday. If you would like me to bring something in particular to the show for you, let me know. Pre-orders get a 10% discount!
Ann Arbor Orchid Festival
The Ann Arbor Orchid Society now has their festival in November (Nov. 16-17) , still at the same location, the beautiful Matthaei Botanical Gardens and Nichols Arboretum in Ann Arbor, MI. It’s great to have an orchid show in the fall, and it’s just in time to buy Christmas gifts for all the orchid lovers on your list. Don’t forget yourself on that list. As with any show/talk I do, pre-orders will get you a 10% discount.
Spread the word about the fall orchid shows because a lot of people are not aware of them, particularly the schedule change for the Ann Arbor Orchid Festival.
You might tell the Ann Arbor Orchid Society to update their website. It is still showing the wrong dates.
Thank you for spreading the word! I live in northwest Ohio. I knew about Chicagoland but I didn’t think I could get there this fall. I certainly can get to Ann Arbor though! See you there!
Thanks so much for letting us know. I told the AAOS president, and she is contacting both UofM and the AAOS publicity people. Wrong info is as bad as no info!