The Curaçao Orchid Club was established some 35 years ago, emerging from the Curaçao Garden Club, an organization which embraced tropical plants to be cultivated in Curaçao in general. Some fifteen enthusiastic hobbyists took it upon themselves to focus in on these exotic creations of mother nature, to promote them to the plant-lovers of Curaçao and through bi-yearly shows boast their accomplishments to the public at large.

(Brassocattleya cross made by club member, C. v.d.Rijdt & named for daughter Erica)

The very first shows were done on a shoe-string budget. Most of the expenses were paid by the members out of their own pockets. Each stand of plants was put together by one or two members using mostly their own plants, and no plants were imported to be sold. While these affairs were very amateurish by today’s standards, we all worked very hard to put together the best show we knew how, and show by show they became more elaborate and more professional. They have also become much more commercial than in the beginning.

(Cattleya skinneri)

The main purpose of the founders was obtaining knowledge of orchid growing on a desert island such as ours. This was done by of-the-cuff advice: "If I were you I would try this…..", visiting each others garden on a regular basis and really experiencing what was happening to, say a plant that was grown in a garden of a beach-home owner and a similar plant of some one on a higher altitude, but more inland.

Curaçao has a unique climate and almost everyone has bought plants that are unsuited to our environment. Some of these "mistakes" have been costly. I recall one person who spent in excess of $500 for a plant that was dead within a month. Mind you, there were no books on orchid growing with a desert island in mind, so trial and error was the order of the day and I can assure you, many a fine plant has gone down struggling in the heat, inadequate ventilation, fighting the relentless trade winds and succumbing to a stressful death leaving the owner wondering what went wrong: "Hello you bought a plant that was meant for a temperate green house" …. or:… "this type really needs a great difference in day and night temperature ".

So we all had our bad-orchid-days, however, little did they weigh when compared to the exceptional blooms all of us were regularly blessed with. Phone calls dashed through the not-yet-fiber-optic ether, and momentarily cameras went clicking and flashing, ooooh’s and aaajhs cajoling as if it concerned a newly-born baby. We were doting on the exemplar with wonder.

(Dendrobium hybrid)

Indeed orchid-growing in Curaçao was in its baby-phase and what a long way we have come! Our bi-yearly shows are evidence of professionalism, the crystallization of dogged experience, know-how and expertise, but above all our shows are of international standards.

We work solely with member-volunteers. The one hundred members are divided into various committees, each of them preparing months ahead to deliver a well coordinated show, which both members and non-members will be proud of.

The sky is the limit, for some years we have been inviting foreign growers to attend, assist and participate in our shows, which are of challenging international standards. We have pre-judging sessions, and sales of imported orchids, mainly from Thailand, Trinidad, Venezuela and Brazil.

Enjoy our video sessions and bookstalls and information booths, our website and if you are tired of it all let us take you to view our native orchids in the ‘Christoffel Park’.

(Brassavola nodosa)

The prolific Brassavola nodosa, the glauca, blooms all year round on the windy side of the Seroe Gracia; whereas the Schomburgkia humboldtii (now known as myrmecophilia) goes for it in June/July.

There are no commercial growers in Curaçao. Places selling orchids from all over the world, but mainly from Thailand, have sprung up like mushrooms on our island. There are a few nurseries that sell orchid hybrids and they are not only available on ‘Mother’s Day’ as in times past. All this probably proves the success of our Orchid Club in promoting these lovely creatures on our island and winning so many fans for them, so much so that it is safe to say that most people have some knowledge of them and that they now bloom in many a garden, or on a terrace or porch of our community. So, have we reached the goal we set ourselves some 35 years ago?

Come and see for yourself.

For more information contact us: e-mail  coc@curacaoorchidclub.com

The present board (2005 - 2006) of the C.0.C. consists of:

• President:          Mrs. Dulce Groeneveld -Perez
• Treasurer:          Mr. Wilfred Wong-A-Tjong
• Secretary:          Mrs. Krijnie Wout
• Commissar:       Mrs. Gourète Lotman
• Commissar:       Mrs. Debby Diaz

Here follows some information on 2 species native to Curaçao:

Brassavola nodosa (Linnaeus) Lindley

from Curtis's Botanical Magazine

Forma:

Synonyms:

Epidendrum nodosumLinnaeus

Cymbidium nodosum (Linnaeus) Swartz

Brassavola grandiflora Lindley

Brassavola venosa Lindley

Brassavola rhopalorrhachis Reichenbach f.

Brassavola scaposa Schlechter

Common name: Lady of the Night, Dama de la Noche

Derivation: from Latin nodosus (many jointed)

Plant: epiphytic or lithophytic, up to 45cm., short terete stem (4-15cm)

with single fleshy linear leaf (to 32cm.)

Flowers: terminal inflorescence to 20cm, 1 - several showy large (to 8cm)

pale green flowers, white lip, fragrant at night

Bloom times: throughout the year, long lasting

Habitat: open fields or woods, to 500m, root of mangroves

Comments: easy in cultivation

Distribution Range: Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras,

Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Columbia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela,

Puerto Rico.

The following information is available on line from website:

http://falco.elte.hu/eoc/ParadisusBatavus.htm#Top

It shows that Curaçao is linked with the brassavola, although not mentioned in the countries above. The illustrated history of cultivating tropical orchids in Europe can be traced back to a woodcut illustrating "Epidendrum Corassavicium folio crasso Sulcato" on page 207 in the book titled Paradisus Batavus, etc. - written by the Dutch botanist Paul Herman. (Published posthumously; editio princeps 1698, second edition 1705.)

The illustration was cut after a living specimen imported from Curaçao (Curassavicum in Latin; in the caption of the woodcut the spelling is Corassavicium) presumably in the last quarter of the XVIIth century and in Europe this orchid flowered for the first time in The Netherlands, in the collection of Mr. Casper Fagel (1634 - 1685).

Species Plantarum published in 1753 collection of Mr. Casper Fagel (1634 - 1685).

Linnaeus (Carl von Linné 1707-1778) in the first edition of his epochal Species Plantarum published in 1753 re-named the plant to Epidendrum nodosum.

In 1831 John Lindley (1799-1865) transferred Epidendrum nodosum to the genus Brassavola (R. Brown 1813), dedicated to Signore Antonio Musa Brassavola, Venetian nobleman and Professor of Logics, Physics and Medicine at Ferrara, Italy. Since then the generic name Brassavola remained the valid generic name, reserved for this orchid genus in spite of the fact that M. Adanson already used it before, for a genus in Compositae. Therefore, the currently accepted species name of this still popular orchid is Brassavola nodosa (L.) Lindley 1831.

SCHOMBURGKIA humboldtii (Myrmecophilia):

Schomburgkia humboldtii (from the collection of COC member)

This species is from Guyana in northern South America. Large plant with spikes 18" - 24" sometimes branched with attractive lavender blooms.

These species were listed in Schomburgkia but have been moved to the new genus Myrmecophilia which means ant bearing, and as the name implies they have pseudobulbs that are naturally hollow to accommodate an ant colony which keep the long growing, long spiking inflorescence and buds safe from predators such as thrips, that would suck the buds dry in a second

Some pictures of a typical club meeting
( first Monday evening of each month )

Each meeting members will bring plants for viewing and discussion. Sometimes there are so many that it becomes a mini-show, with much discussion as to which is the show stealing "snoepje van de maand"

Another view of some of the plants on one particular club evening.

Various club members gathering informally around the tables

Member and orchid expert Mr. Clinton Johanns lecturing about the brassavola species.

(Brassocattleya Nok)

an example of the extremely popular BC cross that does so well in our climate

Dendrobium crumeatum (also known as "pigeon orchid" or "duifje" in Curaçao)