HUNDREDS of people walked through the Victorian Rail Institute Hall in Sale at the weekend to see prize-winning flowers at Sale and District Orchid Club’s annual show, and perhaps purchase a few to take home.
The attendees, whether they were Wellington locals, from Gippsland or interstate, wanted to be the first to grab the best orchids, or simply admire the impressive plants.
Lucky door ticket prizes and raffle prizes were also on offer.
Sale & District Orchid Club life member Peter Ayres said the Orchid Show was on every Father’s Day weekend, but this was the first in a few years.
“It’s good to get back to having a proper show again after Covid. Half an hour before opening time on Saturday morning we had people lining up to buy plants,” he said.
“Price didn’t even matter for some – just take it!”
Mr Ayres said seven judges came to Sale to look at the plants.
“They spent all Friday evening (judging) the plants, and for any special awards they notified the owner. And the Orchid Show is open to the public for two days after the judging,” he said.
“I’d say the standard of the plants is better than the Melbourne Orchid Spectacular. And our crowds who came through Saturday and Sunday are better than they’ve been for years, or at least as good as our best years.”
Mr Ayres earned six awards.
“It’s pleasing to have won these awards,” he said.
“You enter them in and don’t know what you’re going to get.
”Some years I’ve put them through and won no major prizes, and other times I’ve gotten one or two. Sometimes you get a really good plant, but it’s not ready. Maybe two weeks after the show it’s perfect, so there’s a bit of luck involved.”
Sale & District Orchid Club member Ray Gribble also won a number of awards, including Champion Orchid of Show.
Pointing to his yellow dendrobium, a native orchid, Mr Gribble said it was a “very good shade, (and a) striking colour”.
“This plant was the best of the ones I flowered. I kept about a dozen of them and sold the rest,” he said.
“I wasn’t even going to put it in (to be judged) because it wasn’t opened properly, but on the day it won.”
The plan was registered as ‘Den Ray’s Quest’, so if Ray’s quest was to grow a beautiful plant, the judges clearly thought he managed that.
Show winners
CHAMPION ORCHID OF SHOW – R Gribble
RESERVE CHAMPION – P Ayres
CHAMPION SEEDLING – R Gribble
CHAMPION SPECIMEN ORCHID – J Dunn
CHAMPION CYMBIDIUM – P Ayres
CHAMPION LARGE CYMBIDIUM – P Ayres
CHAMPION MEDIUM CYMBIDIUM – M & P Gordon
CHAMPION SMALL CYMBIDIUM – D Mills
CHAMPION CYMBIDIUM SEEDLING – K Wilson
MOST OUTSTANDING CYMBIDIUM EXHIBIT – D Mills
CHAMPION AUSTRALIAN NATIVE ORCHID – R Gribble
CHAMPION NATIVE SPECIES ORCHID – B Dennet
CHAMPION AUSTRALIAN NATIVE HYBRID ORCHID – R Gribble
CHAMPION AUSTRALIAN NATIVE SEEDLING – R Gribble
CHAMPION ANY OTHER GENERA ORCHID – P Ayres
CHAMPION ANY OTHER SPECIES ORCHID – P Ayres
CHAMPION ANY OTHER GENERA HYBRID – P Ayres
CHAMPION INTERMEDIATE SECTION – L McCully
CHAMPION NOVICE SECTION – K Stephens
