OLD BUSINESS:
Christmas dinner:  Chita said that she made reservations for the club at Alonzo’s, the restaurant at the Mililani Golf Course restaurant, for December 4 at 11:00 a.m.  She will form a committee to choose the menu and the cost will be determined.  Alonzo’s has a backroom that can accommodate 40 people.

NEW BUSINESS:
1.  Nomination for 2010 Officers/Board Members:  Chita said after the meeting she’ll be seeking out members to become candidates for the officer positions.
2.  Species Club Safari:  Chita introduced Gary Moniz who is here to invite us, on behalf of the Species Club, to their orchid plant safari on September 18.  Gary will be speaking to us after our meeting.
3.  Monthly speakers:  Chita said that we need speakers for the upcoming months from September to November.  She mentioned that one of our monthly topics could be a session on bagging media mix – we’ll need someone to buy media in bulk and members would bag and buy the bags at a cheaper rate than the stores.  She has contacted Fred Dishman who has work commitments in Hawaii Kai so is unable to make the meetings in time.  Any other suggestions for speakers/topics is welcomed. 

Announcements:     1.  Amy said that there are some plant giveaways for those who attended Fern’s potting session at his house.  Chita thanked Fern for inviting members to his hands-on experience on potting orchid plants.     2.  Chita announced the loss of family members for two of our members:  Ben Kodama’s mother passed away - private services were held.  Richard Amaral’s wife also passed away.     3.  Chita also thanked everyone for bringing the many food dishes for last month’s Appreciation Potluck dinner and Reid Kawamoto for bringing in the plant giveaways.  4.   She reminded everyone to help cleanup after the meeting and to take care of the trash.

Adjournment:  The meeting adjourned at 7:32 p.m.  The next general meeting will be held on September 13, 2010 at the Mililani Mauka Elementary School.

Respectfully submitted,
Gail Yamanaka, Secretary
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Gary Moniz, Kunia Orchid Club President, said the Species Club is inviting the Mililani and Kunia orchid clubs to join them on their orchid plant safari on September 18, Saturday.  The nurseries that will be visited will be Kawamoto Nursery (8:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m.) and H&R Nursery in Waimanalo (11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.).  There will be a potluck lunch at the nursery in Waimanalo.  A potluck signup sheet will be passed around.  Everyone is to meet at the Kaimuki McDonald’s at 8:00 a.m. before we go to Kawamoto’s Nursery.

NURSERY VISITATION TIPS by Gary Moniz

     In lieu of our monthly speaker, Gary gave us a very informative brief on nursery visitation tips.  Here are some of the useful tips he talked about:  a)  be prepared:  make a list of the plants that you are looking for and a list of plants that you already have so you don’t buy duplicates, and budget how much you want to spend before the safari. 
b)  at the nursery:  please follow the nursery rules and stay out of the restricted areas.  Don’t remove tags from plants and/or move plants around.  If plants are not for sale, don’t ask if you can buy it.  c)  things to look for in selecting a plant:  is the plant firm in the pot?  are plants insect/mite free?  is the foliage and canes healthy looking? 
are there indications of new cane and root growth?  d)  questions for the nursery:  when will the plant bloom?  what is the watering requirement?  sun and temperature requirements? 
e)  when you get home with your new plants:  keep new plants isolated from other plants for about 2 weeks, sprinkle some snail/slug bait on media,  duplicate the sunlight conditions of the nursery you just visited, be careful with watering – the nursery media may retain more water than regular media to save $$.
In closing, Gary says:  “Good luck with your new plants, it may be an award winner!”