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Ray as a Speaker

Having Ray as a speaker at your group meeting is informative and entertaining.  Being a scientist and engineer with over 45 years of orchid-growing experience, Ray has a unique “take” on orchid growing, challenging the “historical knowledge” (or mythology) about orchid culture, and attempting to use science and logic to explain it or debunk it.

A great deal of that came about with the development of the “Semi-Hydroponic” culture technique for orchids, and Ray has made presentations to many societies and organizations – including a global webinar for the American Orchid Society – on that subject, encompassing:

  • Background about the functioning of roots
  • Basics about Semi-Hydroponic culture
  • Comparison to traditional concepts of hydroponics
  • S/H Components
  • “How to” Instructions
  • Advantages and disadvantages of S/H
  • Repotting, both into S/H for the first time and moving plants on
  • Objections to S/H
  • …and an array of photographs of orchids grown that way
  • Questions are always welcomed!

Another, more recent interest of Ray’s is in the area of plant nutrition and water quality, their impact on our plants, and how they relate to our feeding and watering programs:

  • Origins of our plants
  • Their natural growing conditions, and water & nutrient supplies
  • Plant evolution impact
  • Sources of irrigation water – good & bad
  • Practicality of Reverse Osmosis
  • Selecting and using fertilizers

Another very popular presentation that Ray has given to several horticulture societies relates to the use of biological products (those based upon beneficial bacteria and fungi) to enhance the growth of plants.  That encompasses:

  • Plant “probiotics” to make them more disease resistant
  • Biological bactericides, fungicides and insecticides
  • Plant growth stimulants
  • Nutritional uptake enhancers

If you are interested in having Ray as a speaker at one of your meetings, please drop us an email.