Orchids and More at Mystery Creek: Conrad knows his blooms

Conrad Coenen with his multi-award-winning Cattleya orchid from the 2019 Orchid Expo in Palmerston North.

Conrad Coenen was just was 13 when he started growing carnations as a hobby.

He calls it as an “epiphany moment” that has led him into a lifelong love of plants.

“A few years later when I was working in the grounds of Waikato University, a mate gave me a box of orchids and the bug really took hold,” says Conrad, who lives at Apata. “Orchids are the classiest, most sensational plants there are.”

Tauranga Orchid Society president and a former horticulture tutor, Conrad is floor manager for the upcoming Orchids and More at Mystery Creek, an umbrella event for the 10th National Orchid Expo.

Massed displays of flowering orchids from as far afield as Canterbury and the Bay of Islands will be joined by displays of irises and floral art, while vendors will be selling everything from rare perennials and indoor plants to specialist potting mixes, biological controls for gardeners and, of course, orchids, with two vendors coming from overseas especially for the event.

Among the vendors are Carlie Turner, of Garden Plants Nursery at Te Puna, and Di Pinkerton, of Tauranga, who specialises in bromeliads, air plants and carnivorous plants.

An orchid expo is usually organised by a club, but when no one stepped forward, Conrad and a team of volunteers from Tauranga, Waikato, Auckland, Palmerston North and Christchurch banded together to stage this one-off plant spectacular.

“We’ve tried to make the show a destination event for lovers of all sorts of plants,” Conrad says. “I can’t think of one orchid grower who doesn’t also have other interesting plants as well.”

A programme of free daily talks and demonstrations includes Francine Thomas, an internationally renowned floral artist from McLaren Falls; Amy Roberts, of Villaleigh Garden near Huntly; Chris Thompson, owner of Bioforce (biological control); and Whangarei-based houseplant specialist Thomas Brown.

The Details

What: Orchids and More

Where: Mystery Creek Events Centre

When: September 29-October 1, open 10am-4pm (Friday-Saturday) and 10am-3pm (Sunday)

Entry: $10 at the door (under 12 free).

Info: orchidsandmore2023.wordpress.com