Australasian Native Orchid Society
(Victoria Group) Inc.

HISTORY

The inaugural meeting of the Australasian Native Orchid Society (Victorian Group) was held on the 16 August 1968 at the Victorian Railways Institute, Flinders Street, Melbourne.  At that meeting there were 25 people present and the elected office bearers were:

• President - Les Raynes
• Vice President - Alan Home
• Committee - David Jones, Ray Smith & Dick Smith

At that meeting Bill Murdoch from Coal Point in NSW was the guest of honour and spoke on the cultivation of native orchids.  Bill was a co-founder of the ANOS parent group.  The committee resolved to book the lecture hall at the National Herbarium for subsequent meetings.

At the Following meeting in October, Bill Murdoch was awarded the first life membership of ANOS Vic. for his efforts in establishing ANOS and for his continuing endeavours on behalf of native orchids.

The Herbarium became our home until 1994, except for a period between November 1987 and July 1989, while the Herbarium was being renovated.  During the break we held our meetings either at the Royal Victorian Horticultural Society Hall in Victoria Street, Melbourne or at the West Hawthorn Uniting Church Hall.  We departed the Herbarium in October 1994, spent a few months at the St. Lukes Anglican Church Hall in Dorcas Street, South Melbourne, and transferred to the Burnley Horticultural College in March 1995.  Burnley Horticultural College proved to be a good home for our meetings, but after eleven years of residence the cost of remaining there could no longer be justified.  So in 2007 we had to look for a new home for our meetings and settled in at the Toorak Uniting Church Hall. Unfortunately, history repeated itself and after twelve years at the Toorak Uniting Church Hall the rising cost of the hall rental became exhorbitant and we had to move once again. So at the start of 2019 we found a new home for our meetings at the Glen Waverley Community Centre.

ANOS Vic. has continually published a Bulletin since its establishment.  Les Raynes was the first Editor and the inaugural Bulletin totalled four pages.  Les was the Editor for two and a half years, followed by John Fanning for four years, Helen Richards for four years, Paul Phillips for ten years and Helene Wild for thirty-three years.  Susan Whitten is our current editor. The Bulletin was initially printed in black and white and delivered by post. Today our monthly Bulletin is fourteen pages or more, in full colour, and is available electronically.

• 16 August 1968 - Inaugural meeting at the Victorian Railways Institute
• October 1968 - First meeting at the National Herbarium
• 13 October 1968 - First field trip visited Warneet with 35 members in attendance
• September 1969 - First Spring Show (members only)
• November 1970 - Tuber Bank established
• 1971 - Calochilus richiae adopted as society emblem
• 1977 - Terrestrial Study Group established
• October 1978 - First Spring Show open to the general public
• 1984 - First edition of "Cultivation of Australian Native Orchids" is published
• 1984 - New Members Group established
• 1985 - Epiphyte Study Group established
• November 1987 - Meetings held at the Royal Victorian Horticultural Society, Melbourne and West Hawthorn Uniting Church Hall
• 1988 - Second edition of "Cultivation of Australian Native Orchids" is published
• July 1989 - Meetings resumed at the National Herbarium
• October 1994 - Meetings held at St. Lukes Anglican Church Hall in Dorcas Street, South Melbourne
• March 1995 - Meetings held at Burnley Horticultural College
• 1999 - Seed Propagation Group established
• October 2000 - Host of the 4th ANOS Conference and Show
• 2001 - Valued service awards introduced
• July 2006 - ANOS Victoria is joint winner with Department of Sustainability and Environment, Parks Victoria, Royal Botanic Gardens - Melbourne, Melbourne University, Victoria University and Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology University in the Prime Minister's Banksia Awards for the Environment in the category of Land and Biodiversity.  This is to recognize the cooperative work done by all the groups in orchid conservation.  The submission was titled "Back from the Brink: Saving Victoria's Threatened Orchids "
• June 2007 - Meetings held at Toorak Uniting Church Hall
• August 2007 - New members group disbanded due to low attendance and duplication of activities by other groups
• August 2018 - ANOS Victoria celebrates its 50th Anniversary
• February 2019 Meetings held at Glen Waverley Community Centre
• 2020/21 - COVID Outbreak - Most activities cancelled or curtailed due to isolation, lockdowns and travel restrictions
• 2023 - The Orchid Stewards Group is established