19th
AOC Conference & Show
Perth, Western Australia
11th to 16th September 2012
"Wild About Orchids"
Jim Cootes
"Philippines Orchid Species"
Jim Cootes has been an avid orchid grower, for almost 40 years. Since he was a young boy he has had a fascination with Mother Nature, and her magnificent handiwork. At this time he still maintains an interest everything natural and enjoys any time immensely, when he is out in the fresh air, and if he is in a forest, seeing orchids, and other plants, growing naturally then all the better.
His interest in Philippine orchid species started in the mid 1980's after
a trip to the mountains of central Luzon. The research work into Philippine
orchids began, after these plants began flowering, and some could not
be identified.
In the late 1990's, Mr. Cootes started writing his first book, The Orchids
of the Philippines, which was duly published in 2001.
Mr. Cootes' research into Philippine orchid species continues to this
day, and his new book, Philippine Native Orchid Species, is the result
of his continued interest in these wonderful orchid gems. This book was
released in September 2011, in the Philippines.
During the past 10 years, since his first book was published, Jim has
named numerous new orchid species, of Philippine origins, both by himself,
and in co-operation with other orchid workers. He is certain that there
are still many more new orchid species from the Philippines waiting to
be described.
Philippine orchids are not the only interest of Mr. Cootes, and he has
amassed a large collection, of almost 5,000 specimens, of Philippine cone
shells over 45 years. Music is also a great love and he enjoys classical
music, particularly solo piano, and any violin pieces composed by Paganini,
as well as hard rock, rock 'n' roll, and blues, depending on the mood.
He can also manage to play a few chords on a guitar. Reading is another
great passion and topics, though mainly of Mother Nature and her productions,
also include fiction novels and history.
At the present time Mr. Cootes lives in the south-western suburbs of Sydney,
Australia. He is a full-time employee of Australia Post as a postal delivery
officer, a position he has held for almost 12 years.
