~Rsfrid~ I'm with you. All mini's count. I have 6 mini's in 2 seperate generas, well maybe 3(dressler) ie. Catt., Onc. & Tolu.

~ For clarification~ Now I'm no expert but have read that a mini is to be no more than 8in in plant stature ( total plant height not just the leaves). A mini can still be a mini even if the flower is larger that the plant itself (ie. Telipogon sp. wich some flowers can be 3 times the plant size and still super small, a dwarf.) Correct me if I am wrong on this one but a compact can refer to plant or flower size?

~Lagoon~ Great breakdown of size classification!

~Marty~ I say go ahead with a mini forum and we can maybe give more input after its creation!
P.S. Thank you very much for the cards! It was very quick and I have already given quite a few out & haven't even made it to the OS meeting yet! 1 suggestion... An open white rectangle on the card so the giver of the card can put their sign on name on the card!

Quoting from the New Orleans society show booklet (these are AOS categories, and AOS rules, which societies download from the AOS website, or get in hardcopy from the actual AOS. I am not making this up!).
Under 'Miscellaneous Genera': "Class 716: Miniatures - not to exceed 15cm (6") in height when mature, excluding inflorescence. "
I guess we can use AOS descriptions, for convenience (and it will make it much easier if anyone were to want to actually show a plant), or we can make up our own rules. And crash and burn at a show, because our rules are oh, so different!
The other portion of the AOS rules state "Each plant should be entered in ONE class only (except a miniature which may be entered both in its regular class and in class 716)."
Not trying to be contentious, but if we decide to categorize miniatures, I think we should probably adhere to the descriptions delineated by the American Orchid Society - unless greater numbers of members are from across the pond, and the RHS has a better descriptive system.
Regards - Nancy (yep, didactic, pedantic, anal)

I'm down with the 6in for minature classification since most here go by AOS classification, but what about all the others? RHS, COS, COA, etc...?

I say we go with this:
" Miniatures - not to exceed 15cm (6") in height when mature, excluding Inflorescence. "

Thanks for the info, Nancy :)

Sounds good to me :cheer:

Isn't this going to be even more confusing? I thought we could fit everything under the appropriate alliances. Going purely by size seems odd to me.

If you have a question about a small Bulbo, do you now post under Bulbophyllum Alliance or under Miniatures ? What if your mini has grown to more then 6 inches, while someone else's is under 6 inches - both same species - should you now post in a different category while they post in the miniatures? I would think that if it fits in the Alliance that's where it should be posted

Hey Marty -
My quibble with the 'hotlink' for miniatures on this forum is that it automatically posts to the pleurothallid forum.
Regarding asking cultural questions, I would think the plant alliance would be best. But most of us wanting to use the 'miniatures' classification want it for 'show-n-tell' and bragging purposes, not to ask for advice. More of a "looky here, it's tiny, and it's ALL MINE."
And I think the AOS description's intent is pretty clear - if your plant is 6" or less, but the mature size of this species is generally over 6", then it isn't a miniature. Just as my 6 year old son is not a midget just because he's 3 feet tall. He's just a youngster who will grow.
My Angraecum distichum is surely over 6" from stem to stern - it's 'specimen' sized. But it's still a miniature, in anybody's estimation.
All my opinions...Nancy (I never lie, and I'm always right)

So Where do we stick this 'miniatures' 6" and under forum? Under alliances?