La Ballona Valley Bromeliad Society

About us

The Bromeliad Society of La Ballona Valley (our legal name), a.k.a. La Ballona Valley Bromeliad Society (LBVBS for short), is a group of bromeliad enthusiasts and plant lovers from Los Angeles and the rest of Southern California. One of the oldest bromeliad societies, LBVBS was started in 1950 by Victoria Padilla, Bill Paylen, Fritz Kubisch, Charles Wiley, Lloyd Smith, Bob Harris, R.M. "Frenchy" Delgado, and others. Our first big annual show was held in 1953.

Our in-person meetings feature a speaker, refreshments, a show and tell of plants brought by members, and a plant table (bargain plants for your collection!). Annual club events normally include our Holiday Dinner in October and our Plant Show and Sale in May. In-person meetings are subject to pandemic conditions and may be replaced by online Zoom meetings. Guests and visitors are always welcome!

Meetings

Meetings are on hiatus until our new meeting site's construction is completed. Please check back for updates and in the meantime, support our sister clubs.

Membership

Please email us for the details.

Florida Bromeliad Nurseries' Hurricane Milton Recovery Efforts

• Marie Selby Botanical Gardens' Hurricane Milton Recovery Fund
• Tropiflora's updates since hurricane Milton

Upcoming events

April Meeting: Still on hiatus?

Saddleback Valley Bromeliad Society's April meeting: 6:30 pm on Thursday, 03 April at the Norman Murray Community & Senior Center, 24932 Veterans Way, Mission Viejo. Speaker: Jerry Robinson of Rainforest Flora on "How Bromeliads Changed My Life". More information: club website

San Fernando Valley Bromeliad Society's April meeting: 10 am on Saturday, 05 April, at the Sepulveda Garden center, 16633 Magnolia Boulevard, Encino. More information: club website, Facebook page

Saddleback Valley Bromeliad Society's Show and Sale: Saturday and Sunday, 5 and 6 April, at Sherman Library & Gardens, 2627 Pacific Coast Highway, Corona del Mar. Show hours: 10:30 am -- 4:00 pm. Free with Garden admission fee of $5.00. For more information: Club website

South Bay Bromeliad Associates' April meeting: Sunday, 06 April, at 1:30 in the Peninsula Center Library, 701 Silver Spur Road, Rolling Hills Estates. Program: Jeff Sorenson presenting Keith Smith's BSI program "Not Your Mother's Meoregelia" covering Neo hybrids and their development. More information: Facebook page

San Diego Bromeliad Society's April meeting: Saturday, 12 April at 10 am, please contact club if interested in attending. More information: club website, Facebook page

May Meeting: Still on hiatus?

Saddleback Valley Bromeliad Society's May meeting: 7 pm on Thursday, 01 May at the Norman Murray Community & Senior Center, 24932 Veterans Way, Mission Viejo. More information: club website

Enviro-Fest 2025: 9 am - 1 pm on Saturday, 03 May, at the Wende Museum, 10808 Culver Boulevard, Culver City. Sponsored by the Environmental Programs and Operations Division of Public Works. E-waste collection, compost and fruit tree giveaway, and sustainability booths. More information

San Fernando Valley Bromeliad Society's May meeting: 10 am on Saturday, 03 May, at the Sepulveda Garden center, 16633 Magnolia Boulevard, Encino. More information: club website, Facebook page

South Bay Bromeliad Associates' May meeting: Sunday, 04 May, at 1:30 in the Peninsula Center Library, 701 Silver Spur Road, Rolling Hills Estates. More information: Facebook page

Culver City Garden Club's May meeting: 7 pm on Tuesday, 06 May, in the Garden Room at the Veterans Memorial Center, 4117 Overland Avenue, Culver City. More information: club website, Facebook page

San Diego Bromeliad Society's May meeting: 10 am on Saturday, 10 May, in Casa del Prado, Room 104, Balboa Park, San Diego. Speaker: TBD. More information: club website, Facebook page

Los Angeles Cactus and Succulent Society's Spring Cactus Sale: Friday and Saturday, 16 and 17 May at the Tarzana Community Center, 19130 Ventura Boulevard, Tarzana. Hours: 5 -- 9 pm on Friday, 8 am -- 3 pm on Saturday. More information: LACSS Facebook page, club website.

June Meeting: Still on hiatus?

Culver City Garden Club's June Meeting: 7 pm on Tuesday, 03 June, in the Garden Room at the Veterans Memorial Center, 4117 Overland Avenue, Culver City. More information: club website, Facebook page

Culver City Garden Club's 72nd Annual Garden Show and Plant Sale: Saturday and Sunday, 21 and 22 June. Free admission and parking. Additional information: club website and Facebook page.

75th Anniversary of the Bromeliad Society International 21 September marks the 75th anniversary of the meeting, hosted by LA-area bromeliad enthusiasts, that organized the BSI.

75th Anniversary of BSLBV November marks the 75th anniversary of the meeting held to organize the Southern California Bromeliad Society.

22nd Australasian Bromeliad Conference 4th - 7th November at the Eatons Hill Hotel, Brisbane, Australia. More information: conference website

World Bromeliad Conference 2026: To be hosted in Costa Mesa, California by the Saddleback Valley Bromeliad Society -- details to come in the BSI's Conference Corner.

Unable to make it to our meetings and events?

Here are some ways to get your bromeliad fix online.

Hang out

• Bromeliad Society of La Ballona Valley Facebook group
• Google Group LBVBS Virtual Water Cooler
• Barry Landau's Planet Bromeliad on Facebook
• Barry Landau's Bromeliad Species Conservation Network on Facebook

Read

• Online BSI Journal Archive.
• Mike Wisnev's articles in the San Fernando Valley Bromeliad Society's Newsletter Archive

View

• Don't forget to check out Barry Landau's YouTube channel for more bromeliad- and plant-related content!.
• Tribute to Paul Isley III featuring Jerry Robinson, via YouTube.
• Sejong Zhang's presentation on Tillandsias of Southern Brazil from our April 2024 meeting, via YouTube.
• Luiz Filipe Varella's presentation "Bromeliads from Southern Brazil" from our February and March 2024 meetings, via YouTube.
• Ken Simpson's demonstration of bromeliad dividing and repotting, and Tillandsia care and mounting from our January 2024 meeting, via YouTube.
• Pedro Nahoum returns with "Current Bromeliad Uses and Resources in Brazil" from our February 2023 meeting, via YouTube.
• Duke Benadom presents A Tour of Duke's Plant Collection from our January 2023 meeting, via YouTube. Please email Duke directly, or via his website or through Facebook, to inquire about discounts on his books!
• Grame Barclay on Growing Broms in the Bush... in New Zealand from our November 2021 Zoom meeting, via YouTube.
• Ken Simpson on Bromeliads grow extremely well in Southern California coastal regions from our October 2021 Zoom meeting, via YouTube.
• Andrew Devonshire on Hybridizing: The Joy Is In The Journey from our September 2021 Zoom meeting, via YouTube.
• Guillermo Rivera on Ecuador: Bromeliads Paraside from our August 2021 Zoom meeting, via YouTube. More information on Guillermo's plant tours
• Nathan Gazineu on Tillandsias of Brazil from our July 2021 Zoom meeting, via YouTube.
• Leonardo Versieux on Alcantareas of Brazil from our May 2021 Zoom meeting, via YouTube.
• Jerry Robinson on "Landscaping with Bromeliads" from our April 2021 Zoom meeting, via YouTube.
• George Stamatis on Vrieseas and bromeliad cultivation from our March 2021 Zoom meeting, via Youtube. George's summary of his talk.
• Lloyd Godman -- Tillandsimania from our February 2021 Zoom meeting, via YouTube. View more of his projects at Lloyd's website.
• Jan Maruska on Tillandsias from our January 2021 Zoom meeting, via YouTube. Interested in Jan's book, World of Tillandsias? Please check out the website or Facebook page for his book.
• Chester Skotak on 50 years growing and hybridizing bromeliads from our November 2020 Zoom meeting, via YouTube.
• Peter Tristram on 40 years of collecting broms Down Under from our October 2020 Zoom meeting, via YouTube.
• Bruce Dunstan on growing Tillandsias in Australia from our September 2020 Zoom meeting, via YouTube.
• Pedro Nahoum's Bromeliads of Brazil: Part 1 from our August 2020 Zoom meeting, via YouTube.
• Paul Isley's evolution of bromeliad collecting presentation from our July 2020 Zoom meeting, via YouTube.
• Tillandsia presentation by Alex Bello of BelloTropicals from our June 2020 Zoom meeting, via YouTube. Also check out his ebay store
• Peru trip presentation by Nels Christianson from our May 2020 Zoom meeting, via YouTube.
• The San Diego Bromeliad Society has a page of video presentations from their meetings
• Florida Council of Bromeliad Societies' Bromeliad Photo Index
• Summer Rayne Oakes' Plant One On Me series on YouTube: Videos include Tillandsia Tour - Utrecht Botanic Gardens Part 1 and Part 2, and Bromeliad & Tillandsia Tour at Nong Nooch Tropical Garden, Thailand
• LBVBS Pinterest page (warning, new photos posted very occasionally)

Retail therapy

• Airplant Alchemy
• Bird Rock Tropicals
• Desert Creations
• Live Art Plantscapes
• Rainforest Flora, Inc.
• Alex Bello's Ebay Store

Also check out our Cool Stuff section below.

This is by no means a complete list of online resources. Send us links to your favorite bromeliad-related websites, etc..

Cool stuff

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Most recently revised: 02 April, 2025