Los Angeles
Cactus and Succulent Society
Come and Visit!
Welcome to the website of the Los Angeles Cactus and Succulent Society. Our nearly 200 members come from throughout the southland and share a passion for cacti and succulents. Throughout the history of LACSS, many of the most prominent researchers, authors, and collectors of the succulent world have been leaders and members of our society.
LACSS meets monthly in the San Fernando Valley to enjoy stimulating presentations, hands-on workshops, plant sales, mini-shows, raffles, trading, and other activities. In addition, LACSS offers field trips to member gardens, nurseries, and private collections. We serve the greater community by offering free educational activities, and presenting an exciting annual festival in April or June, and a Fall Sale.
In order to share the joys and benefits of collecting and cultivating cacti and succulents, we invite you to check out our general meetings on the 1st Thursday of each month at ONEgeneration Senior Enrichment Center at 18255 Victory Blvd.
Doors open at 6:15 for the Social Hour, Ask an Expert, and much more. The business meeting starts promptly at 7pm. Attendance is FREE and open to the public. Each new visitor receives a free plant! We hope to see you at a meeting soon.
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REFRESHMENT REMINDER
Our next meeting is July 3, 2025 Last names beginning with V, W, X, Y, or Z please bring treats! If you missed your month this is a great time to bring a treat to share.
It is a collective effort that we provide refreshments for our members at the meeting! As you know, bringing refreshments to the meeting is a way to make our meetings more enjoyable and welcoming for everyone.
This month, last names beginning with V, W, X, Y, or Z. If you missed your month this is a great time to bring a treat to share.
We kindly ask that each member brings a small contribution of snacks or drinks to share with the group. A lot of us are coming straight from work and appreciate that we are mindful of empty stomachs.
Examples of refreshments that you could bring include:
Appetizers / Sides Cookies or pastries Fruit or vegetables Chips and dip Finger food Pizza
Please bring your contribution in a “disposable” dish!
If bringing refreshments is a difficulty, we ask that you leave a donation in the “Donation Jar” at the Refreshment Table. The club relies on your contribution to continue supplying our membership with sustenance.
We appreciate your cooperation and look forward to seeing you at the meeting.
Thank you,
LACSS
Renew your membership NOW!
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Meeting
July 3, 2025
Doors open 6:15PM
One Generation
18255 Victory Blvd
Reseda CA
July Plants of the Month:
Do Cacti Dream of Electric Lights?: The Pleasures and Perils of Growing Succulents with LEDs
Summary: Have you ever wondered what it would be like if you let plants take over the inside of your house too? In this presentation, Tommy will break down the art and science of growing cacti and succulents with LEDs and other artificial light, drawing from both personal experience and scientific research. We’ll explore recent advancements, technical data, the presenter’s own experiments, and interesting insights gathered from old CSSA journals and the internet. Examples, both good and bad, will touch on the treatment of specific genera, growing from seed, using supplemental light in greenhouses, and more. You might leave questioning everything you thought these plants wanted and feeling inspired to try some new things yourself.
Bio: Tommy Goodkin is a rare plant breeder and landscape designer based in Los Angeles, with a wholesale nursery currently under development in Northern California. He specializes in caudiciforms, xeric trees, winter-growing succulents, Haworthia, and unusual cacti, with an emphasis on miniatures. He frequently collaborates with researchers and botanical institutions, and was recently acknowledged in a paper documenting a species long considered lost. Driven by the spirit of discovery, his goal is to introduce new and rare plants to a broader audience.
July Program
Tommy Goodkin
Los Angeles
Cactus and Succulent Society
