Eyes on Orchids. Message from President Danka

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1 Eyes on Orchids Newsletter of the Baton Rouge Orchid Society P.O. Box Baton Rouge, LA April, Volume 54 - Issue info@batonrougeorchidsociety.org April Meeting - Wednesday, April 18-7 p.m. Baton Rouge Garden Center Independence Blvd. Program: Beat the Heat Mary C. Mancini, M.D. Message from President Danka A highlight of our BROS year is the Potting Workshop held each Spring. The event is designed to offer society members and guests a chance to learn about dividing and repotting orchids. This instruction takes place under the tutelage of experienced growers, but the workshop is definitely meant to be a hands on event. In addition to gaining experience, you can expect to take home a new orchid division or two (or more). Please plan to bring plants that you wish to have repotted (especially overgrown plants that can be shared when divided) and an assortment of pots. Other benefits accrue to attendees. First is the hospitality. In addition to hosting the event, Clyde has gotten his son Doug to provide first-rate, catered food for us. Note that many folks also bring a side dish of their choosing. A second benefit is the opportunity to see Clyde s great collection of orchids and other unusual plants, and his growing spaces. All of us can learn something from him. The Potting Workshop will be on Saturday, April 21, beginning at 2 p.m. at Clyde Howland s home. See you there. Blair will provide a map to Clyde s home when he sends out the newsletter. April Program - Beat the Heat! Our speaker this month is Mary C. Mancini. Dr. Mancini is professor of surgery at LSU- HSC Shreveport and a practicing cardiac surgeon. She has been growing orchids for eight years and specializes in cymbidiums, encyclias, stanhopeas, and schomburgkias. She is also a probationary AOS judge. John and Tin invite all BROS members to their house at 2025 E. Lakeshore Dr. to meet Dr. Mancini at 5:30 PM on Wednesday. They will provide light snacks. Phone:

2 Minutes of March Meeting President Danka called the meeting to order at 7:10 p.m. The LSU Spring Garden Show is this weekend, March Those interested in participating at the BROS booth should see Carolyn. We want to have members designated to set up the BROS displays at each of the upcoming orchid shows by the April meeting. James Jeansonne reported on the preparation for our July Show. The dates are July 14-15, with set up on Thursday night, July 12 and all day Friday the 13th. Vendors have been scheduled. The theme will be Exotic Places Around the World. Chairpersons for committees are needed. James is donating a seedling orchid plant to those who sign up to chair a committee. Lata agreed to make a flyer advertising the show. Bob L. reported that Bob Souvestre will put an article about orchids in his column the week before the show. Someone needs to write it. Bumper stickers will be distributed at the LSU Show this weekend. Announcements: The BROS budget for 2012 is available. Check with Blair. The annual Potting Workshop and Pot Luck Supper will be held at Clyde s home on April 21. The starting time is 1:30. No Green Growers meeting in April. BROS business cards are available to take and hand out. Beth made a deal with Whole Foods. They will donate declining, unsellable orchid plants to the BROS for rehabilitation. We aren t allowed to sell them, but will look for appropriate ways to distribute. Library books are available for check out. BROS Officers, 2012 President Bob Danka (h) rdanka@cox.net Vice-President Bob Lank pops1548@cox.net Secretary Sue Ellen Graham jmg44@cox.net Treasurer Blair Many blair@blairmany.com Show Chairman, 2012 James Jeansonne Newsletter Editor Danna Spayde orchidnut_2000@yahoo.com Board Members Clyde Howland, thru 2012 Lata Johnson, thru 2013 Beth Blackstock, thru 2014 SWROGA Representative: James Jeansonne AOS and Orchid Digest Representative: John Huner Chairs of Standing Committees: Program Co-Chair Lata Johnson Program Co-Chair Tin-Wein Yu Membership Bob Lank Finance Blair Many Librarian Bob Danka Refreshments Vacant Happy April Birthday to Rosie Leonpacher on 4/11 Blair Many on 4/29 Continued Page 3

3 Minutes of March Meeting (Cont.) Orchids for Seniors will make a field trip to Pat Huval s greenhouse on Monday, 3/26. They will lunch at Landry s Seafood. See Danna if interested. President Danka introduced our presenters for the program. Each presenter gave a 10 minute overview on their subject as follows: John Huner, Orchid Taxonomy ; Carolyn Clay, Vintage Cattleyas Originating from Stewart s Orchids ; Tin- Wein Yu, Online Orchid Resources and US Orchid Vendors ; and Tanner Singleton, Photographing Orchids. After the break, the silent auction ended and the unusual/exceptional plants were announced. The owners described their culture methods. Tanner and others set up a demonstration display using orchids from the bloom table. He led a discussion on the factors he considered when placing the plants. The raffle was held and the meeting was adjourned at 8:55. Respectfully submitted,, Secretary Orchids for Seniors On April 23 OFS will visit the orchid greenhouses at the New Orleans Botanic Garden. Richard Bergeron of the New Orleans Orchid Society, who is caring for the orchids at the Garden, will show us around. We ll have lunch somewhere before returning to Baton Rouge. Meet at Independence Park at 8 a.m. to board the van so we can arrive at the Garden by 10. Admission fee to the Garden is $6. Green Growers Meets on the following dates during No April meeting; Potting Workshop Instead on April 21 at Clyde s house. May 9 June 13 July - No meeting August? September 12 October 10 November 14 December - No meeting Mark your calendars now and plan to attend these Orchids for Seniors group at lunch at Landry s in Breaux Bridge. BROS members Blair Many & Carolyn Clay joined us for our March visit to Orchids Plus. Not pictured are Clyde Howland, Marie Williams and Tin-Wein Yu, who also joined the fun. Regular OFS members Cherry Boudreaux and Helen Winter are pictured next to Blair.

4 Let s be Frank About Orchids By Frank Zachariah Most of us grow orchids for pleasure not prizes. But how do we tell if we have a keeper? I ll share a pointer from the Judging Center. Novices look at a flower for the color. As long as there aren t obvious flaws, we forgive discrepancies of form (or shape). Look at this picture of my very first flower on Lc. Aussie Sunset Cosmic Fire. From the front it is stunning. On the side view you can see that the flower is not the ideal flat this is a cupped shape. Sometimes it takes a subsequent growth to get the mature form (and also the full expression of color). The pictures on the internet of older plants have a better shape, so this one I m keeping! Since paphs sometimes have only one flower, be especially critical of its form I guarantee you the judges will be! If one of the petals droops lower than the other boom! it will be disqualified. Also note the number of flowers. Bifoliate catts (2-leaves per pseudobulb) have more flowers than labiates (catts with 1- leaf pseudos). The bifoliates should have at least 5 flowers per pseudobulb. (Some crosses may have a dozen.) The labiates should have at least 3. I would not choose one that is shortchanging you on count. Make sure the plant displays well. If the flowers are crowded or turned, and the plant was grown poorly, then you still have a shot if you are a better grower. Unfortunately, sometimes the genes are unkind, and the pretty flowers are going to always be bunched or askew. Pass on those. These are guidelines, not dogma. If you have a plant that breaks every one of them, no one will snatch it from your greenhouse. All of us have a plant we grow for sentimental reasons. It s that little monster that Aunt Martha gave us that we can t throw away. (We also have that hideous picture she gave us hiding in our bathroom.) Lc. Aussie Sunset has a variety Just Because that has an AOS award. And it has 2 other named clones, Eureka and Sunburst. Each seedling from a cross will have something different about it. Remember: when choosing a plant, besides the pretty color, keep your eye out for a good shape. And note the ones with more blooms and better displays. It takes just as much effort - and space on your bench - to grow a second rate plant rather than The Best. Times They Are A-Changing in the Orchid World Oak Hill Gardens Sold to Orchids Garden Centre As of June 15, 2012, Orchids Garden Centre (OGC), in Madison, WI, will assume the Oak Hill Gardens name, plant inventory, and business philosophy and will fold Oak Hill Gardens into their existing orchid operation. The OGC greenhouse, is a 45,000 square foot facility that has been growing and selling orchids for over 50 years. It is renowned for beautiful blooming Cattleya and Cymbidium varieties, along with many other genera. Continued on Pg. 6

5 MEET OUR MEMBERS For several months we have been trying to get members to fill out a bio form so we could get to know each other better. Finally someone did it! So this month we get better acquainted with long time member and former Society President Eliska Fauntleroy. Born on December 2, Eliska is a native of Hammond, where she still lives. She grew up with four brothers so learned early on to take care of herself. She is married to John Fauntleroy, and they have five children, six grandchildren, and one great-grandchild on the way. Eliska and John are both retired. Her hobbies other than raising outstanding orchids are painting and needlework. Traveling is one of Eliska s loves, and she has visited every state except Maine and has also been to Norway, her ancestral home. Although she gets her information on raising and caring for orchids from books and other BROS members, she didn t recommend any particular books for our edification. To the questions about favorite growers to purchase from or favorite speakers or programs, she simply replied All. Eliska raises her orchids in a greenhouse, and she has many old and awarded plants. Her favorite is whatever is blooming. (I think that s true of most of us!) BROS Meeting & Program Calendar, 2012 May 16 - Dr. Raghuwinder Singh June 20 - Discuss Show Preparation July - It s Showtime! No Meeting August 8 - Andrea Niessen (note change of date to 2nd Wednesday) September 19 - Manny Aybar October 17 - Carlos Fighetti, former AOS President November 3 - Alan Koch, owner, Gold Country Orchids - note that this meeting will be on the 1st Saturday. December - date TBA - Christmas Party Let Lata, Tin, or Tanner know if you have any program suggestions. John Huner expounds on Orchid Taxonomy at the March meeting. Welcome New Member At our February meeting we welcomed a new member, Dale Treleaven. His contact information is as follows: 214 Rue Toulouse Baton Rouge, LA Work Cell Home wtrelea@lsu.edu Welcome, Dale. We are delighted to have you join us.

6 Times A-Changing - continued from Page 4 The Oak Hill Gardens orchid laboratory and over 2500 flasks will be relocated and set up by Hermann Pigors, founder of Oak Hill Gardens and current laboratory supervisor. Hermann will continue to do lab work at the new Madison location, consulting on the new species orchid production. The Oak Hill Gardens website, the show schedule, and commitment to quality orchids at reasonable prices will still be in place. In short, the Oak Hill Gardens brand will still be there, the only changes will be new faces and a better growing facility! The Dundee, IL location will be closed as of June 15, I can send the full text of the announcement that was in the Oak Hill March newsletter to anyone who would like to see it. Hadite for Sale at Meeting The club is selling Hadite at the April meeting. The price will be $5.00 for 5 gallons. Bring your own buckets or bins to take it home. First come first served, but an initial limit of 10 gallons (2 buckets) will be set to allow as many people as possible to get some. Frank will be outside dispensing it for 15 minutes prior to the start of the meeting and during. New Orchid Facility in Kalamazoo A German company will invest about $5 million in the Kalamazoo, MI area over the next few years to establish a U.S. base to breed orchids. Hark Orchids has plans to build its first U.S. facility and create up to 80 jobs in the next three to five years. The family-owned orchid propagation company, also known as Hark Orchideen, plans to build a 30,000-square-foot laboratory and climatic chambers facility on the grounds of a 110-acre business park. Hark Orchids is a family-owned orchid propagation company based in Lippstadt, Germany. It does hybridization, cultivation and propagation of orchids. The company was founded in Display on our Cattleya Alliance table at the March meeting. Close up of one of the plants displayed on our Cattleya Alliance table at the March meeting.