September, 2007 Volume 25, Issue 1 SOS Executive President: Sherida Gregoire Vice President: James Sather Past President: Faithe Prodanuk Secretary: Anita Zadorozny Treasurer: Heather Anderson Social Directors: Jocelyn D eon Shirley Keith Plant Orders: Cheryl Adamson Heather Anderson Sherida Gregoire Resources: Bob Farthing Yvette Lyster Librarians: Ellen Ross Don Keith Newsletter: Bob Lucas Dave Robinson AOS Representative: James Sather COC Representative: Al Hartridge Visiting Speakers: Eugene Kucey Webmaster: Jennifer Burgess Mailing Address Saskatchewan Orchid Society Box 411 Saskatoon, Sask S7K 3L3 Web Address www.saskorchids.com SOS Newsletter Announcements Headline Editor s Note The Newsletter will be distributed electronically to all members for whom we have an email address. If you wish to switch from Paper to electronic Delivery, notify me at (Robert.Lucas@usask.ca). Email me if you have not received your electronic newsletter by the third Sunday of the month. September Meeting The September meeting of the Society will be held on Sept. 23 rd at Dutch Growers, commencing at 1:30 p.m. Calgary Show The SOS will participate in the Foothills Orchid Society Annual Show in Calgary on Sept. 28-30th at the Triwood Community Association Hall, 2244 Chicoutimi Dr N. W. We will need plants for the display. Please deliver your plants to Bob Lucas on Thursday evening, Sept 27 th between 6:30 and 8:00 p. m. Box your plants for travel and include a list of the names, including parentage, if possible. Culture Series This month the newsletter continues the Culture series with an article on the culture of Masdevallias by Ruthanne Hanbidge. Future contributors are Pamela (Catts), Al (Vandas), Bob (Phalaenopsis) and Cheryl (hydroponics). Previous articles in this series may be found in the past three newsletters posted to the Society webpage. Membership Renewal Society memberships for 2006-2007 are due and will be on sale at the September Meeting. The fee is $25.00 for a single membership and $30.00 for a family member-ship. A new form (available from Heather) must be completed before purchase. Silent Auction The Society has received a donation of a high intensity grow light. We will conduct a silent auction at the September meeting for one 1000 watt metal halide light, reflector and ballast. This light is not for resale and must be installed by an electrician. Plant Order The Society will place an order with Cloud s Orchids this fall. An online catalogue is available at www.cloudsorchids.com. Orders must be placed with Cheryl or Heather at the September meeting. A deposit of 75 percent of the dollar value is required at the time of order. If you have any suggestions for future plant orders, please speak to Cheryl or Heather.
SOS Newsletter Page 2 of 6 Phal Bedford Gem Free AOS Bulletins at the September Meeting. Free Orchid Magazines The September meeting will feature a giveaway of older AOS bulletins. See Ellen or Don at the library table for further details. Slide Show The slide show in September is entitled, The Big Three Cattleya Species. Plant Supplies We will be placing an order for florescent lights at the October meeting for delivery in November. Further product details will be provided in the October Newsletter. Plant Sale The plant sale table will feature six paphs that remain from the purchase from Forest View Gardens in May. Carol S. cared for these plants over the summer, so they are in great shape. Be sure to check them out. October Meeting Date Contrary to previous announcements, The October general meeting will be on the fourth Sunday, October 28 st The date for the COC Speakers Tour Guest, Marilyn Light, is Monday, October 22 nd at J. S. Wood Library at 7:00 p. m. Marilyn will speak on Even Orchids Need Sleep and Orchids of the Philippines. New Members A warm welcome is extended to the following new members who joined the Society in May: Irene Stroshein and Adrienne Gallagher. Meeting Agenda Announcements Problem Corner Show and tell Coffee/Supplies Slide Show Plant Raffle Plant sale Adjournment May 27 th meeting minutes Phal Bellina Sherida welcomed members and guests. Announcements Today we will be conducting a potting class at the end of the meeting. Members of the executive will be repotting and answering any questions you may have. Remember to pick up your summer supplies today to last till September. It s membership renewal time, we have tropical plants, or a $4.00 gift certificate left for incentives. Please see Heather to renew your membership. We have received our orders from Hausermann. I hope everyone was happy with their Hausermann purchases. The H & R. order will be shipped some time later this summer when
SOS Newsletter Page 3 of 6 they get their paper work in order. We will try for a September order with them. Over the summer if you are surfing the Internet on Orchid Growers in Canada and the U. S. and find new growers that seem interesting, please let either Cheryl, Heather or myself know and we can look into it for future ordering. Please remember to bring your library books back to Ellen Ross! AOS Membership James Sather as AOS rep promoted joining the AOS. Unfortunately, since we are in Canada, you will not receive some of the membership benefits (such as the free plant!) You get the monthly 80- page Orchids magazine, a booklet of orchid growing tips and OAS Orchid Source Directory. Please consider joining the AOS! Mark your calendar for June 24th. from 2 4pm to visit the residences of Bob Lucas. Cheryl A. and Heather A. to see how they grow their orchids for the summer. Their addresses were mentioned in the newsletter. I want to thank all those members that brought treats this past year, they were greatly appreciated and enjoyed by all. Today we also have a fruit tray for you to enjoy as well. Show & Tell Draw We have a draw today for all those members that have brought their blooming plants For show and tell over the past season. The prize is Phal Cool Cat and the winner is James Sather. We also have a draw for a prize for those who presented book reviews over the year. The prize is Phal Purple Love and the winner is Ellen Ross. Thanks to Bob Lucas for providing the draw plants, which are of his own breeding. We were very fortunate to have Terry Groszeibl of Forest View Gardens in Surrey BC speak to us last Wednesday. His talk entitled Pahiopedilum: The Ultimate Houseplant, was very interesting. We have 15 of his plants and most of them are in bud. We are selling them for $25.00.each, A great deal! As we are unable to bring Paphs across the border, this is a great opportunity to get one of these in your collection. Plant Raffle Tickets 1- $1.00-3 for $2.00 2 of Paph Maudiae 'Clair de Lune' x philippinense, Paph Magic Lantern x Pinocchio, 9 OSA show posters Winners:Jan Dougal (2), Ellen Ross, Bob Lucas, Heather Anderson, Katherine Soule- Blaser (2), Jennifer Burgess, Dave Robinson (2), Sara Fernandez Problem Corner Cheryl Adamson has new growth on Catts with brown blotches on the end. It may be stress induced virus or fungus. Cut off the edge Phal Sun Je Diamond
SOS Newsletter Page 4 of 6 and treat as a fungal infection (with alcohol) and watch it. Baby the plant! James Sather brought a Miltassia with brown spots on the leaves. Thin leaved plants are prone to this. It is last year's growth that is doing this so it seems to be a combination of water and either heat or cold, so keep an eye on it. Show and Tell Ellen Ross, Eugene Kucey, Bob Lucas, Yvette Lyster, Al Hartridge, Bob Farthing, Don Keith, Pamela Mann, James Sather, Sherida Gregoire Cheryl Adamson, Heather Anderson, Jennifer Burgess, Plant sale Potting class Adjournment Classified Ads Editor s note: If you have orchid related items for sale, send your ad to the editor by the second sunday of the month. For sale: Assorted Orchids. Ron Jensen, RJES@shaw.ca, is selling his orchid collection. He will send you a listing along with prices and pictures by return email. This is a great opportunity to acquire some interesting plants at reasonable prices. Web Page of the Month Each month we will feature a web page. If you have a favorite, send it to the editor. For the benefit of new members, and old ones with bad memories, this month will present the seven webpages featured over the past year. See the newsletter of the corresponding month for details on these pages. Oct: www.frosch.onlinehome.de Nov: www.riks.be Jan: www.cedar-lodge.com.uk Feb: www.mauiorchids.com. March: www.users.bigpond.net.au/cym species/ April: www.ange lfire.com/or3/orchidsnz/ May: www.pipingrockorchids.com
SOS Newsletter Page 5 of 6 How I Grow Masdevallia Orchids By Ruthanne Hanbidge Editor s Note: this is the fourth in a series of culture articles by SOS members who are known for growing fine plants. See the March, April and May 2007 newsletters for the first three articles in this series on Phragmipedium Paphiopedilum, and Dendrobium orchids. About 365 species of masdevallias are distributed from southern Mexico to southern Brazil and they survive in the mountainous rain or cloud forests. Because of this natural habitat, they are constantly bathed in clouds and mists Temperature As the introduction suggests, masdevallias are cool growing orchids and well suited to my little greenhouse, which is a cool house. The average daytime temperature is between 55-68 degrees F. (12.7-20 degrees C.), and the nighttime temperature ranges between 46-60 degrees F. (7.8-15.5 degrees C.). In the summer months I generally place all my orchids outside and my masdevallias are situated in a northern exposure. When summer temperatures rise, I will put my plants in my garage where it is really quite cool and mist them almost every morning. On extremely warm days I will mist them several times a day. Light In the greenhouse in winter the plants are under two-tube florescent lights. In the summertime when they are outside, they are sheltered from direct sunlight with medium shade. Air Movement and Humidity I try to maintain good to quite strong air movement in order to avoid the problems of high humidity and to ensure a buoyant atmosphere. In the greenhouse I have many fans and I direct one fairly large fan continuously about three to four feet from the plants. The good air circulation allows me to maintain a high humidity that averages between 75 and 90 percent, depending on the temperature and potting mixture. I consider 65 percent humidity to be the absolute minimum for masdevallias. Water I use rainwater as need to keep the potting mix evenly damp and fresh. Do not water so heavily that the medium becomes wet or sodden. The PH is adjusted to around 6-7. Fertilizer Masdevallias are not heavy feeders. I have used a balanced fertilizer (20-20-20) mixed at a rate of 1/8 teaspoon per 2 litres of water. I fertilize every two to three weeks depending on the season and mix. More recently I have been using MSU at 1/8 Phal texas fancy
The recommended strength. Potting Mixture My potting mix is: 4 parts fine fir bark 2-3 parts tree firn 1-2 parts charcoal 1 part perlite. Flower induction I do not engage in any cultural changes to induce flowering. Keep the plants healthy and happy and they will bloom on their own schedule. Good Growing! Masdevallias do not like to be disturbed during warm weather. I use styrofoam peanuts in the bottom of the pot for drainage. Lately I have experimented with leica pellets in the bottom as this adds weight to the potted plant. I do not repot my madevallias during the summer, for they do not liked to be disturbed during warm weather. I grow my masdevallias and Miltoniopsis together and they seem to thrive in the same conditions. For bug infestation I use an alcohol spray or Q tips dipped in alcohol and then wash the plant off with water. To minimize any type of infestation, it is important to observe your plants every day to catch any problems before they multiply. masvevallia igneus Photo by Greg Allikas masdevallia decumana Photo by keefahmax (Keith Harder) Masdevallia coccinea Photo By Joseph Dougherty