SOUTHERN ONTARIO ORCHID SOCIETY NEWS Summer 2012,

Transcription

1 SOUTHERN ONTARIO ORCHID SOCIETY NEWS Summer 2012, Volume 47, Issue 7 Web site: ; Member of the Canadian Orchid Congress; Affiliated with the American Orchid Society, the Orchid Digest and the International Phalaenopsis Alliance. Membership: Annual Dues $30 per calendar year (January 1 to December 31 ). Surcharge $15 for newsletter by postal service. Membership secretary: Marilyn Crompton, # Overlea Blvd., Toronto ON M4H 1P2, phone Executive: President, Yvonne Schreiber, ; Vicepresident Laura Liebgott, ; Secretary, Sue Loftus ; Treasurer, John Vermeer, Other Positions of Responsibility: Program, Mario Ferrusi; Plant Doctor, Doug Kennedy; Meeting Set up, Tom Atkinson; Vendor and Sales table coordinator, Diane Ryley; Membership, Marilyn Crompton, Eric Terreau, Karen Hazelton; Web Master, Max Wilson; Newsletter, Peter and Inge Poot; Annual Show, Peter Poot; Refreshments, Joe O Regan. Conservation Committee, Susan Shaw, Tom Atkinson; Show table, Iryna Bonya. Honorary Life Members: Terry Kennedy, Doug Kennedy, Inge Poot, Peter Poot, Joe O Regan, Diane Ryley, Wayne Hingston. Annual Show: February 16 17, 2013 June plant of the month, Cymbidium Little Black Sambo 'Black Magic'. AM-AOS presented by Jan Smid photo PP Meeting Sunday, August 5, SOOS Orchidfest, 10 am 4 pm, at the TBG. Program 10 am 12 noon Orchid Judging by the Toronto Judging Centre. Bring your plants for judging at 9:30, observe the judges at work 12 noon 1 pm Pot luck lunch. Bring a dish to share. The drinks will be provided 1 pm, two lectures by Australian orchid expert Phil Spence: 1. Lost orchids: this part is about following in Friedrich Richard Rudolf Schlechter's ( ) footsteps on his trip to the Torricelli Mountains in the west Sepik Province looking for the many specimens which were lost during the second world war. 2. The Dendrobiums section Latouria and some of the cooler growing hybrids. Phil will have some Dendrobium, Sarcochilus and Cymbidium for sale. Advance orders may be placed with Jean Ikeson (jean.ikeson@gmail.com ) Please see our website www soos.ca for details and cut off date. 1

2 President s Remarks Fellow orchid aficionados: Thank you goes out to those of you who brought in treats to share for our June 3 rd meeting. The letters of the month for September will be last names that start with the letters N R. We are asking anyone whose last name starts with this letter to bring in a treat to share. These treats should be finger foods only i.e. something that can be picked up with your fingers and does not require a plate or fork. The Tour of Orchid growers took place on June 9 th and 10 th. I am sure that those of you took advantage of this opportunity to visit some of our stellar growers were appreciative of the time these people set aside for your visits. Thank you to everyone who permitted us to visit their growing areas and answered our many questions. Be sure to mark August 5 th on your calendars. This is our annual Orchidfest and potluck. You are reminded to bring your favorite dish to share. What you bring is what we eat. S.O.O.S. will provide the beverages. Phil Spence from Australia will be our guest speaker. Members of any other orchid society are cordially invited to join us for this special event. The Town Hall Forum: we have not been ignoring your questions and opinions. Suggested orchid topics List of topics have been forwarded to Mario Ferrusi for consideration as speaker subjects. Handouts from guest speakers Check out Inge Poot s notes in the monthly newsletter she does an excellent job of recording the contents of each guest speaker s presentation. More orchid cultural information The members of the executive are wearing Ask me about orchid badges if we don t know the answer to your question we will try to direct you to someone who does. Culture sheets are available through the Canadian Orchid Congress website available in both English and French and address Canadian growing conditions. American Orchid Society website also features orchid culture sheets as well as a Beginning Grower section i.e. Somebody gave me this orchid plant? What do I do now? Newcomers Group with Wayne Hingston Not just limited to brand new orchid growers. If you want a better idea of why your plants are doing what they are doing, Wayne takes you through every aspect of orchid care you need to understand your plant if you want it to flourish and bloom again. Round Table Demonstrations these informative sessions will be resuming next year at the April meeting. More information about the society A new pamphlet is being drafted which will feature the benefits of membership, highlights of the orchid year, how the society is organized, rules for vendor and members sales tables, etc. Welcoming atmosphere This is something to which each of us can contribute. While we will have, starting in September, a Walmart type greeter at the door from 12 until1 p.m. to welcome people coming in and answer questions, we can all try to talk to someone new (to us or the society) and ask them how they are doing or if they have any questions. Talk to me at a meeting; me at yvonneschreiber68@gmail.com, or phone me at Yvonne Schreiber Welcome New Members Amy Chartrand, Pamela Singh, Sandra Awang 2

3 Coming Events July 7, Toronto Centre judging 1 pm at the Toronto Botanical Garden 21. MJC judging, JBMtl. 10 am August 5, Toronto Judging Centre and SOOS Orchidfest, 10 am, TBG. 18. MJC judging, JBMtl. 10 am September 1, Toronto Centre judging 1 pm at the Toronto Botanical Garden 2, SOOS meeting Toronto Botanical Garden, sales 12 noon, program 1 pm15. MJC judging, JBMtl. 10 am 15. MJC judging, JBMtl. 10 am Central Ontario Orchid Society Show October 6, Toronto Centre judging 1 pm at the Toronto Botanical Garden 7, SOOS meeting Toronto Botanical Garden, sales 12 noon, program 1 pm 13, Ecos Show Montreal, MJC judging 27, RBG Show and COC meeting AOS Judging Results Please note, all of these awards are provisional until published by the American Orchid Society Toronto Centre Judging June 2, Rhyncholaeliocattleya Orglade's Taffeta x Cattleya walkeriana HCC-AOS 76 points, Wilson Ng. Dendrochilum coccineum CHM-AOS 83 points, Doug and Terry Kennedy Promenea Ben Berliner (1) HCC-AOS 79 points Promenea Ben Berliner (4)AM-AOS 82 points Promenea Ben Berliner (4) CCM-AOS 82 points Promenea Ben Berliner (5)HCC-AOS 77 points Promenea Ben Berliner (Group of 12) AQ-AOS. All Promeneas by Mario and Conni Ferrusi. Note! The next regular judging will be held at the TBG on July 7 at 1 pm. AOS Judging is a 3 service of the American Orchid Society and is open to all! Bring us your flowering orchids. We need the practice. Plant of the Month Cym. Little Black Sambo 'Black Magic'. AM-AOS, brought in by Jan Smid. Jan reports: It is owned and grown by Mrs. Susan Hong, not a member of any Orchid Society or Association. When I saw the plant, I convinced her to lend it to me for showcasing it to SOOS members as I believe a plant like this must be seen! The plant came to her from Taiwan as a small seedling ( mericlone ) 8 years ago. It has flowered only once before, 6 years ago with a much smaller flower spike and one third of the flowers it has now. Although fairly robust now, the plant is a slow grower and each pseudo bulb takes 3-4 years to mature and produce flowers. Expectation is multiple flower spikes within two years. The plant has been grown in the greenhouse in moderate conditions, 60-70% humidity and intermediate temperatures. It requires a lot of good light. All of the flowers have been fully open since the first week of March and only one flower has been lost to date. I was reluctant to be in a picture with it as I was just a courier. Too bad the flowers are so small and would not fully cover my face, but I tried. Greenhouse Sale: July noon til 9pm. Orchids, Pots, Tools, Books Contact Bob at Location: 51 Regina Ave. (Bathurst & 401) Alba Paphiopedilums by David Sorokowsky (transcribed and altered to be suitable for an article by Inge Poot) David gave us a very thought provoking talk about his favorite genus Paphiopedilum and albinistic ones are his special interest. This is the continuation of the June newsletter article. Paphiopedilum culture General pointers:

4 Water quality is key. RO or rainwater is best. Do not feed too heavily (100 ppm nitrogen every time you water. Use half that for Phragmipediums). David uses MSU fertilizer. He drenches them with seaweed extract every few weeks in the growing season. Repot before medium breaks down. Keep water out of crown, especially in winter. Water thoroughly, flushing the medium. Do not overpot! Our speaker uses extra watering to help plants when it gets too hot in the summer. When Erwinia rot strikes (the smell is unmistakable) spray with 3-5% hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and keep drier. Because alba clones of species tend to be less vigorous than their normally coloured brethren, culture mistakes can be more fatal with alba clones. To increase vigor for alba clones produced by line breeding the out-crossing to an unrelated normal clone then sibbing the most desirable two offspring-all of which will be of normal colour- to get back (one quarter) albas is a good way to get a more genetically varied and therefore more vigorous third generation of albas. As far as the growing medium goes our speaker told us about Pinus radiata bark that he has been using with excellent results. The New Zealand trade name for the bark is Besgrow sold by Orchiata. He uses the seedling size bark (do not use medium size bark for large Paphs use a size between seedling bark and the medium bark used for cattleyas) and mixes it with 50% sponge rock/ large perlite of a size similar to the seedling bark and has found that it lasts much longer than the barks available in North America. The roots grown in this mix are phenomenal! (I wonder if the new medium that 4 Eric Lee is testing prior to offering it for general sale is also based on Pinus radiata bark...) Brachypetalum culture (eg. P. bellatulum, P. niveum) Warm growers (65 F nights ideal). If you have down to 50F nights, using a heating mat under the pots makes it possible to grow them just fine. Lee Valley Tools sells heating mats. These species love warm roots and setting the temperature of the heating mat at 20C for summer and winter suits them well. Low light. NO WET FEET!!! Parvisepalum Culture (eg: P. armeniacum, P. macranthum, see later for P. emersonii) Variable climates for these species. Some tolerate into the 30 s F in the winter. Our speaker grows them intermediate with medium light. Paph armeniacum should be grown bright, dry out between watering, use oyster shell in the mix and feed with Calcium since it grows over lime in its natural habitat. Paph macranthum grow like Paph armeniacum! Multifloral Culture (eg: P. parishii warm, P. rothschildianum-cool) Bright light, drier conditions. Some tolerate cool temperatures. Most grow best warm. Paph. Haynaldianum must not get under 65F at night. Maudiae type Culture (eg: P. lawrencianum, P. callosum) Moderate light. Warm temperatures. Culture of the Troublemakers!: Paphiopedilum tigrinum is notoriously difficult to keep alive! Its ecology is not fully

5 understood, even though we know it grows in an environment similar to that of Paph villosum. The species is sensitive to salts. Re-pot every year. Paphiopedilum violascens : Grows in wet humus. No salts. Hard to strike a balance between moist and keeping the medium fresh. Repot yearly. Warm grower. Place on a heat mat. Paphiopedilum sangii: Warm and humid, but needs a slight chill to bloom. Does not tolerate salts. Paphiopedilum emersonii: Native habitat has dry winter monsoons. But the humidity is high during the dry winter. Tolerates cold winter nights, but must be kept dry or it rots Wet summers Paphiopedilum helenae: Very loose media. Use large bark. Dry winters. Wet summers. But does not tolerate wet feet. How to rescue rootless Paphiopedilums: Sphag in a bag - put your rootless invalid into a clear, clean plastic bag with some moist, but not dripping dead sphagnum moss in the future root area. If possible, remove the bottom leaves to expose the stem and allow new roots to emerge from it without having to force their way through a leaf. Slit the leaf down the middle before removing each half fewer disasters this way! Place the invalid next to the damp sphagnum. Close the bag and place it into a bright area out of direct sunlight. Open once a week to check on 5 your invalid and allow air exchange. When you see a new root, pot into seedling mix and moisten, then place the pot into a bag and keep there until the plant is growing normally. False roots If possible remove the bottom leaf or two split them first and remove each half separately - to expose the stem of the rootless plantlet. Twist a piece of floral wire or long twist-tie with a single twist around the base of the plant and if the stem is not long enough maybe anchor it by gently twisting it around the leaf bases. Pot into seedling mix with the addition of charcoal, using the two ends of the wire to anchor the stub in the mix. Keep moist possibly by misting it or if not in a moist greenhouse by enclosing it in a clean, clear plastic bag and then keeping it bright but out of direct sun. The night temperatures should be about 50-54F (10-12C) and the days 70F (20C) A last hint- the best complex Paphiopedilums are to be had from the Orchid Zone Company. During the May 19-20, 2012 weekend in Ann Arbor, MI we had a great series of lectures, one by our own Doug Kennedy on the genus Lycaste. Their culture is difficult enough that I think it should be repeated in our bulletin. The genus has been broken up as a result of DNA studies. Idas or Sudamerlycastes were the first to leave the genus. Maybe others will follow. There are evergreen types and deciduous types in the genus as it stands right now.. Evergreen Lycastes like to be constantly moist (their roots are hairy, just like other terrestrials like Paphiopedilums and Cymbidiums) and this means slugs love their pots! Try an iron sulphate solution or Ron McHatton s suggestion of soaking 113g (4 ounces) of chopped Quassia amara chips in one gallon or 4 liters of warm to hot water for 12 to 24 hours. Strain and use as a spray.

6 Grow in vanda light but that makes them choice host plants for scale and mealybugs... Try a spray of two teaspoons neem oil (Peter Decyk sells it) plus one teaspoon Safer s Soap concentrate (Garden Centres) or if in a rushone teaspoon dishwash detergent, all in one liter of warm water. Repeat weekly for at least three times. Pot in a mix of New Zealand sphagnum and sponge rock. Grow at 57-80F (night/day). If you want to set a seed-pod, make sure to use only big husky plants as pod parents or you may lose the plant(s). It takes 9-10 months to mature a seed pod, but after 3-4 months green pod culture can be done and is actually preferred, because the sterilizing of mature open capsules can kill the seed. If you wish to buy a flask, don t unflask the seedlings until they have tiny bulbs. When they are grass-like they invariably die when out of the flask quite unlike real grass... The deciduous species have to be given a dry rest when the leaves start to turn yellow. But if the bulbs start to shrivel, mist them maybe daily once or twice so the bulbs crease, but do not shrivel. In purchasing one of Doug s favorite species, Lycaste schilleriana get it from a source in Panama or Colombia not of one in Ecuador. The form found in Ecuador is half the size of the one found in Panama and Colombia. Phragmipedium Breeding and Culture by Jason Fischer of Orchids Limited, (transcribed by Inge Poot from a June 3, 2012 talk to SOOS) People don t usually comment about the talks I transcribe to me, but this time several people told me that they thought this talk really got the point across about what the breeders are trying to accomplish and how to enhance the plants by good culture! Regarding culture, Jason stressed that his climate is much like ours in Toronto and therefore what works for him should work for us too. Phragmipediums can be mericloned with just a few plants as the resulting mericones by using protocorms or bud tips. Orchids Limited was started in 1978 by Jason s father Jerry and it was a true family business with even 5 year-old Jason trying to help. Jason is trying to continue the tradition by starting to subtly arousing the interest of his own five-year old daughter in the most fascinating part of hybridizing by having her pollinate flowers for her father! I can just hear Jason telling her no dear this is too hard for a little girl like you with the inevitable response No, no I CAN do it, just let me try, then Oh All right just this once.. and the newest willing child labourer is born! The species going into hybrids are all used for specific purposes: Phragmipedium lindleyanum brings branching of the inflorescence to the mix. The species has greenish, light brown-veined flowers with petals that have a dark red edge and a single half twist at the distal end of the petals. The ventral sepal is small. Phragmipedium sargentianum (by many taxonomists considered a variety of the above species) has dark red edges plus a good suffusion of red increasing as you approach the petal tips. As well, the pouch has a lot of red overlaid on it. It is amazing how this bit of red gets spread around the flowers of its hybrids. Phragmipedium longifolium comes in four varieties and not all are equally useful in breeding. All have pale green flowers with light brown veins and a red picotee on definitely twisted petals. The species has more elongated pouches than the previous two species. It has a pair of noticeable dark hairy eyebrows on top of the staminode. The species has a large ventral sepal. The Phrag longifolium variety hartwegii is used because it imparts vigour. Its petals are very narrow and twist as well as curl all over the place! This variety is often given species status. Phrag longifolium variety roezlii has twisted petals, slightly bent down, but they are straight not curled in every which direction. Some taxonomists give it separate species status. But the main reason it was used so much in hybrids was because it was the first form of the species that was discovered! Seems that people in the past compulsively crossed what was available, just like amateurs do today! Phrag. longifolium variety hincksianum has very long slightly bent down twisted petals. The 6

7 clone Jason s Choice has a 25 cm natural spread. This will be good for increasing size in hybrids. Phramipedium boisserianum is a mostly green species with dark green reticulation on the sepals. All the edges are tightly crisped and the dorsal and petals have a thin black line near the edges. The ventral is large and rounded framing the pouch beautifully. The petals and sometimes the dorsal are twisted. This species is very useful for breeding white or pink flowers, since most forms of the species do not have muddy veins. Phragmipedium schlimii is a cute miniature species with white flowers, whose dorsal and petals repeat the rounded shape of the fat little pouch. The most common form has a pink overlay on the proximal portion of the petals, light pink veins on the dorsal and heavier red to deep pink markings on the pouch. The staminode is yellow. For the longest time it was the only fragrant Phrag species known. It has been used extensively to breed pink slipper orchids. It was crossed with Phrag longifolium to produce the famous Phrag Sedenii even though most clones so labeled in the past were really Phrag Cardinale a back-cross of Phrag sedenii to Phrag schlimii. Phragmipedium fischeri may just be another form of the above species. Good forms of it have a heavy pink overlay on the entire flower, only leaving white central patches on the petals and a white rim on the pouch. This form is very useful for breeding pink flowers. The staminode can be either in the pouch or outside of it. Not surprisingly with such a staminode, the flowers self-pollinate. Some forms of it lack the staminodal shield and these forms self-pollinate immediately. Phragmipedium manzurii is a fairly recently discovered species from the Santander State in Colombia. It is very similar to the above two species. The flowers are superficially shaped like Phrag schlimii, but the sepals are a pale yellow to pale chartreuse which contrasts nicely with the yellow staminode and the white lip and its red rim and red stain down the centre front of the pouch. This species is being used to extend the colour palette of hybrids. This species is also fragrant, sharing this desirable trait with P.schlimii and P. fischeri. Phragmipedium andreetae from NW Ecuador is a poorly shaped pale pink species. It is rarely used for breeding because of its poor form. 7 Mexipedium (formerly: Phragmipedium) xerophyticum is a tiny rambling species adapted to dry environments. It has perky little rounded white flowers with wrestler stance arm-like petals and a pink nose the staminode. Jason has crossed it with the giant Phrag caudatum and has now 5cm (2 inch) seedlings. They are slow growing... Phragmipedium besseae was the first spectacularly coloured Phrag species discovered and it had been overlooked for centuries! Probably the collectors just looked for other variations of green and brown slippers and never saw the red ones amongst the non-orchid plants they mimicked to fool and high-jack their pollinators. The deep red flowers of the best forms are wonderful! Yellow forms have been discovered as well and they too are great for hybridizing. After not doing much Phrag hybridizing for the last years, hybridizers went into high gear! Just in passing it was noted that the forms of the species from Peru and Ecuador were different, but not all taxonomists agreed that they were separate species and the hybrids have muddled the issue royally. The Peruvian form collected from Zamora is the variety or species Phrag delassandroi and it generally has more orange flowers, with more pointed, down-curved petals and inflorescences that branch much more readily than those of the Ecuadorean form of the species, the original Phrag besseae collected at Paute. Line breeding has flattened and widened the petals and deepened the colour in both diploid and tetrapoloid forms. The present work of Orchids Limited with this species consists in finding clones that have wide segments of deep red colour without colour breaks hard to find, because as the flowers enlarge the colour gets diluted in some areas of enlargement. Terry Root of Orchid Zone s line breeding on the other hand, is concentrating on enlarging the flowers but their flowers are more orange. A peach form of the species has emerged from the breeding as well. The clone Phrag bessiae Who Knows Why AM- AOS from Frank Smith has a natural spread of 8.3 by 6.1 cm, petal width was 3.1cm and at the time was the best ever seen of this species. There was a slight amount of colour break to mar the otherwise perfect flowering, but for some reason the judges only gave it an AM of 81 points, hence the clonal name...they must have wanted to reset the standard by quite a bit in view of the great number of awards granted to

8 this species. Currently, Orchids Limited are working with their colour-break free, deeper red clone Rob s choice AM-AOS of 87 points with a natural spread of 8.7 X 6.6cm and a petal width of 2.9cm. The colour and size of this species is better in winter flowerings. Plants with flowers of over 10cm natural spread are not that uncommon anymore. Phrag besseae forma flavum is also being improved. Orchids Limited has clones such as Yellow Giant that are almost the same good shape and size as their normally coloured clone Rob s Choice This yellow form was obtained by colchicine treating 2N flavum plantlets, while still in flask. A new variety has been found in Peru. It stays low in stature and the flowers nod. The latter trait is not desirable, but the growth habit would be good in hybrids. 3N clones reach blooming size faster than their 4N counterparts and are found quite frequently in the trade. When evaluating them in your collection, remember that the flowers of the first flowering will be significantly smaller. Wait for the third flowering when they should have attained their potential. Hybridizing with Phrag. besseae: The first hybrid discussed showed that colour suppressing genes have to be carefully considered. The cross of Phrag Cardinale with besseae was named Phrag. April Fool because the progeny did not express the besseae red colour but only some of the pink colour of the Cardinale. As a matter of fact it looked a lot like the equally disappointing Phrag Hanne Popow (schlimii X besseae) where most progeny are a pale pink. But at least the flowers are as round as Phrag schlimii. Sibbing this cross gets some clones with the red colouring again expressed. Since Phrag. schlimii is a small flowered species it is not easy to get large flowers with its hybrids. Their clone of Phrag April Fool Fool s Gold is better than the two clones awarded by AOS in both shape and the lovely deep pink lip colour. Crossing Phrag. April Fool with Phrag besseae Rob s Choice gives Phrag Jimi Hendrix. This cross gives anywhere from rose pink flowers with the lower half of the petals almost white to round reds to (not surprisingly!) some that are almost like Phrag. besseae. Many plants appear to be aneuploid, that is have an uneven number of chromosomes. Depending on which species contributed any extra chromosomes will determine which traits are strengthened. Next Jason discussed the line of breeding starting with Phrag longifolium X Phrag besseae, the famous Phrag Eric Young. The flowers of this cross are big because of the longifolium, but have fairly narrow petals, especially if the parents were diploid. The colour can be from pink to medium orange. At the time it was first made it was highly desired, but has been superseded. Making the cross with a 4n Phrag besseae the progeny will have more of the besseae in them and start to be wider and redder, but will be poorly breeding triploids. A problem with 4n clones of Phrag Eric Young is they tend to have jagged petal edges eg Rocket Fire, Jambalay. However they are used a lot because of their great fertility. The most famous progeny of Phrag Eric Young is Phrag Don Wimber. It resulted from backcrossing Phrag Eric Young with Phrag besseae. Good clones of this cross have large orange flowers with wide pointed petals and branching inflorescences. Using Phrag sargentianum instead of Phrag longifolium with Phrag besseae gives Phrag Memoria Dick Clements, a cross somewhat similar to Phrag Eric Young. These flowers tend to be smaller than Phrag Eric Young but redder, due to the good colour present in the Phrag sargentianum. The petals are more spoonshaped rather than the lance-shaped ones of Phrag Eric Young. It too can have branching inflorescences. Crossing Phrag Memoria Dick Clements with Phrag Hanne Popow gives Phrag Elisabeth Castle Choosing the reddest fullest clone of this and back-crossing it onto Phrag besseae (preferably the Rob s Choice clone) gives Phrag Windsor Castle. The clone Windsor Red was very nice indeed! Lovely shape, good size at 8.9 x 6.6 and the deepest velvety red! Crossing Phrag besseae with Phrag Memoria Dick Clements results in Phrag Jason Fischer. Jason jokingly told us that the first plant of this cross to bloom was deformed and he figured that his father half named it for him to pay him back for all the disagreements they have had! But subsequent bloomings of various plants made it clear that this was a superb cross capable of producing very deep red flowers of great shape! (Foiled again!) An example is the clone Red Admiral. The plant shown was a bud tip mericlone! The wonderful Eric Young foundation clone of this hybrid Grouville FCC- AOS was a 4n clone with wonderful shape and colour. (The picture did not quite do the plant justice my husband and I saw it in bloom in 8

9 Jersey and we were just bowled over by it! When awarded the flowers measured 10.9 x 8.1cm in natural spread) The clone Ronez Point has even rounder petals and is just as deep red. The cross Phrag Jason Fischer can also have progeny whose red has pink tones in it. Some good examples of it are Corbiere FCC-AOS (93pts, Nat.Spead 11.0 x 6.2cm) with saturated red- pink flowers or the clone La Hogue Bie FCC-AOS 97 points, was of an even deeper redpink. Culture is very important for a plant to reach its potential. A really well-grown Jason Fischer should have up to six flowers open at the peak of its flowering and have a minimum of two branches. The 3n Phrag Jason Fischers are a good choice for the hobby grower because of their vigour and faster growth. The best clones will have branched inflorescences at maturity and can have several flowers open at the same time. The flowers are almost as round as those of the 4n clones. Jason chose as a backdrop for a 3n plant the beard of Terry Root(?). Terry seems to have an uncanny resemblance to Hagrid of Harry Potter fame but exerts his magic influence over red slippers instead of dragons! Line breeding for more solid red flowers, Phrag Jason Fischer crossed back onto Phrag besseae gives Phrag Scarlet O Hara. The 2n plants have great colour but terrible form, while the converted 4n plants are stunning! The 3n plants with the 4n parent being Phrag besseae are very nice as well. Other crosses made to increase size of progeny were Phrag Fischer s Fire (Super Rubies X besseae) and Phrag Mirage (Fischer s Fire X besseae) None are awarded. The cross of Phrag Praying Sargent with Phrag besseae, Phrag Paul Fischer, was named to honour Jason s brother and produced some colourful very floriferous plants even though the shape was not ideal. The plant pictured, the clone Ultima was enormous! It must be a vigorous cross. While on the subject of floriferous Phrag besseae crosses, Phrag Andean Fire should be mentioned. Back-crossing it onto Phrag besseae gives Phrag Inca Fire, some clones of which are very floriferous and generally have flowers that are larger than those of Andean Fire. The clone of Inca Fire shown carried six flowers! To be continued A Star is born. Crystal Star Orchids offers broker service with over 15 top orchid nurseries from Taiwan and the U.S.A, including: Ching Hua Orchids, In Charm, Krull Smith, and Sunset Valley. Our website is up and running. If you have any questions please feel free to us at: crystalstarorchids@gmail.com or call Eric Lee at (905)

10 Class 1 June 2012 Show Table Class First Second Third Cattleya Alliance Class 2 Paphiopedilum Class 3 Phalaenopsis Vanda Alliance and Epidendrum Mabel Kanda x Encyclia cordigera var. alba Rosanna Li Paphiopedilum Weathervane Heinz Ernstberger Neofinetia falcata Henry So Encyclia tampensis Joe O Regan Phragmipedium lindenii x Hanne Popov Anita Kho Paphiopedilum Weathervane Jan Smid Neofinetia Miyakohabutae Leslie Ee falcata Cattleya walkeriana Kenny FCC/AOS Synea Tan Rhyncholaeliocattleya (Potinara) Duh s Wisdom Synea Tan Paphiopedilum Woessner Tigerprim Jocelyn Webber Neofinetia falcata Sorbiryu Leslie Ee [Rlc.] Class 4 Oncidium Sharry Baby Aliceara [Alcra.] Pacific Nova Wilsonara Tigersette Oncidium and related Synea Tan Henry GLowka Wyld Court AM/AOS/RHS Anita Kho Class 5 Cymbidium Cymbidium Black Sambo Black Magic Jan Smid Class 6 Dendrobium farmeri Dendrobium secundum var alba Dendrobium Golden Fantasy Dendrobium Peter Micha CCM/AOS Anita Kho Synea Tan Peter and Sherry Decyk Class 7 All Others Catasetum Ten Dragons Synea Tan Lycaste aromatica??? Trichopilia Elizabeth Ann Woodlands Alex Antanaitis Class 9 Paphiopedilum basket Baskets or Displays Stan Luk 10