BP SPECIES NEWSLETTER MAY 2001July 00 Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Jan 01 Feb Mar Apr
- Up to Date Flask and Plant lists emailed
now on request..
- www.speciesorchids.com our new domain and web site.
- SUPPLIES
NEW....Books about orchids, Custom flasking, Flasking Medias,
- A. What's New in Flask, Dendrobium
canaliculatum
- B. What's Ready to
replate.Cyrtorchis praetermissa, Jumellea filicornoides,
Sarcochilus tricalliatus, Holcoglossum wangii, Aerangis citrata.
- C. What's New in Plants, Sophronitis cernua, Vanda
merrillii, Cyrtopodium cristatum.
- D. Culture.Orchids in the Wild. A natural
Dendrobium hybrid.
- E. Web Site www.speciesorchids.com.
- F. Humour.
- G. Unsubscribe from this newsletter
Photos in this
issue: Dendrobium canaliculatum, Sophronitis cernua, Dendrobium ruppianum
x tetragonum giganteum, natural hybrid.
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Newsletter.
For information or prices click
here or email Steve at steve@orchidsonline.com........
A. What's New
in flask.
Dendrobium canaliculatum. A species of the lowland teetree
flats along the north east coast of Australia. Short plump pseudobulbs topped
with up to 5 fleshy, canaliculate (channelled) leaves, bear a number
of spikes, with a multitude of white flowers, tipped yellow, a bright purple
disk on the labellum. Fragrant.
Best grown on a piece of its original host, or in a very small pot in a
media that drains well. Maximum sunlight required, they grow almost in full sun
for part of the day. When dormant, minimum water.
Coryanthes gernotii "Gernots Special", a very
colourful yellow and red marked Bucket Orchid. A small grower, does best in a
small basket in spaghnam or similar media that will stay damp but not wet. When
not in active growth, a short drier rest is recommended. Seed from the
discoverer Dr Gernot Bergold.
Ionopsis paniculatus, resown. This minature grows like a
Comparettia or equitant Oncidium. A showy minature grower with lots of flowers,
best grown on a mount of either treefern or cork bark, it bears panicles of
delicate lilac flowers, the lip striped pink.
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B. What's ready to replate
NOW.
Some dwarf monopodials.
Cyrtorchis praetermissa; A fragrant, white flowered
African species. The plants perhaps do best mounted on a treefern slab, or in a
small basket with an open media. Grow a little on the shady side, with good
ventilation.
Jumellea filicornoides; A similar culture requirement to
the Cyrtorchis. This has dainty pure white flowers with a long
spur. Fragrant at night, anotherAfrican species.
Sarcochilus tricalliatus: An Australian species, a twig
dweller. Best grown on a small rough barked piece of branch, or perhaps treefern
or cork. It is a minature, with crystalline pure white flowers. Grows in dense
shade, dry during the winter months.
Holcoglossum rupestre; A showy Chinese species, somewhat
like H.quasipinifolium from Formosa. A short terete leafed
species, it does best in a small pot or basket with an open media, or on a
treefern slab. A cooler grower, the flowers are pale to dark pink, with a large
spurred labellum.
Aerangis citrata; A charming Madagascan species with two
ranked spikes of crystalline cream white flowers. It is a shade grower, does
well on a treefern slab if kept damp but not wet, or in a small pot/basket in an
open media. When not in active growth, a drier rest is needed, which is probably
relevant to all these dwarf monopodials. Close watch should be kept for insect
attach, especially from mite. A teaspoon of wettable sulphur per litre of water,
sprayed on the underside of the leaves will fix both mite and fungus
attack.
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C. What's new in
Plants.
Sophronitis
cernua, almost flowering size, are doing well in 80mm basket pots, grown
in a thin layer of spaghnam moss/isolite. We expect to see flower spikes on the
next lead. A small pseudobulbous plant that is almost flat on the growing media,
it needs good light and drainage. When the new leads are growing, care should be
taken not to keep them too wet, to prevent damp out of the new leads. Probably
better suited to growing on treefern slabs, the species will develop into
a large multiflowered clump.(Also still available in flask.)
Two species that missed going onto the price lists until recently have
reached a good size, ready for the next size pot, but still at the smaller pot
price.
Vanda merrillii, a Philippino strap leaf with
laquered chinese yellow and red flowers, very fragrant. Typical strap leaf Vanda
culture, basket with well drained open media, lots of water and fertiliser,
warm.
Cyrtopodium cristatum, from Venezuela, has an erect
panicle of yellow marked red flowers, similar to the well known C
punctatum. A deciduous species, requiring a dry rest in winter when it
looses its leaves. Does well in shredded spaghnam/isolite mix, and would benefit
from new media repot as the new leads appear in spring. Feed heavily.
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D. The Dendrobium.
Memories on the Web
They came to the wilderness banks of Pine Creek to
camp for awhile, Steve and his wife Lee, and stayed 14 years. Steve built
a stone pitched bush house, photographed reptiles and found an interest in
orchids. I arrived late one afternoon, long after the hard work, to the peace
and quite of a bush sunset.
After a quiet night with the sounds of the
bush, we set out to drive to the top of the range.
Here Steve stopped on a non
recognisable bend in the road, pointed thru the rainforest down the slope, and
informed me that we were going to climb down to the creek.
We slid down, rather than
climbed, passing on the way clumps of Calanthe triplicata, the
white flowered Christmas orchid. The creek was running with cold clear water,
around big boulders, almost overhung by the rainforest trees. In the larger
trees, hanging from the larger branches, were huge plants of the spider orchid,
Dendrobium tetragonum var giganteum, several in
flower.
On the slope into the
creek, hanging from small trees under the
rainforest canopy, were clumps of Bulbophyllum radicans. A
pendulous growing species, with tiny red flowers, similar to its neighbour
Bulbophyllum aurantiacum, with orange flowers. Small clumps of
another tiny red flowered species, Bulbophyllum macphersonii,
clung almost like moss to the thin understory tree trunks.
Out in the open canopy high
in the larger trees along the bank were a few plants of Dendrobium
ruppianum.
It was the presence
of the Dendrobium ruppianum and Dendrobium tetragonum var
giganteum that had bought Steve back and me to visit. On a rock
face, out of reach of the creek in flood time, Steve had photographed a
flowering Dendrobium, a plant that had to be a natural hybrid
between the 2 species growing naturally in this isolated rainforest
creek.
We took photographs and
left footprints, a memorable rainforest mountain creek.
Now Steve and Lee are
back in civilisation, two kids in need of schools and education. Still the
interest in orchids, combined with computers, enabling this story to be read and
the photographs to be seen. Thanks Steve, at www.orchidsonline, great
memories and a great way to keep them, on the Web.
Photos left D. ruppianum x tetragonum
giganteum natural hybrid. Photos Steve Wells.
For more photographs and a check list of
species found go to
Jacobson's
Track
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E. Web
page.
Check out our new web
page www.speciesorchids.com
New address
Year 2000 winner of “Linda the
Orchid Lady” award . New
address
The web page contains; Full descriptions of species available as
flasks and plants plus photographs.
Details on ordering, shipping and cultural notes.
Links to other interesting sites.
Articles on culture, habitat and notes about orchids.
Archived issues of this Newsletter back to July 2000,
all about orchid growing.
And more photographs.
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F.
Humour.After spending three and a half hours
enduring the long lines, surly clerks,and insane regulations at the department
of motor vehicles, I stopped at a toy store to pick up a gift for my son. I
brought my selection - a baseball bat - to the cash register. "Cash or
charge?" the clerk asked. "Cash," I snapped. Then, apologising for my
rudeness, I explained, "I just spent the afternoon at the motor-vehicle
bureau." "Shall I gift wrap the bat?" the clerk asked "Or are you going back
there now?"
April 1867 issue of `Printers' Circular.'" "A duel was fought in
Texas lately, by Alexander Shott and John S. Nott. Nott was shot and Shott
was not. In this case it was better to be Shott than Nott. There was a rumor
that Nott was not shot, but Shott swears he shot Nott, which proves either
that the shot Shott shot at Nott was not shot, or that Nott is shot
notwithstanding."
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G.
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BOOKS on
orchids;
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Book Seller, watch this space
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flasking;
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Flasking Work and will link you direct to a professional
service.
Watch this
space
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and go to Supplies page
www.speciesorchids.com
For working Nursery Medias for Mother and Replate
Flasks.
Yours in
orchids,
Ian and Pat Walters, Burleigh
Park Orchid Nursery
54 Hammond Way, Thuringowa,
Australia 4815
Email us at www.speciesorchids.com
Phone Fax 0747 740 008
International 61 747 740 008
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