Vol. 15, No. 3

September, 2010 Malaysian Rose By José Abreu Deliz, HSPR President, and Héctor Méndez Caratini, HSPR Vice President

Part One: Pre-Conference Tour of , July 11-14, 2010) By José Abreu Deliz

After a very long trip (24 hour flight time), I reached Kuala Lum- pur International Airport at night and was very tired. Clearing cus- toms was surprisingly fast consid- ering the huge number of incoming passengers. After customs, I was met by a City State Tour represen- The pre-conference tour bus and guide. tative who arranged for my transfer to our base hotel at the “golden tri- and the huge, modern shopping angle” of the city. centers.

Since I was one day early, I had the On the initial day of the tour we opportunity to wander around the visited The Forest Research Insti- area and was surprised by the size tute of Malaysia, in Kepong, Kuala of the city, its varied architecture Lumpur. There we had our first “stress test”; we hiked through what was one of the first rubber plantations in Malaysia, according to one of the Institute’s staff. The

PUERTO RICO, INC. trail extended for several miles as- cending to an elevation of 900 me- ters. A canopy walk was available at the top of the mountain.

After recovering from the “stress test”, we visited the institute’s mu- seum. It was a well kept, simple but very illustrative collection relat- ing to Malaysia’s natural history. Rubber tree being tapped at the Forest Later we went to a typical coffee Research Institute of Malaysia, in Ke- shop style eatery for lunch; my first pong, Kuala Lumpur.

Inside this issue: Dates to Remember Malaysian Rose 1 x HSPR Meeting, 10:00 am, Sunday, Septem- HELICONIA SOCIETY OF ber 12, 2010. Home of Tita and Jorge From Our Last Meeting 9 Matta, Caimito, PR.

President’s Corner 10 The HSPR Newsletter Malaysian Rose (continued)

encounter with the first organ- “fire by the oral ized collection route”. Bryan of zingiberales was pleased, as in Malaysia. we found out during the rest of There we had the trip. an interesting presentation by After lunch, we our host re- boarded our bus garding his to visit the Putra- collections and jaya Flower and about the char- Mushlim Musa’s beautiful traditional Malaccan style house, Alor Gojah, Ma- Striking heliconia arrangement at the Garden Festival, acteristics and lacca. Putrajaya Flower and Garden Festi- a yearly event building speci- val, Malaysia. which extends fications of his unique, typical Malaccan house. from July 10-18. (PHOTO Desalacky House) We then toured his It consisted of an exuberant display of tropical flow- beautiful, well kept garden and tried to identify his ers (this year, heliconias were the theme flower). All specimens, especially a very healthy clump of H. competitive arrangements were based on heliconias. solomonensis in bloom with lots of fruits, but no The arrangements ranged from regular size to huge; seeds. After visiting the garden and buildings of the and from simple to very complex and futuristic complex, we went back into the house (shoeless) for (including one in the shape of a peacock, covered in a very exten- full by H. wagneriana bracts). The cultivars used for sive typical, the arrangements were common to us, except for mainly vege- variants of H. mariae (like ‘Bushmaster). We found tarian, dinner out then and there that we were special guests of the full of sur- festival organizers and were treated to a typical local prises. dinner. A pleasant surprise! On July 14th, On July 13th, after breakfast, we boarded our bus to the last day of the city of the tour, we Malacca. headed to Lion After a few Mong Nursery, stops to buy at Yong Peng garden im- Johore, Malay- plements, Carla Black with some “potted” bao- sia. There we etc, we bab trees at the Lion Mong Nursery, saw an exten- reached Yong Peng Johore, Malaysia. sive collection Alor Gojah, of ornamentals ranging from small plants to shrubs, Malacca – trees, palms, and even a few heliconias. The main site of De- attraction of the day was a visit to a planta- salacky tion, were we, especially Bryan, had the opportunity House and to taste many different kinds of durian varieties. Af- Garden ter getting full on durian and mangosteen, we (home of A fantastic “peacock” made with heliconia crossed the bridge over the South China Sea to Sin- Mr. Mush- bracts, at the Putrajaya Flower and Gar- gapore to attend the 16th Heliconia Society Interna- den Festival, Malaysia. lim Musa), tional Conference.

Page 2 THE HSPR NEWSLETTER Malaysian Rose (continued)

Part Two: The XVI Heliconia Society Interna- tional Conference, Singapore By Héctor Méndez Caratini

The HSI Conference was held from July 15-18 at the Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel, in Singapore. Registration was held on Thursday, July 15th and the Ice Breaker Reception was later that evening, at the Promenade Terrace. Our delegation was the largest one. It consisted of seven persons: Dr. Abreu Déliz, Mr. Héctor Méndez Caratini and his wife Dr. An- nette López de Méndez, Dr. Bryan Brunner, Dr. Duane Kolterman, and Mr. and Mrs. Chris and Melania Onufry. The second largest group was from A view of the Singapore skyline from the solar panels on the roof of the Marina Barrage. Australia, with six HSI members. tion to botanical nomenclature”. Renowned Austra- lian expert Alan Carle (from The Botanical Ark) fol- lowed up by talking about “Flowers, fruits and fla- vours in verdant jungles”. Dr Kress, again, ad- dressed the members on “The evolution and classifi- cation of the Zingiberales, with special emphasis on the family Zingiberaceae”.

In the afternoon session, Carla Black presented an audio visual presentation of her new discoveries, ti- tled “The heliconias of Panama and Costa Rica”. Mr Anders Lindstrom gave his report on “Ex situ con- servation of Zingiberales”. Costus specialist Dave HSI conference attendees receive a preview of the futuris- tic Gardens by the Bay project in downtown Singapore. Skinner (from Le Jardin Ombragé, Florida) gave his illustrated lecture on his several field trips to Costa

During the first day of talks (Friday, July 16th), sev- eral presentations regarding plants in the order of Zingiberales were given in the hotel’s Canary Room. HSI President Anders Lindstrom (from Nong Nooch Tropical Botanical Gardens, in Thailand) gave the Welcome Address. Dr. W. John Kress (from the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC) followed up with the Keynote Address, titled “The evolution- ary mosaic of heliconias and their hummingbird pol- linators”.

Afterwards. Dr Jana Leong-Skornickova (from Sin- gapore Botanic Gardens) spoke on “The genus Cur- cuma: A beautiful nightmare”. HSPR member Dr Duanne A. Kolterman (from the University of Puerto A view of the fantastic Singapore Garden Festival dis- Rico, Mayagüez Campus) lectured on “An introduc- plays.

VOL. 15, NO. 3 Page 3 Malaysian Rose (continued)

surprise for all delegates: She gave us all a comple- mentary copy of her beautiful book!

Jan Hintze (flower grower from Australia) followed up after the coffee break. She lectured us on “Collection, identification and then comes cultiva- tion”. Greg Hambali (from ) followed up with “Breeding for better looking calatheas”. Our HSPR webmaster and newsletter editor, Dr. Bryan Brunner informed us on “Heliconia cultivar registra- tion: New cultivars”. Dave Skinner gave the last presentation of the day, a “Workshop on the HSI website”. Closing comments followed. Conference attendees enjoying the traditional HSI Gala Banquet Dinner and Auction. The board of directors unanimously elected Dr. Rica, Panama, Ecuador and Peru, titled “New costus Kress as the new HSI President. It was also an- discoveries in the neotropics”. nounced that the next HSI International Conference would be held in 2012, in Panama. Carla Black is After the coffee break, taxonomist Dr. David Lor- the official HSI coordinator for this event. She will ence (from National Tropical Botanical Garden, Ha- be leading the pre-conference tour to inland Panama waii) informed us on an “Overview of HSI Conser- – the site of many of her discoveries. The post- vation Centers”. I gave the last two presentations of conference tour will be to Colombia – the country the day; the first one on “The Heliconia Society of with the largest amount of endemic heliconias in the Puerto Rico”, followed up by another one on “Using world, with over 100 different species! So, start Adobe Lightroom® software program for archiving making your plans to attend. It promises to be an- digital photographs on your computer”. other great event.

The next day, Saturday, we had two guided field The traditional Gala Banquet Dinner and Auction trips. The first one to Gardens by the Bay and Ma- were held later that evening at the hotel’s Paradiso rina Barrage -an impressive ongoing utopian pro- Room. The dynamic duo of Victor Lee and Carol ject, scheduled to open next year in late 2011. From Kan there, we were able to appreciate a spectacular view (from of the city’s skyline. The second trip was to the City Third Singapore Garden Festival. It was their tradi- State tional annual flower show held at the gigantic indoor Travel) Convention Center. are to be com- On the last day of conferences, Sunday, July 18th, mended Dr. Suchita Jain (from the College for Women, In- for hav- dia) started out the morning by speaking on ing coor- “Ecological status of Zingiberaceae in the forest ar- dinated eas of Rajasthan (India) with special reference to to perfec- ethnobotany”. David Lorence gave an interesting tion such talk on “Control of BBTV in Hawaii”. Dr. Jana a memo- Leong-Skornickova spoke on “Pre-launch preview of Our sincere thanks to conference organizer rable the book ‘The Ginger Garden – Singapore Botanic Victor Lee for a fantastic HSI Conference! conven- Gardens Pictorial Pocket Guide 2” with a special tion.

Page 4 THE HSPR NEWSLETTER OurMalaysian Last Rose Meeting (continued)

Part Three: Post-Conference Tour to wildlife photographer (July 19–28, 2010) from Borneo, with By Héctor Méndez Caratini more than 18 previous group trips to the jun- A multicultural group of twenty individuals, from six gles), did a wonderful different countries, participated in this year’s HSI job. He led us through post-conference tour titled “The Botanical Treasures eight unforgettable of Borneo”. Ten of us had previously met, in 2008, days of walking during the last HSI trip to the heart of the Peruvian through the trails of a Amazon. This time, there were five Australians, five virgin tropical para- dise.

On our first day (July 20th) of hiking, we Inflorescence of Etlingera ve- visited Kubah National lutina var. longipedunculata in Park. This is the place Kubah National Park, Borneo. were 19th Century Italian botanist Odoardo Beccari made his jungle camp and famous discoveries at Mount Matang. We saw lots of palms, costus and gingers. The lush tropical scenery is similar to our El Yunque Rain Forest.

Early next morning, we headed The group enjoyed excellent local food at the Top Spot to the Restaurant, Kuching, , Malaysia. coastal village of Puerto Ricans, three from Thailand, one from Pa- Bako, nama, our guide from Borneo, and the rest of the where group from Hawaii, California and Florida. On July Buntal 19th we arrived by plane to Kuching, from Singa- Heading out to the Bako National Park in Bay fisher- northwest Borneo. pore. That night, we had a welcoming dinner at the Top Spot Restaurant overlooking the city. Ch’ien Lee, our experi- enced, profes- sional guide (a naturalist Our excellent guide in Borneo, naturalist The beautiful view of the Gunung Santubong moun- and renowned and photographer Ch’ien Lee. tain from Bako National Park.

VOL. 15, NO. 3 Page 5 Malaysian Rose (continued)

men took us in their small their early morning boats, to Bako National feeding. It was Park, in the South China very impressive to Sea. There, we were able have been so close to hike through different to these semi-wild habitats, including man- animals, during grove forest, kerangas for- their daily routine. est, and open scrubland on On the way back, the plateau. We saw sev- we visited the Ta- eral carnivorous pitcher man Ethnobotani- plants (Nepenthes species), cal Garden, full of as well as an unusual exotic tropical amount of rare plants, such palms. Later on, Bornean orangutans at the Semen- as: Ploirium alternifolium, we had another goh Forest Reserve. “Orang-utan” the spectacular stemless two-hour hike means “forest people” in the . Joey Palm (Johannesteijsmannia alti- through the frons), and others. Bako’s neighboring forest. Dave Skinner hiking abundant wildlife im- Afterwards, we vis- through the kerangas pressed us. We saw the en- ited a local fruit forest at the Bako Na- demic proboscis monkey, market and headed tional Forest. to a dragon fruit and silvered leaf mon- heliconia farm, keys, long-tailed ma- owned by Mr. Voon caques, green vine Boon Hoe. snakes and wild bearded boars (Sus The next day we barbatus) (PHOTO: woke up at 4am, HMC bearded checked out of our boars.jpg). After- hotel in Kuching, wards, we headed The pitcher plant (Nepenthes and boarded a flight across the bay to a rafflesiana) growing in the Bako HSPR President José Abreu ne- to Miri. After Buntal Village, to National Forest, northwestern gotiating a treacherous log bridge checking in at the have dinner by a sea- Borneo. in the Borneo rainforest. beautiful Borneo side wharf restau- rant. Tropical Rainfor- On July 22nd, our est Re- van drove us to sort, we Semengoh Forest were Reserve. There driven by we were able to bus to see the orange col- Lambir ored Bornean Hills Na- Beautiful wild specimens of the Joey orangutans tional Delicious magenta dragon fruit from the farm Palm (Johannesteijsmannia alti- emerge from the Park. of Voon Boon Hoe. frons) in the Bako National Forest. dense forest for This na-

Page 6 THE HSPR NEWSLETTER Malaysian Rose (continued)

tional park port. This time, for is renowned another short inland as having flight to Gunung the highest Mulu National Park. tree diver- This World Heritage sity in the Site is Sarawak’s world, with largest and arguably 1,175 spe- most famous national cies re- park. It is known for corded in a having an outstanding Etlingera coccinea inflorescence at the 52 hectare biodiversity, with Lambir Hills National Park, near Miri, plot. After over 3,500 species of Sarawak, Borneo. lunch, we flowering plants and The beautiful bright yellow hiked for another three an extensive lime- flowers of Etlingera fimbriobrac- hours through virgin rain stone cave system. teata, Gunung Mulu National Park. forest, saw several spec- We checked in at tacular waterfalls, as well park headquarters. as endemic palms and her- After lunch, we proceeded baceous plants. Among on a leisurely walk along the these plants were: Etlin- scenic trails of Paku River, gera coccinea, Hornstedtia where we where able to ob- reticulata, Hornstedtia serve a large assortment of leonurus, Plagiostachys unusual gingers growing in crocydocalyx, Amomum the wild, such as: Etlingera coriaceum, Amomum gy- baramensis, Etlingera fim- rolophos, Tamijia sp. (an briobracteata, Etlingera ken- endemic species), Scapho- yalang, Hornstedtia tormen- chlamys sp., Boesenbergia tosa, Zingiber longipeduncu- sp., Amorphophallus sp., latum, and the unique Amor- Plagiostachys crocydocalyx The unusual inflores- Homalomea sp., Nepenthes growing at the Lambir phophallus julaihii. cences of Zingiber bicalcarata (a native Hills National Park, near longipedunculatum, pitcher plant), Musa Miri, Sarawak, Borneo. Gunung Mulu National campestris, and many, Park. many more. By sunset we reached the entrance to the enormous The next Deer Cave. There, we morning where able to experience we woke the unique spectacle of up at seeing huge swarms of 6am and thousands upon thousands after of Wrinkle-Lipped Bats break- (Tadarida plicata), spiral fast, out for their nocturnal for- headed aging. We returned late in The foul-smelling inflores- Aerial view of the Borneo rainforest on the back for the evening, fulfilled after cence of fly-pollinated short flight from Miri to Mulu. the air- having walked all day, to Amorphophallus julaihii.

VOL. 15, NO. 3 Page 7 Malaysian Rose (continued)

our park to Batu Bun- headquarters. gan, a small Penan village, On July 25th, located along after an early the Melinau breakfast, we River. There, embarked on we were met an all day by members of strenuous the Orang Ulu walk. This tribe (known Hundreds of thousands of Wrinkle- time we as the “long Lipped Bats (Tadarida plicata) emerging hiked up and ear”), also from Deer Cave in a giant spiral forma- down Mulu meaning: up- A colony of orange millipedes tion. (Pseudodesmus sp.) . Summit river or interior trails, along the banks of the pristine Melinau Paku people. They were living in a longhouse. We River, until we arrived at the entrance to the Wind bought small souvenirs from them, before having Cave. There, a local them drive us back, in their motorized canoes, to our guide was waiting and lodge. Nothing could have been more exotic than guided us through one that. That evening, Ch’ien took us for another long of the most spectacular walk, along one of the nearby trails, to see and hear cave chambers in the an amazing assortment of colorful frogs, stick insects park. Later on, we had (Phoebaticus ser- lunch next to the Clear- ratipes), colonies water Cave, where of millipedes some of our folks had a (Pseudodesmus refreshing swim in the sp.), snakes, giant crystal-clear cold wa- forest ants ters emerging from un- (Camponotus gi- der the mountain. gas) and lumines- cent mushrooms. Afterwards, small, mo- Elder of the Orang Ulu tribe. The small lizards torized boats drove us barked (like dogs) all night.

The next day, July 26th, we had an- other full day ex- cursion up the Paku River Valley, into the foothills of Mount Mulu mas- sif. There we where able to ob- serve the impres- sive lowland for- The author in the Canopy Walk- The HSI post-conference group at Batu Bungan, by the est, with towering way, Gunung Mulu National For- Melinau River. emerging trees, est, Sarawak, Borneo.

Page 8 THE HSPR NEWSLETTER Malaysian Rose From Our Last Meeting (continued) By Héctor Méndez Caratini, HSPR Vice President and hear the dramatic whooshing sound of the huge Dr. José Abreu Deliz gave us the official welcome. Rhinoceros Hornbill birds (Buceros rhinoceros), Approximately 80 persons attended the June meeting, beating their enormous wings in flight - resembling which was held at Isabelita and Frank Wadsworth’s the sounds of ancient pre-historic dinosaurs! We had exotic country house in the mountains of Comerio. lunch on the shores of a crystal clear mountain creek, Isabelita gave us the formal welcome to her private before heading back to park headquarters. botanical garden and offered us a tour of her impres- sive collection. She has many varieties of heliconias On our last day in Mulu, July 27th, we woke up for and bromeliads, as well as a growing collection of an early bird 6 o’clock breakfast. Next, we walked Musaceae (). There are also over 100 varie- to the entrance of the Canopy Walkway. There we ties of tropical fruit trees growing at this 6½ acre embarked on an exciting 45 minute walk (¾ kilome- farm. ter), swinging on cables, above the tree tops. From this high venture point, we were able to see every- Reily Rodríguez gave the official report of our fi- thing that lay beneath us. nances. Currently we have $2,647.00 in the account – the amount left after paying for expenses related to Upon our return to the canteen, for another morning income tax. This is without taking into account the cup of coffee, a young girl from Brussels informed amount from the June meeting, in which several hun- me that a member from her European group had just dred dollars were generated from the raffle and mem- had a terrible accident. The person had dived into bership dues. the tropical waters of Clearwater Cave (where we had swam two days earlier) and broke his neck, Gilberto Rodríguez and Melín Rullán, our invited when his head hit an underwater rock. While we guests, gave us a brief report of Casa Pueblo - a pio- were at the airport that afternoon, waiting for our neering communal project in Adjuntas. Their world return flight to Kuching, we saw when a yellow col- famous Bosque del Pueblo is located at over 3,000 ored emergency ambulance helicopter arrived, to feet above sea level and has 150 cuerdas of virgin for- est. There are several rivers which have their origins pick up the injured hiker. here, at their Monte Olimpia. They also cultivate a

gourmet coffee called Madre Isla. The next day, we unfortunately found out, through a local newspaper, that the tourist had arrived dead on Several HSPR members responded to the call and do- arrival to Miri’s hospital. It only goes on to show nated Zingiberales to this meritorious project. Dr how fortunate we had been, as a group, and the need Raymond Jerome gave them a H. ramonensis to respect nature at all times. It still is a savage, un- xanthotricha; Carmen Iris Ruiz an Indonesian wax tamed world out there. That night, we thanked God ginger; and I donated a H. chartacea ‘Giant Sexy and had a farewell dinner at our favorite traditional Scarlet’, a H. regalis ‘Barnum and Bailey’, a H. Top Spot Restaurant. griggsiana ‘Blue Moon’ and a H. champneiana ‘Splash’. We trust other members will soon follow After ten days full of remarkable experiences, on our example. July 28th we all embarked on our long journey back home (to the “other” side of the planet), full of un- Bob Castro recommended that HSPR should have it’s forgettable anecdotes and memories of camaraderie. own credit card and PayPal account to pay for the so- We’re ALL looking forward on seeing each other ciety’s expenses. This would be preferable to having again, in July 2012 in Panama and Colombia (the private members pay for the services and soliciting a next HSI Conference). Hope you can join us for reimbursement afterwards. The motion was unani- more action packed memorable adventures. mously approved.

For the September meeting, I volunteered to give the

Page 9 THE HSPR NEWSLETTER HELICONIA SOCIETY OF PUERTO RICO, INC. HSPR

Promoting Zingiberales in www.heliconiasocietypr.org Puerto Rico since 1996. President: Dr. José Abreu Deliz Past President: Mr. Héctor Méndez Caratini Vice President: Mr. Héctor Méndez Caratini Treasurer: Mr. Reily Rodríguez Secretary: Mrs. Yarisa Montes Officer: Ms. Judy Nelson The Heliconia Society of Puerto Rico, Inc. was founded in 1996. The objec- Officer: Dr. Bryan Brunner Editor/Webmaster: Dr. Bryan Brunner tives of the society are to stimulate and promote the enjoyment and under- Assistant Editor: Mr. Bob Castro standing of Heliconia and related plants of the order Zingiberales through Juan J. Jimenez 554 Hato Rey, P.R. 00918 education, research and communication, and to interact with the Heliconia Phone: 787-792-5081 Society International and other institutions which share similar interests, pur- Fax: 1-240-238-7366 Email: [email protected] poses or objectives.

From Our Last Meeting (continued) President’s Corner next audiovisual presentation on the highlights of our Saludos compañeros, en vísperas de nuestra tercera trip to the HSI 2010 Singapore Conference. As stated reunión del 2010, quiero recordarles lo importante previously, the December meeting will be held at Gil- que es la asistencia de todos. dreth and Bob Castro’s HSI/HSPR Conservation Cen- ter, in Cerro Guilarte, Adjuntas. En esta reunión trataremos de resumir los puntos im- portantes de la Décimo Sexta Conferencia de HSI, en For the Show & Tell session one of our members Singapur. Y lo que nos incumbe como institución brought a hairy H. regalis ‘Barnum and Bailey’ inflo- con intereses afines. rescence, as well as an “unnamed” pendent inflores- cence, which had characteristics similar to a H. mag- Quiero recordarles nuestro compromiso con proveer nifica (but much chubbier). Mr. Luis Vega followed especímenes a la institución Casa Pueblo, en Adjun- up by treating us to a very interesting, and well at- tas. Me tomo la libertad de sugerirles que nos tended, presentation on the annonas with medicinal provean una pequeña lista (no tiene que ser en papel uses. grande) de las variedades saludables que tienes dis- ponibles para tal obra meritoria. Hablaremos de los Lunch was followed by a succulent “lechón asao a la detalles en la reunión del 12 de septiembre. varita” and two “pavochones” (both roasted in situ, by local jíbaros at the farm), “arroz con gandules”, Nos reuniremos en la residencia de nuestro entusiasta and the whole gourmet country style traditional menu. compañero Jorge Matta y su esposa Tita. Recuerden We are all very grateful to Isabelita and Frank que el formato sigue siendo oficialmente “Pot Wadsworth’s generosity. Truly a memorable meeting Luck”/“Del Sorullo”. Por lo tanto, favor de traer algo full of friendship. de picar.

Nobody was allowed to leave the premises until the Lamentamos informar el deceso de uno de nuestros raffle concluded. Our members, and their invited miembros fundadores, el Dr. Bob Lankford, el pasado guests, won many plants, including: H. wagneriana, 23 de mayo. Qué en paz descanse. H. caribaea ‘Chartreuse’, a red H. bihai, an orange H. stricta, H. ramonensis var. xanthotricha, H. nutans Saludos, ‘Purple Twister’, and many many more colorful bro- meliads, anthuriums and other collectables. Dr. José Abreu Deliz Presidente Page 10 THE HSPR NEWSLETTER