Bromelcairns Bimonthly Newsletter of Cairns Bromeliad Societ Inc. 2012 # 1 P.O. Box 28 Cairns Queensland 4870 Austalia President Dave Weston 0740578604 V-President Karen Stevens 0740361086 Secretary Lynn Hudson 0740533913 Treasurer Frances Boyd 0740552550 Librarian Maria Grant 0740370161 Editor Lynn Hudson 0740533913 Editor Assist. Moyneen Charlton 0740337390 Member Concierge Nalda Wilson 0740544825 Popular Vote Steward Karen Cross 0740545497 OIC Raffles Lesley Hepburn 0488788892 Honorary Life Member - Grace Goode O.A.M. Honorary Life Member - Kay Edington Life Member - Lynn Hudson Life Member - Robert (Bob) Hudson ******************************************************************** Aims of the Society Promote and Develop Interest in Bromeliads through Friendship To Co-operate with similar Clubs throughout the World ******************************************************************** Membership Fee: $15 Single, $25 Family, Country Member $25. $7.50 junior (if not in family membership) Meetings start at 1.pm sharp first Saturday of the month. Please bring a cup and a chair. Library: All books & magazines borrowed are to be returned in good order to the following meeting. If not on wait list, they may be rebooked. Plant Display/Sales: To participate, a member must be financial and circumstances permitting, have attended at least three meetings in the past six months. Where the society is charged a stall fee - 20% of sales are deducted for club funds. No charge venue & meetings - 10% of sales is deducted. All plants to be clean, free of disease, named and price tagged. Show Plants: Must be the property of and in the custody of the entrant for the past three months. For Society Shows the entrant must be financial and have attended at least three meetings during the past six months. Pens, Plant Tags & Pots: available at each meeting. If reprinting article, wholly or in part, please acknowledge Author & Newsletter. Any article will be Emailed on request to [email protected] 2011 PRESIDENTS REPORT (Dave Weston) 2011 started off with a drama which we each could have done without, the approach of Cyclone ‘Yasi’ had us preparing our homes and property for what could have been for Cairns a truly catastrophic event had it crossed the coast in near proximity to the city. However for those who bore the brunt of the monster many are still in recovery mode, for some it will take years to get back on their feet. The devastation of property and the environment south of Innisfail to Cardwell is still very evident today. The scars of not only the physical destruction but also the mental trauma will be with those residents for many years to come. After C. ‘Yasi’ Brendan and I realized we needed to cull a lot of the accumulated bromeliads that were taking up space and we donated a considerable quantity to James Watson for landscaping the median islands on Nautilus Street, Port Douglas. 2011 provided some great events for us. The 16th Australian Bromeliad Conference held in April in Darwin was an absolutely stunning event, the speakers were first rate, the plant sales were well run, the organization superb and the venue an excellent choice. Those members from our Society who were able to participate in this event will attest to the unique experience provided by our NT cousins. Following the Darwin Bromeliad Conference Cairns members were fortunate to attend a special event in April - a presentation on Cloud Forest habitats by Dennis Cathcart of Tropiflora Nursery, Florida USA. Dennis had extended his holiday trip in Oz and was hosted by the Hudsons. It was indeed a privilege to have such an esteemed authority as a guest of our Society. While on the subject of events, how great was the 2011 Bloomin Broms!! The weekend was a resounding success, the speakers were informative and the organization as smooth as silk. The quality of the plants offered for sale on the Sunday was excellent and this was reflected in the amazing sales figures. Thank you to each of the Committee members and others who have offered their services or otherwise assisted our Society over the past year. In particular, I expressly wish to thank Lynn Hudson for her unerring dedication and management of the Society, Lynn has again taken on more than can be reasonably expected and I sincerely hope that in the coming year other members will volunteer to relieve her of some of this burden. To the members who have hosted one of the monthly meetings, thank you for the opportunity to share with us your hospitality and your special bromeliad treasures. I would also like to make special mention of the efforts made by our Librarian Maria Grant in providing the informative précis of some of the vast collection of library books, many thanks and much appreciated. 3 On behalf of our members, it was my privilege to present to Kay Edington an Honorary Life Membership in recognition of the support and assistance willingly given at our various events and functions. Looking to the coming year, we already have some great events programmed. There will be not one but two Bloomin Broms events this year and we have already been very fortunate to secure an exceptional bromeliad authority in the person of Harry Luther formerly of Marie Selby Botanic Gardens and now currently Assistant Director Horticulture at The Singapore National Parks Board Gardens By The Bay Development. Brendan and I are looking forward to catching up with BSI members at the 20th World Bromeliad Society Conference in Orlando this September. In closing I ask all members to consider how they may be able to support and assist our Society in the coming year, not only with filling Committee positions but how you may be able to contribute towards the collective knowledge, interpretation and cultivation of Bromeliads. Please consider giving a short presentation at one of our meetings, it is not that difficult - just allow for a bit of research and preparation. Dave Weston, President ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 2011 Roundup from Lynn The Members: 2011 was a very interesting year in many aspects - we welcomed New Members and it was very special to welcome back ‘old‘ members Lesley, Tricia & Brian who found we could still laugh and stir while we learn. !! The Plants: It is especially good to see members bringing in plants for identification and to show, both for interest and competition. The quality growth and presentation has improved, showing bromeliads at their best potential. Some 4 members would not see these plants if you did not show them. The same applies to Cairns Show - this is where we can showcase our bromeliads to a large cross section of our community. There are still many persons who have not seen a bromeliad - or think they haven’t until a pineapple is mentioned! The Presentations: Members were encouraged ‘to think outside the square’ when Dennis took us to the cloud forests; John showed us the Tillandsia capitata series; Stephen assessed our water quality; Dave showed variegations and ‘architectural plants’; and interest was stirred when members who went to Darwin for the 16th. Australian Conference returned claiming they attended ‘the best conference ever’. The Weather has given us another trip ‘outside the square’. Cyclone ‘Yasi’ brought many problems that affected some members more than others. Following heavy rains at the beginning of the year I noticed a big improvement in my plants and I realized they needed more water. Yes they survive on a little but they really smile with more - just like us! Plants that had not flowered gave is colourful inflorescences to colour our days. Then came the wonderful cool winter and our plants showed stronger colours, especially the neoregelias from deep pink through to blue black. The horrid heat at the end of the year has played havoc, burning even the ‘all day sun’ plants and some have reverted to green to cope with the heat. We hope colour will return with cooler days. The Creatures: Flyspeck scale had a big visit, plus there were plenty of hungry grasshoppers of all sizes. The Torres Strait pigeon returned and hatched another squab before Christmas. Yes again we had the ack ack gun droppings that Treazure thought was food. Yes, we needed to hunt those horrid butcherbirds. ! It was a successful year for our society and we eagerly go forward for more soul food and happy meetings. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A few 2011 lesson reminders: Plant presentation - last September President Dave reminded members to keep a high standard when presenting plants for sale as it reflects on our society. Dave said this habit should commence when we place plants on the raffle table and if the member did not know the name, they should enquire before the raffle begins. Leaves that are removed should be entirely removed, leaving the base bare - not cut across and left on the plant. Name Tags - it takes no longer to write a tag correctly! The genus should be written in full. Species names in lower case, eg. Tillandsia xerographica. Hybrids begin with a capital letter and in single parenthesis eg Vriesea ‘Gnom’. Names: a reminder that some neoregelias that have had names changed. Neoregelia ‘Monstrosus’ is the large red cruenta. ‘Tiger’ is now ‘Skotak’s Tiger’. 'Rainbow' is now ‘Rainbow Carcharodon’ Neoregelia ‘Pemiento‘ is beautiful. Please watch the spelling. A ‘pimento’ is a sweet red pepper, not a beautiful neoregelia ! Club Actvites & Around te Members FEBRUARY: From Moyneen - Well we are off again with another year. Our AGM was held at Cominos House and we were all appreciative of the air conditioned location. We welcomed two new committee members - Frances as Treasurer and Lesley as OIC Raffles. As a club member I hope I speak for everyone by saying how much we appreciate the input and extra efforts of all committee members, helping to make the society run smoothly.