Alliance Presentation Sales List

Zygopetalum Artur Elle ‘Tombstone’ Zygopetalum Blackii x B.G. White

JUNE EVENT A seminalMonthlygrex in Meeting:Zygopetalums, 8 p.m.Z. Artur Monday,Elle has Junebeen 8,an 2020immensely important parent used in some of the finest pure Zygos and intergenerics available. This clone, selected and used in Hawaii for its free-blooming qualities, producesFromtall thespikes comfortof long of-lasting your flowersliving roomwith a viascent Zoom!of pepper and hyacinth. Although it has not yet been awarded, it is definitely awardable. Tim Culbertson on

New Directions in Zygopetalums Bulletin There will be a mini-auction before the meeting, starting at 7:30 June 2020 DetailsZygolum of Zoom meetingLouisendorf & auction will be emailedGrex a few days ‘Rheinbefore the meeting Moonlight’ AM/AOS labiosum x Zygopetalum Artur Elle Letter from the President

I hope this letter finds you happy and healthy throughout this crazy COVID confinement. This pandemic is affecting our Atlanta Orchid Society on multiple fronts. It has slashed our annual fund- raising and our ability to reach out and grow our membership because of the social distancing requirements. I’m sad to say that our annual ABG Behind-the- Scene Greenhouse Tour and Ice Cream Social has been cancelled for July to protect the safety of our members. Stay Made by Hoosier Orchids in 2004, this lovely shows the benefits of using the rarely seen Zspm. labiosum tuned for the status of our August meet- New Directions in Zygopetalums ing—we’ll be following the recommend- to produce novel color combinations, vastly reduced size, and increased frequency of flowering. These ed guidelines set by the CDC even if the Althoughplants bloom I teachconstantly, middle schoolas soon kids asandnew documentinggrowths mature, cultivatedall speciesyear long and. ABG is open. for a living, one of my passions has al- hybrids for their . In short, I On a positive note, VP Danny Lentz ways been . I began growing or- really like plants. has garnered a great line-up of speak- chids as an offshoot from working at For your meeting, I’ll be sharing a pre- ers presented to us on the Zoom plat- Longwood Gardens in Philadelphia just sentation entitled New Directions in Zygo- form—I’m looking forward to learning after college. From the very beginning it petalums. These plants are easy to grow all about Zygopetalums in June!! Even was all about Paphs, particularly awarded and flower, are vigorous, and have low though we can’t meet in person at this and select clones of historic importance,Tim Culbertson cultural | demands; [email protected] many will bloom year- | 301-641-2556 time, your paid membership will allow of which my collection numbers nearly round given plenty of water and warmth. you to access the programs and even 3000. While I love finding old, rare step- Although many Zygos look similar, dif- have your questions answered by the ping stones in Paph breeding, I also do a ferent breeding lines from around the speaker after the presentation. If you little hybridizing of my own, and growing world have pushed the look of Zygos in have trouble accessing the meetings on up my own babies is a blast. I have been radical and wild directions. Many genera Zoom from the link sent by Danny a few a judge with the American Orchid Soci- contribute to these new hybrids, and I days before the meeting, contact one of ety for nearly 15 years, and have served will share some of these with you, as well us and we’ll try and help. Remember, in various capacities with various orchid as help identify some of the important Zoom links are available only to current societies in California and on the East parents in the backgrounds of new and members. Coast. I love meeting other people who modern colors and appearances found in The AtlOS Board is still considering like orchids too, and doing so often finds this . By the end of this presenta- the details of a mini-show with supple- me traveling to shows, vendors, and peo- tion, you will have a new appreciation of mental AOS Judging in the fall. We are ples’ greenhouses to see the latest and what goes into breeding trends for these trying to work out an orchid auction at greatest in new hybrids and to get the types of plants, as well as an appreciation 7:30 before the Zoom meetings as well. best orchid gossip. I like to be involved in of their beautiful and ease-of- Sign on early and members will be hap- plants as much as possible: in addition to growth. I will be providing a sales list of py to answer your orchid questions. Re- Longwood, I’ve worked at the Smithso- the newest, modern, cutting-edge Zygo- member to send your orchid photos the nian Institution tending to their orchids, petalum alliance hybrids, from a number and for years for the United States Na- of renowned hybridizers featured in the Continued on page 2 tional Arboretum, collecting rare plants presentation. 2 www.atlantaorchidsociety.org June 2020

ATLANTA ORCHID SOCIETY The Atlanta Orchid Society Bulletin Volume 61: Number 6 – June 2020 Newsletter Editors: Véronique Perrot & Mark Reinke Officers The Atlanta Orchid Society is affiliated with the American Orchid Society, the President Orchid Digest Corporation, the Mid-America Orchid Congress, Helen (HB) Blythe-Hart 770-656-4054 and the Garden Club of Geogia. Vice-President/Programs Danny Lentz Secretary Jody Gomez Letter from the Minutes of the May Treasurer Jon Crate 770-846-9541 President Meeting of the Atlanta 270 17th Street NW, Unit 4501 Continued from page 1 Atlanta, GA 30363 Orchid Society day before to Danny to post during the Immediate Past President meeting. Paid members are able to take The May, 11th 2020 meeting of the David Mellard 404-310-9899 advantage of our Society’s bulk buying Atlanta Orchid Society was called to power to get potting bark at a discount- order by Helen Blythe-Hart, President, ed rate. Contact Jon Crate for details. at 8 p.m. Due to the Covid19 situation, Trustees Potting supplies are available from the the meeting was held via Zoom. We wel- Society as well. comed two new members who joined us. Trac Nguyen I hope you can support our Society Announcements were made. There was a Maegan Brass throughout the craziness by renewing reminder to pay membership dues, and it Atsushi Matsumoto your membership or reaching out to a was mentioned that the society would be Carl Quattlebaum friend or past member to re-join our ordering Orchiata bark for members who Larry Kikkert roster. If you’re having trouble affording are interested. Danny Lentz introduced Véronique Perrot dues at this time, please email me at hb@ Fred Clarke, who gave a presentation en- helenblythehart.com. Consider making a titled, “Spotted and Splashed .” donation to our society at dues@atlan- After the presentation, Fred fielded Volunteers taorchidsociety.com. questions from members. After the pre- Orders placed on Amazon Smile also sentation Danny showed photos that AOS Rep – Barbara Barnett generate donations for the Society—I go members had sent in of their in-bloom Greengrowers – Danny Lentz to my Amazon account and fill my cart. plants. The meeting was then adjourned. Librarian – I then sign on to Smile.Amazon.com and MAOC Rep – Doug Hartong my cart items appear there. You can se- Meeting Hospitality – lect Atlanta Orchid Society as the chari- 2020 Dillon-Peterson Membership – Barbara Barnett & ty/organization you’d like to support and Maegan Brass every purchase you make on Amazon Essay Prize Education and Outreach – Lynne Gollob Smile will benefit our Society unless you Silent Auction – Carson Barnes change it. Easy Peasy!! Who’s not buying The AOS is celebrating its Centennial Monthly Ribbon Judging – David Mellard a ton of stuff on Amazon AND you can Anniversary in 2021. Join the fun, the es- Newsletter – Véronique Perrot & support the Society as well! say Contest is asking for in depth articles Mark Reinke I’m taking advantage of this time to relating to significant people, events, Orchid Digest Rep – David Mellard spend some quality time with my or- programs or even plants or technology Show Chairs (2020) – Danny Lentz & chids, re-potting and grooming them changes that have helped shape the di- Jody Gomez before their vacay outside for the sum- rection of the AOS and its future. (For Website/Social Media – Danny Lentz & mer. I’m reading up and learning how more details, see the article in the May Jeremie Carroll to be a better grower and delighting in Orchids Magazine or online.) their lovely blooms. Tending my orchids Membership in the AOS is not neces- is a great way for me to de-stress during sary. The Deadline is September 30,2020. this down time. So remember to stop and smell the orchids and support YOUR Or- chid Society!! 3 www.atlantaorchidsociety.org June 2020 A Brief Word about Zygopetalum… What are they? EVENTS CALENDAR This is meant as a brief Introduction June to the genus in case you haven’t met a 8 – Atlanta Orchid Society Monthly Zygo prior to our June presentation. Meeting, via Zoom You may recognize them from the 13 – American Orchid Society monthly lovely purple lip, wide upright foliage judging CANCELED and outstanding fragrance and wonder what are these? July Zygopetalums originate from South 11 – American Orchid Society monthly America: Brazil, Paraguay, , judging, maybe Peru and Bolivia. They are from the tribe 13 – Atlanta Orchid Society Monthly Maxillarieae, Subtribe . Meeting, via Zoom There are 15 ; a few are Z. macula- tum, Z. pedicella Z. triste, and Z. maxillare. August They grow in intermediate tempera- 10 – Atlanta Orchid Society Monthly tures. For culture, see the American Or- Meeting: Mark Reinke, probably on chid Society website. There are many hy- brids and intragenerics available. Enjoy our speaker. Z. triste ‘Seagrove’s Blue Caribou’ AM/AOS

Notes from Fred Clarke’s Talk about Spotted and Splashed Cattleyas by David Mellard

At the end of his talk on breeding 2. Proper Light Levels spotted and splashed cattleyas, Fred pro- Cattleyas prefer filtered direct sun- vided very useful information about suc- light. There can be seasonal variation cessfully growing . I’ve captured with summer being around 10,000 foot some highlights below. candles and winter being around 7,000 fc because of the angle of the sun. 1. Irrigation frequency Fred provides 55% shade for his green- The frequency that you water cattleyas houses in winter, which gives him about and all orchids depends in part on the wa- 3200 fc and 4500 fc in summer. ter holding capacity of the media, the size He adds 40% more shade in summer of the container, the plant’s moisture re- to get the fc around 3000. quirement, and the environmental condi- Because this requires climbing on the tions surrounding the plant. greenhouse (a dangerous thing as you You should irrigate to flush 20-25% get older), he’s thinking about going with of the container volume through the 65% shade cloth year round, which will pot. By this, Fred means that you should give him 2400 fc in winter and 3500 fc in water each pot enough that the water summer. volume will force at least 20-25% of the The above is for his greenhouse condi- air out of the pot. This is one way to get tions so you’ll need to make adjustments fresh air into the media. based on your growing conditions. As Atlanta is fortunate in that we have with all plants that grow shaded during very soft water so we don’t generally the winter, you’ll need to be careful when have a problem with salt build up in the bringing them out in the spring and sum- media and around the like some mer to prevent burn. places in the U.S. (e.g., southern Florida, parts of the Mid-West). Still, leaching pe- 3. Temperature riodically (excessive water) is probably a Most cattleyas prefer the following: good idea—at least monthly. Fred sug- Summer: days 75-85 F, nights 60-70 F gests watering heavily and then an hour Winter: days 65-80 F, nights 50-65 F later water heavily again. Continued on page 4 4 www.atlantaorchidsociety.org June 2020

Notes from Fred Clarke’s Talk Continued from page 3

Brief periods above and below these tem- peratures are ok, but see an exception at the end

4. Potting media Fred prefers a well-drained media. He uses a 3/1 mix of bark to perlite and changes the bark size based on the size of the pot (see 6 below). Occasionally, he uses sphagnum moss and clay pots. You’ll Repot now! need to be careful about over-fertilizing 7. Repotting if you use sphagnum because sphagnum The best time to repot is as new roots will act like a sponge and quickly build up are emerging. salt that can damage the plant’s roots. Repot before they get several inches He will sometimes add Aliflor (an ex- long to reduce the risk of damaging the panded clay product) with his organic green tips mix to improve drainage Select a pot size that will allow for 3 years of growth—provided you choose a 5. Why Fred prefers orchid bark media that lasts that long pH buffering effect Fred pointed out that most cattleyas Improved cation exchange grow their roots just before the rainy Microbial activity season starts. That’s when the orchid You should have repotted two weeks ago! It’s inexpensive grows the most. Repot just before the It does not readily decay roots begin to grow but wait until you center of the pot. see roots, not just the growth of the rhi- Add your potting mix carefully so as 6. Keep it simple zome. Here’s a photo showing the not to damage the roots when pushing 3 parts bark and 1 part perlite #3. length, indicating it’s time to repot the mix down into the pot. Fred suggests the following sizes: The picture to the right show a root length that is too long. You should have 8. Tags Pot Bark size Per- repotted two weeks ago. If you repot Fred gave a very useful tip about dat- size lite now you have to be very careful not to ing the tag. Rather than put the date that fine med. large damage the new roots you repotted, put the date that the roots 2-3” xxx x When repotting, remove as much emerged. You can use this as a clue in the 4” xxx x of the old mix as possible but it’s criti- future for when the plant needs to be re- cal that you avoid damaging the newly potted. 5-8” xxx x emerging roots with green tips. It’s bet- The advantage of varying the bark size ter to leave some of the old mix behind 9. A Cattleya for Atlanta with the pot size is that all pots regard- than to try to get all the mix but damage If you’re looking for a Cattleya that less of their size will tend to dry out at the new roots in the process. will do well in Atlanta’s hot, humid sum- the same rate, thus allowing you to water When placing the plant into the new mers, try C. violacea. It likes hot humid all pots at the same time pot, place the oldest growth touching the weather. Keep the plant above 60 F in pot side with the new growth facing the the winter.

C. violacea ‘Joan’ HCC/AOS C. violacea forma alba ‘Isabel Rosalia’ AM/AOS C. violacea (Flamea) ‘Sentinel’ AM/AOS 5 www.atlantaorchidsociety.org June 2020 Atlanta Orchid Society Monthly Flowers Display May 2020 Notes by Mark Reinke; Photos by various members of the AtlOS

There was no ribbon judging this month, but the members submitted some really fantastic photos of their plants in bloom. I will touch on a number of them, trying to make sure each person that took the time to send in the photos gets a mention, while highlighting some of the more interesting or outstanding plants. I’ll use our usual entry categories to group the plants together for discussion.

Carson also submitted Cattleya maxi- ma forma coerulea. This species has two races. The lowland form that occurs in the region of Guayaquil, Ecuador, was the first to be discovered. It is a large plant with heads of up to 12 or more blooms. The plant size is why the species name was applied. Later a highland race was discovered. It grows 1000 to 2000 meters up on the western slopes of the C. mossiae forma alba in Ecuador, but also extending down into Peru and up into Colombia. Cattleya Alliance While the flower size is the same, it pro- B. perrinii We had some nice species represent- duces only about 3 to 5 flowers per inflo- ed this month. Carson Barnes showed us rescence on a plant that is half the size some less common color forms of two of the lowland form. Many color forms large flowered species from South Amer- exist of both types and some plants in ica. Cattleya mossiae semi-alba is commerce mix the two races together. from Venezuela, where that species is Mark Reinke submitted a photo of an the national flower. This form with white old plant of Cattleya sincorana which he segments and a frilly lip painted with and Gary have owned for more than 20 vivid purple and a hint of yellow is one years and was purchased from Floralia of my favorites, but not easy to find. The Orchids of Brazil at a show in Coconut flowers can be large on a relatively com- Grove, Florida. This miniature species pact plant and very fragrant. At one time grows in harsh, semi-desert conditions it was the backbone of the corsage flower in the Brazilian state of Bahia on a pla- industry because light and temperature teau-like mountain range that gives the could be used to adjust the spring flow- species its name. It survives on nightly B. nodosa ering to coincide with Easter and Moth- dew and mist for much of the year and er’s Day. makes huge flowers in comparison to the There were also some nice Brassavo- small succulent looking growths. This is la species and hybrids submitted. Bailey not an orchid for someone who wants Santwire showed us young flowering quick gratification as it needs to form a plants of perrinii and Bras- nice clump before it flowers well. savola nodosa. Both of these can grow into beautiful specimens over time giv- en bright light and perfect drainage. The former blooms only in spring, but can make hundreds of flowers at once, while the latter may bloom several times a year in flushes. They are both highly scented at night. Both Larry Kikkert and Paul Thurner submitted photos of Rhyncovo- la David Sander, which they had labeled under the older name. It is a cross be- tween Brassavola cucullata and Rhynco- laelia digbyana. In person, the size of the C. maxima forma coerulea, Highland race, flowers, typically about 5 inches across, short form C. sincorana gives them a wow factor that is hard to 6 www.atlantaorchidsociety.org June 2020

Den. wardianum

Ryncovola David Sanders (Larry Kikkert) Procatavola Key Lime Stars capture in a photo. Paul Thurner showed us a photo of his Procatavola Key Lime Stars (Ctyh. Lime Sherbet x B. nodosa) which was registered by H&R Nurseries in 2019. Time to update your tag, Paul! Mark Reinke submitted a photo of one of his own crosses, Cattleya Jungle Beau x Myrmecophiila tibicinis. During the meeting some people questioned whether it was labeled correctly, but I can assure you that it is. Making crosses with the genus Myrmecophila (formerly under Schomburgkia) is a tricky propo- sition because that genus has atypical chromosome counts. Usually sparse is produced and many of the plants fail to grow properly. I only got about 5 vi- able plants out of this cross, and this is the only one that has continued to grow Den. aphyllum and bloom well. C. Jungle Beau gives the plant unusually flat form and small plant JOIN THE ORCHID Dendrobium Alliance size considering the other parent. The DIGEST CORPORATION As many know, Dendrobium is a large color in person is like fire! Don’t let the name fool you, the genus of around 1300 species, subdivid- Orchid Digest is a non-profit ed into about 40 sections. Culture varies membership-based organization from section to section based on the cli- dedicated to orchids. Designed to mate and habitat in which the species in each section occur. Vinh Nguyen shared appeal to the mid-range to advanced with us two species from the section that grower, nothing beats the Orchid bears the same name as the genus, Den. Digest. For just $39/year you get 4 wardianum and Den. aphyllum. These are issues of full-color, in-depth articles partially to fully deciduous types that about orchids. The magazine is large mature each new growth in a single sea- format and the fourth issue of the year son and bloom out all at once in winter is always an extra-special edition de- to spring. They usually want cooler tem- voted to a single genus. For member- peratures and less watering in winter to ship application forms contact David stimulate flowering. Mellard (404-237-1694) or visit www. C. Jungle Beau x Mcp. tibicinis orchiddigest.com to join online. 7 www.atlantaorchidsociety.org June 2020

Den. Violet Yamaji ‘Puanani’

grower has Den. spectabile as one parent and two other species from the Latouria Den. glomeratum section making up another 3/8ths of the family . The purple color comes from from the tropical Pacific Islands where one great-grandparent, Den. x superbiens, they get year round rainfall. Each growth which is a natural between Den. Den. thyrsiflorum (Mary Cawthon) takes 2 or more years to mature, then be- bigibbum of the Phalaenanthe section and gins to defoliate. Blooms came in flushes Den. discolor of the Spatulata (“Antelope We also had some good examples of off random locations on older, usually Horned”) section. He also showed a first the Callista section, hailing from the bare canes. They are generally long last- flowering seedling of Den. Luwin Park x mountains of Southeast Asia. These spe- ing, but a big show requires a plant with tangerinum, which is a not yet registered cies have beautiful and tough, evergreen years of accumulated growth, so patience mix of three of the Spatulata species. growths, but like the previous group, is required. Mark Reinke showed off a hy- This plant will be in the virtual auction flower best with cooler temperatures brid from this group, Den. Gowan’s Tan- for the month of June and well worth ac- and less water in winter. Flowering can gello (mohlianum x melinanthum) which quiring for its relatively compact growth be massive on older plants, but blooms he acquired from Ecuagenera a few years and exceptionally long lasting flowers. don’t usually last longer than a week. ago. It blooms more than once a year, Both Mary Cawthon and Vinh Nguy- but this is the first time for it to show off en showed off the beautiful cascades of so many at once. There will be an estab- bloom on plants of Den. thyrsiflorum, and lished keiki off this plant in a future At- Vinh also showed us the delicate beauty lOS plant auction! of the not oft seen Den. amabile. Mark Reinke also showed off a large Véronique Perrot showed us a vividly plant of Den. Violet Yamaji ‘Puanani’ with colored Den. glomeratum, which is part over 200 blooms on it. This vigorous of the Pedolium section. While these species are also deciduous, they come

Den. Luwin Park x Den. tangerinum

Den. amabile Den. Gowan’s Tangello 8 www.atlantaorchidsociety.org June 2020

Pyp. Mariposa E. Nursery Rhyme Oncidium Alliance Epidendrum/Encyclia Alliance There were few entries in this group Only a few photos of this group made Enanthleya Golden Sunburst this month, but Annalies Carl showed it to the virtual display, but one excep- off her weird and wonderful peloric ex- tionally beautiful one was Annalies Carl’s ample of Psychopsis Mariposa. This cross Encyclia Nursery Rhyme. This beauty has is a mix of Pyp. papilio and Pyp. kramer- two doses of E. cordigera and one dose of iana and normally the two would E. phoenicea in its family tree and is won- be narrow and formed almost like an- derfully fragrant. Her plant has better tennae, the whole flower then befitting color contrast and form than you often of the cross name which is Spanish for see out of this cross. butterfly. In this form, the two petals are Roy Harrow submitted a photo of a almost copies of the lip giving the whole beautiful yellow cluster flowered type flower the appearance of some odd star- that he had labeled Rhyncolaeliocattleya fish. I’d be curious to know if Annalies Golden Sunset. This is actually Enanth- purchased this plant as a known muta- leya Golden Sunburst ( Gold tion, or by chance bought a seedling that Digger x Encyclia rufa). I have this exact turned out this way. Peloricism is rare plant in flower as well, and it is one of in Psychopsis, but there are photos of a several examples of how taking a rath- similar looking one called Pyp. Mariposa er unassuming green species from the ‘Fenbrook’ that received a Judges Com- Bahamas and crossing it with an orange mendation in Chicago in 2012. or red cluster flowered type can achieve spectacular results. You can help out the Atlanta Orchid Society simply by shopping at Amazon through their Amazon Smile program. To do this simply go to smile.amazon.com every time you want to shop at Amazon. When you go to checkout for the first time, you will be asked to designate your charity. If you type Atlanta Orchid Society in the search bar, we are the only result that comes up. Select that one. You can change the charity at any time, by following the directions on the About page. All of the details of the Amazon Smile program can be found on the Amazon site at: smile.amazon.com/gp/chpf/about/ 9 www.atlantaorchidsociety.org June 2020

Paph. moquetteanum ‘Nosy Girl,’ AM/AOS

Paph. micranthum Paph. nigritum ‘Pygmy’

tip. David Mellard also showed us a beau- white that almost matches the leaf span tiful Paph. micranthum, a single flowered of the plant in size. species with large flowers emanating Looking at hybrids in this group the from ground hugging fans of beautifully clear show stopper was Danny Lentz & mottled foliage. HB (Helen Blythe-Hart) Dianne Morgan’s Paph. Prince Edward of sent in a photo of one of the less often York. This cross, registered in 1898 and seen multifloral species, Paph. wilhelmi- named after the future King Edward VII nae from New Guinea, that typically pro- of England is a primary hybrid between duces just two flowers as shown and just Paph. sanderianum and Paph. rothschil- very rarely three. Her plant is producing dianum. Despite being around for more flowers with exceptionally straight cork- than twelve decades, it has not lost its screw petals.She also shared with us one appeal. Danny and Dianne’s plant dis- of the tiny treasures of the slipper world, plays all the features I love to see in this Paph. nigritum (aka Paph. barbatum var. cross: a boldly striped dorsal , long, nigritum) which tends to have total leaf ribbon-like petals symmetrically twisted span of only about three inches, often down their length with an abundance of highly variegated, from which emerges a spots and warts, and a strong shade of neat and tidy flower in purple green and purple on the pouch lip. The fact that there are also four flowers displayed on a single puts it in league with Paph. rothschildianum (David Mellard) plants that have garnered the more than 80 AOS awards to date. Barbara Barnett’s Slipper Alliance photo of Paph. Grand Philip is a great ex- There were 17 photos of various mem- ample of the effort to create a plant with bers of the slipper group, and many were the impact of Paph. rothschildianum on quite outstanding. Starting with species, a much smaller scale by using Paph. glan- the standout for me was Carson Barnes’ duliferum. Blooming for the first time, Paphiopedilum moquetteanum ‘Nosy Girl,’ the single flower shows bold colors and AM/AOS. This species from southwest strong markings and could be awardable Java is the queen of the sequential flow- when it reaches its full potential and has ering types, with fewer but larger flowers. 4 or 5 flowers at once. When awarded in 2017 the noted spread of the flower was 12 cm (about 4-3/4 inch- es) and judging by the photo this bloom is at least that large. Both Carson Barnes and David Mellard also submitted photos of Paph. rothschildianum. Carson’s plant is probably a first blooming with just a single flower, while David’s is further along and shows off three huge blooms. Mature plants can have four or five to the spike, usually about 10 inches from tip to Paph. wilhelminae Paph. Grand Philip 10 www.atlantaorchidsociety.org June 2020

Phrag. Memoria Ann Stuckey ‘Straight Arrow’ AM/AOS

Stuckey ‘Straight Arrow,’ AM/AOS, that was about as close to the elusive white flower as I have ever seen, with plenty of subtle markings to enhance its beauty. And Danny and Dianne submitted per- haps the original show stopper of the ge- nus with an excellent example of Phrag. Grande, registered in 1881 by J. Veitch and Sons of Buckshire, England, and still a crowd pleaser today. Paph. Prince Edward of York Phrag. Grande I was by no means disappointed by the wonderful Phragmipedium entries this month. Barbara Barnett shared an absolutely stellar close-up photo of Phrag. Barbara Leann in all its warm rosy red, hirsute glory, and displaying good form for this cross of Phrag. besseae and JOIN THE AMERICAN ORCHID SOCIETY Phrag. fischeri. Carson Barnes lit up the 12 issues of Orchids, the Society’s monthly full color magazine chock full other end of the color spectrum with a wonderful photo of Phrag. Mem. Ann of insightful articles and tempting ads for plants and supplies. 10% off purchases from the Society’s Bookstore and Orchid Emporium. Reduced or free admission to participating botanical gardens. For a limited time, if you join for two years you will also get a $30 gift certificate (good on an order of $100 or more) at any one of 13 commercial growers who advertise in Orchids. Membership now includes access to OrchidPro, the database that replaces OrchidsPlus JOIN TODAY Single Membership, 1 year - $79, 2 years - $153 Student membership, 1 year - $54, 2 years - $103 Phrag. Barbara Leann JOIN OR RENEW ONLINE AT www.aos.org 11 www.atlantaorchidsociety.org June 2020

Phal. Dragon Tree Eagle ‘Dragon Tree #1’ Phal. Taida King’s Caroline ‘Little Zebra’ AM/AOS

irregular brushstrokes of purple toward the tips of the segments. As the flowers age the background turns white.And finally, Jon Crate also showed of a well branched inflorescence of the boldly pat- terned Phal. Taida King’s Caroline ‘Little Zebra,’ AM/AOS. Vandaceous Alliance For me, the star of the vandaceous of- Phal. Mituo Gigan Dragon ‘Mituo #1’ Phal. King Shiang’s Princess ferings this month was Carson Barnes’ Vanda tricolor var. suavis ‘Bali Best Girl,’ Phalaenopsis Alliance the recent trend of using Phal. gigantea AM/AOS which shows off a spectacular There were plenty of great photos of in crosses to create never before seen pattern on flowers larger than any oth- Phalaenopsis submitted by various mem- colors and patterns. Jon Crate showed er awarded example I could find. Java bers, but you have to wonder why so us Phal. First Rays Sunspot, registered and Bali are the two islands in Indonesia many outstanding ones have no name? more than 20 years ago by Ray Barka- where this species occurs naturally, of- Danny Lentz & Dianne Morgan, HB, and low and still a head turner now with its ten in along the borders of tea plan- Jeremie Carroll all sent in photos of truly bold, even spotting on a mustard yellow tations. May is the peak bloom month for outstanding examples with spectacular background. I’m very surprised that no it, but there are records of some flower- colors and good qualities that certainly awards have been granted in this cross ings in every month of the year. It will should have names, but they don’t or have as I would certainly consider this plant a tolerate both warm and intermediate gone missing. contender even today. conditions but needs very bright light Of those that have identification I Jon also showed us a very unusual col- to flower well. Bailey Santwire showed want to highlight two outstanding exam- or pattern in Phal. King Shiang’s Rose x us his Cleisostoma birmanicum, a species ples offered by Bob Grzesik. Phal. Drag- King Shiang’s Star (this has a registered from humid, mossy forests of Southeast on Tree Eagle ‘Dragon Tree #1’ already name, Phal. King Shiang’s Princess), with Asia with rather terete and boldly has an 86 point Award of Merit from flowers that open pale yellow with a pep- patterned flowers in green and purple. I the AOS and for obvious reasons given pering of fine purple dots and dramatic, would think these blooms would create the amazing color and flat form. But I some rather interesting results if crossed was especially taken by Phal. Mituo Gi- with some of the Vanda species or hy- gan Dragon ‘Mituo #1,’ which shows off brids, but so far no hybrids have been registered from it, so that may be geneti- cally difficult or impossible.

Phal. First Rays Sunspots V. tricolor var. suavis. ‘Bali Best Girl’ AM/AOS Cleistoma birmanicum. 12 www.atlantaorchidsociety.org June 2020

Coel. xyrekes, two smaller species that produce pendent that flower sequentially. The former can make up to 20 flowers, usually one or two at a time, that are icy green-white with a deep rust colored velvety lip, while the latter usually makes 3 or 4 creamy yellow to “shrimp pink” somewhat translucent flowers with a patch of dark cinnamon brown on the lip. For anyone that hasn’t grown this genus, note that the inflo- rescence emerges from the center of a developing new growth and normally completes flowering before the growths Coel. pandurata mature. The faded inflorescence quickly detaches form the apex of the pseudob- Sobralia fimbriata ulb leaving little evidence that flowers had been present. This month there were two different examples from the genus Sobralia, which is not common in collections in this area. Bailey Santwire gave us Sobralia fimbria- ta, a species with a highly dissected lip and beautiful pastel colors. It grows as a terrestrial in middle elevations in Cen- tral and South America and stays a rath- er manageable 24 inches in height. David Coel. usitana Mellard let us see his Sobralia macrantha, a widespread species in Mexico and Cen- tral America, mostly in higher elevations but down as low as 150 ft above sea level in Belize. The species name means “large flower” and they can be anywhere from Sobralia macrantha 6 to 10 inches across. The plants can be more than 6 feet tall. Like most mem- bers of the genus, the flowers of these two species last only a few days, but will be replaced by several more during the flowering season. Some species are ram- pant roadside weeds in Costa Rica as Gary and I noted during our visits to that country. They can be grown outside year round in Southern Coastal California, but don’t really like our summer heat Coel. xyrekes that much so need to be watered and kept more shaded here. Miscellaneous Finally, Nicholas Rust showed us a As usual there was a treasure trove beautiful Stanhopea embreei, a species of beautiful and unusual photo entries from western Ecuador that produces in this group. Coelogyne was represented large, fleshy, highly fragrant pendent Stanhopea embreei ‘Natural World’ by three striking species. Jeremie Carroll flowers which last just a couple days, showed us her impressive Coel. pandu- but are fascinating to watch as the rata, with arching spikes of pale, bright slowly develop over a couple of months’ green flowers that have a pattern of near time. Older plants can have several in- black in the lip, an almost unreal color florescence during the mainly summer contrast. This orchid can be a rampant bloom season. grower and so requires room! Larry Ki- kkert introduced us to Coel. usitana and