Epi News San Diego Epiphyllum Society, Inc. January, 2015 Volume 40 Number 1 January, 2015 SDES Epi News Page 2 President’s Corner: Inside This Issue Happy New Year to all of our Calendar of Epi Events 2 wonderful epi family both here and Get Your Facts First 4 abroad! 2015 will be filled with many fun and exciting epi activities as was the past year, Installation Banquet 5 capped off by our Holiday Installation Banquet Meeting Programs 2 held at the Butcher Shop restaurant on December Mother’s Day Show 6 10th. Thanks very much to Gerry and Mildred Mikas for their work in making the dinner such a Now is the Time 6 lovely and fun event. Off-Season Blooms 7 The days are getting longer at last and the President’s Corner 2 blooming season will be here soon. There are many Safari Park Report 3 events to look forward to in the coming year- the Sandra Chapin-Request 7 monthly programs at each meeting, Ron Crain’s pre-meeting workshops, the work parties at Safari Survey on Fertilizing 7 Park, the various garden sales, the Mother’s Day Want List 7 Show and sale, the caravan, the member apprecia- tion potluck, the November photo contest and more. With all these activities, there are lots of opportunities for you to participate and help. Meeting Programs The theme for this year’s Mother’s Day show is “Epi Salute to Balboa Park”. Balboa Park is Pre-Meeting Workshops celebrating its centennial this year with a year of will resume this month where you can performances, exhibitions, and historical experi- join Ron in Room 104 at 7:00 pm to ences regarding how San Diego has grown and how Balboa Park has evolved over the last century. learn basics of epi culture and other It’s not too early to start planning your display for related botanical information. the show. Last year’s displays were really great. Let’s see if we can outdo ourselves this year. January Program: At publica- I’m looking forward to seeing you at our general tion time, the January Meeting Program meeting on January 14th. is yet to be determined. Please refer to the website, www.SanDiegoEpi.org for updated information. SDES Calendar of Events January 14 General Meeting May 2-3 Safari Park Cutting/Plant Sale January 17 Safari Park Work Party May SBES Show & Sale January 28 Board Meeting May 9-10 SDES Show & Sale January 31 Safari Park Work Party May 17 ESA Show & Sale January, 2015 SDES Epi News Page 3 Safari Park Epi Display House –By Jerry Moreau Happy New Year! Wishing you all the hopes Chapin, Ron & Velma Crain, Gina Contreras, and dreams a new year can bring, may it come to Marie Dempewolf, Bill Greene, Bob Holzinger, you and your garden. Beth Jackson, Oliver Lapubela, Jerry & Betsy Markle, Mildred Mikas, Jerry Moreau, Tim The rain in December has been very welcome. I Paule, Linda Sinkovic, and Janice Wakefield. could hear the plants shout for joy as the rain Thank you to all! Your help is valued and flushed out the salts that build up from the tap always appreciated. Don’t forget each month to water we use. Like us in this New Year, the submit the hours you worked to Carrie Hrvatin plants become renewed and prepare themselves [email protected] . It is important for for spring and blooming. the park to have record of all the hours. Being able to account for the number of volunteer hours We had two productive work parties this past spent at the Park affects the number and type of month. We continue to repot, weed, add more grants that it is able to receive. plants to the display house, and continued to alphabetize the workhouse. We also started to put The next work parties will be up shade cloth to provide more shade for the January 17th & 31st. volunteers in the hot weather. We had great weather and camaraderie. There will be a Your help is always needed! The more volun- meeting of the volunteers at the January 17th teers we have at the Park the better for the epies work party at 10am. We will welcome new and the display. There is much to do, so whether volunteers, review where we have been and you can do a lot or a little, everyone is welcome where we are going. This time will also be to and all work is appreciated. If you can’t volun- keep us all on the same page with what we do at teer, how about making a donation of some sort? the park. Please do your best to be there. Money is always helpful, but help could also take the form of doing research and grant writing or Recently, more members have expressed interest donating equipment and supplies. in volunteering, which is very exciting. If you are amongst that group let me know and go to the If you are interested in joining the fun and website to sign up http://zoo.sandiegozoo.org/ learning a lot about epis in the process, come and content/volunteer-application If you don’t have volunteer at the Park. Information on how to a computer you can call the Zoo’s central volun- sign up can be found on the website can be found teer office at 619-231-1515, extension 4030. at www.SanDiegoEpi.org click on the Safari Park tab or contact Jerry at Helping out at the past work parties were Sandra [email protected]. Additional Plants Wanted for the Species Collection E. baueri, E. hookeri ssp. Guata- E. phyllanthus ssp. E. crenatum ssp. Kimnachii, malense, Phyllanthus, E. grandilobum, E. hookeri ssp. Pittieri, E. phyllanthus ssp. Rubro- E. hookeri ssp. Columbiense, E. lepidocarpum, coronatum, January, 2015 SDES Epi News Page 4 From our Librarian: Get Your Facts First -- Linda Sinkovic “Get your facts first, then you resultant hybrids also prefer these can distort them as much as you conditions. Some hybrids are fussier than please…” -Mark Twain others – in my experience plants with flowers that resemble H. rosea are more Happy New Year and welcome to 2015! First of demanding to grow*7 – but all of them do not like all, I hope you were able to read December's Epi to be too dry or too wet. So if there's a Santa Ana Gram (SBES newsletter).*1 There was an *2 and the humidity is dropping, keep a close eye on excellent article on Holiday Cactus. If after your Easter Cacti. If it rains a lot – who knows, it reading it you are interested in more information could happen – make sure the pots are draining, on Holiday Cactus, the SDES has a book Christmas Cacti*3 available for checkout. So rather than re-invent the wheel I'll talk about a different type of epiphytic cactus which is also named after a holiday. Yes, let's talk about Easter Cactus! Easter Cactus are hybrids created by the crossing of Hatiora gaertneri and Hatiora rosea.*4 The Hatiora genus (of which there are six species) come from eastern and southeastern Brazil. Hatiora rosea lives in shady areas of the cloud forests of southern Brazil*5 so it does not do well with hot weather. Hatiora gaertneri occurs at lower elevations*6 in the same states as H. rosea, Hybrid 'Mira', more like H. rosea type though it is found higher up in the canopy. and not accumulating water.*8 Keep the plants at temperatures warmer than 50º F and cooler than 80º F. Except for H. rosea, I grow my plants in epi mix.*9 As far as sun exposure, H. rosea likes more shade, while H. gaertneri grows in amongst the epis. Hybrids that are more like H. rosea are happier in more shaded conditions. There are plenty of named hybrids of Easter Cacti though these are a little difficult to find. Locally, Matt Cheney*10 offers named hybrids for sale. Online, Logee's*11 and Whitton Greenhouses*12 Hybrid, more like H. gaertneri type also carry named hybrids. (Notes on following page.) As both these species grow in high humidity and Have a great month and see you in February. moderate temperatures, it's no surprise that the January, 2015 SDES Epi News Page 5 SDES Holiday Banquet Highlights --Cindy Decker We had a wonderful Holiday Party this year at the Butcher Shop with sixty-one attending. Will Harvey did a great job as always, as MC with the help of Don Crain and the Power- Point presentation. The tables were decorated with cyclamen plants and holiday colors. The guests all received an Epi of their choice and no one went home empty handed. Velma Crain, Don Crain, Cindy Decker, Marie Dempewolf, Misha Dobrotin, Michelle Finchum, Bill Greene, Judy Johnson, Rachel Lininger, Sue Mohler and Janet Sundtran all won raffle prizes. Jerry Moreau was awarded Honorary Life Member- ship Award and Janice Wakefield was honored with the “Roger Chapin Volunteer of the Year” Award. Congratula- tions to you both! Our thanks to the Butcher Shop for the well-prepared dinner Newly-installed president, Janice Wakefield, and we hope to return there next year. Our thanks to Mildred shares good times with Sandra Chapin and Jerry and Gerry Mikas for organizing such an outstanding event for Moreau, recipient of Honorary Life Membership. us. Facts First (Continued from page 4) Notes: 1. You do belong to South Bay Epiphyllum Society, right? If not, why not? Mail them at southbayepiso- [email protected] for information on how to join.