SOUTHERN ONTARIO ORCHID SOCIETY NEWS February 2015, Volume 50, Issue 2 Celebrating 50 years SOOS Web site: www.soos.ca ; Member of the Canadian Orchid Congress; Affiliated with the American Orchid Society, the Orchid Digest and the International Phalaenopsis Alliance. Membership: Annual Dues $30 per calendar year (January 1 to December 31 ). Surcharge $15 for newsletter by postal service. Membership secretary: Liz Mc Alpine, 189 Soudan Avenue, Toronto, ON M4S 1V5, phone 416-487-7832, renew or join on line at soos.ca/members Executive: President, Laura Liebgott, 905-883-5290; Vice-President, John Spears, 416-260-0277; Secretary, Sue Loftus 905-839-8281; Treasurer, John Vermeer, 905-823-2516 Other Positions of Responsibility: Program, Mario Ferrusi; Plant Doctor, Doug Kennedy; Meeting Set up, Yvonne Schreiber; Vendor and Sales table coordinator, Diane Ryley;Library Liz Fodi; Web Master, Max Wilson; Newsletter, Peter and Inge Poot; Annual Show, Peter Poot; Refreshments, Joe O’Regan. Conservation Committee, Susan Shaw; Show table, Synea Tan . Honorary Life Members: Terry Kennedy, Doug Kennedy, Inge Poot, Peter Poot, Joe O’Regan, Diane Ryley, Wayne Hingston, Mario Ferrusi. Annual Show: February 14-15, 2015 Next Meeting Sunday, January 25 , in the Floral Hall of the Toronto Botanical Garden, Sales 12 noon, Cultural snapshots will return at the March meeting. Program at 1 pm: Jay Norris and Terry Kennedy on what you need to do to enter plants into our show. Terry has many years experience preparing and entering plants at orchid shows, Jay is in charge of clerking at our show. Both are AOS judges and have grown and shown orchids for many years. Terry is currently the Chair of the Toronto Judging Centre and Jay is the award photographer. They will have tips on what classes to enter your plants in. Renew your Membership now at the membership desk, or you can renew at our website www.soos.ca Don’t miss our 50th anniversary 1 President’s Remarks Welcome Orchid purchase a set of books on miniature orchids called 'A Compendium of Miniature Orchid Species Volumes 1 Lovers. Once again, winter has reared its head. and 2'. These are terrific books from England. The price We don't know what each day will bring. What a way to is approximatly $88.00 per volume. To order them, th start our 50 year. I do know that this month, we are please contact Terry Kowalczuk at having an anniversary draw. Make sure you are there. [email protected] You will have to make the financial arrangements with Terry. This offer has been Thank you members (A through B) for supplying the extended until the second last week of February. The th treats for the January 4 meeting. They were delicious. books purchased will then be distributed at the meeting. th Treats for the January 25 meeting, will be from members whose last names begin with the letters C Looking forward to our next meeting. through D. (Note the date please) Laura Liebgott This brings us to the next reminder. Our “February” Questions or comments: Please contact me at: th meeting will actually be January 25 as we are heading [email protected] or 905 883 5290 into our show. At this meeting, our speakers Jay Norris and Terry Kennedy will walk you through the process of getting your plants ready for display at the show and how to register them for judging. Coming Events Our show will take place Valentine's weekend (February 2015 th th 14 and 15 ). We still are in need volunteers. Be sure to JANUARY sign up for one of the volunteer positions on January 25, SOOS meeting, Toronto Botanical Garden, sales th 25 , if you haven't already. 12 noon, program 1 pm. Preparing for Show Don Wyatt and Kyla Foti will be the main designers for FEBRUARY the SOOS exhibit. If you would like to get your fingers 14-15 SOOS Show+TJC Monthly judging, into the display, please come along and help these two Toronto Botanical Garden. out. Don has asked for plants to come in no later than 8 21, Montreal Judging Centre judging Jardin pm Friday February 13th. It takes a substancial amount botanique de Montreal of time to organize and reorganize the plants to show 21, Jump on Spring, 10am-4pm Toronto them off to their best advantage so.... the sooner you get Botanical Garden. them in, the earlier the group will be able to complete the 28, Mar 1 RBG Show + TJC Monthly Judging, Royal display. Botanical Gardens, Burlington. This starts the show season. MARCH February 28th — March 1st is the RGB's show — Don 8, SOOS meeting, Toronto Botanical Garden, will be organizing the SOOS display. sales 12 noon, program 1 pm. Tom Shields et al March 21st — March 22nd is London's show — I will be on Conservation. organizing the SOOS display. 14, Montreal Judging Centre judging Jardin March 28th — March 29th is the Montreal French show — botanique de Montreal. Don Wyatt will be organizing the SOOS display. 14-15, Genesee Region Orchid Show, Rochester, These are just a few shows in the near future. With your NY. plants, we can create a masterpiece! 21-22 London Orchid Show 20-22 Manitoba Orchid Show, Winnipeg. Some of our future speakers will be: *26-29 Saskatoon Orchid Show and Canadian th January 25 Jay Norris and Terry Kennedy Topic: Orchid Congress Annual Meeting, Saskatoon. Getting ready for the SOOS show 28-29 Les Orchidophiles de Montreal Show, March 8th Tom Shields Topic: Conservation th Montreal. April 12 Ron Burch Topic: Cypripediums May 3rd To be announced APRIL June 7th Fred Clark Topic to be announced 4 , Toronto Judging Centre, Monthly Judging, 1 pm Toronto Botanical Garden Our cultural snapshots will be returning for the March 12, SOOS meeting, Toronto Botanical Garden, sales meeting. Once again Wayne Hingston and Alexsi 12 noon, program 1 pm. Ron Burch on Cypripediums. Antanaitis will be delivering the topics. Please stay 11-12 Toronto Artistic Orchid Show, Toronto. tuned. There will be a list of the topics in the March 11- 12 Quebec City Orchid Show newsletter. 18-19 Ottawa Orchid Sodiety Show and MJC judging *29- May 3 AOS Trustees Meeting – Portland OR For those of you who were at the meeting on January th 4 , we had Terry Kowalczuk offer the society a chance to May Laeliocattleya City Life HCC-AOS 75 points, Joe 2, Toronto Judging Centre, Monthly Judging, 1 DiCiommo pm Toronto Botanical Garden Laeliocattleya City Life HCC-AOS 75 points, Joe 3, SOOS meeting, Toronto Botanical Garden, DiCiommo sales 12 noon, program 1 pm. Lepanthes aristata ‘Shooting Stars’ CBR-AOS, Ed Cott. 23, TJC Business Meeting, Jardin Botanique de (Mormodia [Mo.] Lime Tiger x Catasetum expansum) Montreal. Montreal judging. HCC-AOS 78 points, Lynda Vuurman. 23, MtlJC Monthly Judging, JbMtl Note! The next judging will be held at the Toronto Botanical Gardens, Saturday, January 14 after ribbon judging of the SOOS show. AOS Judging is a service of the American Orchid Society and is open to all! Plants SOOS Annual Valentine Orchid Show, for AOS judging do not have to be entered into the show. February 14 – 15, 2015 at the Toronto Botanical Garden. We Need you to Plant of the Month volunteer to help us with the Show. Please sign up. Our show date is fast approaching, are you ready? Participation gets you free entry to the show. We will need your flowering plants for the SOOS display in the show. This year in honour of our 50th anniversary there will be a trophy for the best orchid in the SOOS display. So start grooming your potential winners. Our show also features an exhibition of orchid art and photography. Contact Judy Palmer ([email protected] ) for the rules and to reserve Mario Ferrusi won the honour this month with space. his lovely two lead plant of Fredclarkeara Enter We need you to volunteer to help with setup and Night AM-AOS. It had been awarded the day teardown, kitchen food and drink distribution, show before at the Toronto Judging Centre Meeting supervision (security), plant and coat check, show and had received an 87 point AM. It had three tours, clerking and judging. Sign up sheets for these inflorescences with 9, 10 and 11 big, dark wine jobs with the details are at each of our meetings. Please flowers respectively, the flowers enhanced by sign up, we need you to pre-register yourself so we can prepare name badges. colourful spotted lips. Mario grows the plant in his usual mix of bark, Thank you for your help. Peter Poot, show chair. crumbled Styrofoam and chopped sphagnum. He gives it cattleya light all year. He keeps it For a list of Vendors selling at our show see dry in winter but gives it as much water and our previous Newsletter. fertilizer as possible in the summer growing period. A wonderful plant, beautifully grown! Congratulations! AOS Judging Results Please note, all of these awards are provisional until published by the American Orchid Society. Toronto Judging Centre January 3, 2015: Inge’s Programme Notes: Dendrochilum bicallosum ‘Pink Coral’CCM-AOS 83 points, Doug and Terry Kennedy. Last month Jean Allen Ikeson gave us a great Fredclarkeara Enter Night AM-AOS 87 points, Mario and talk about the genus Conni Ferrusi. Sarcochilus. Cycnodes James Davidson ’B-C’ AM-AOS 80 points, Bernie Butts and Chuck Lefaive. 3 This mostly Australian genus consists of about of the flower and has been nick-named the 24 species. They are epiphytes (grow on trees poached egg orchid! trunks) or lithophytes (grow on rocks) or twig Last but not least, S.