newsHow about alternating meetings every other month with some sort of event such as organized visits to professional growers and shows in other centres, communal potting sessions, or a bus trip to a greenhouse at a university or botanical garden to see their orchid collection. When organizing group activities, try to pair up newer members with more experienced growers.
Establish a mentoring program. Offer a service to visit newer members to help them decide the best location for their plants. Try to make activities fun for all so that they look forward to the next meeting or event while they are learning about orchids. Remember that the mentor often gets as much pleasure from imparting knowledge as the beginner gets through learning.
Why not have a program about growing orchids from flasks? The society could purchase several flasks and let the members deflask the plants and pot the plants up in compots or as individuals under the leadership of the speaker. Everyone gets a plant or compot then every few meetings, they compare how their plants are doing. Phalaenopsis seedlings grow quickly and would be a good choice for this project. Follow-up programs on Phalaenopsis culture, growing under lights, potting media, etc could easily round out a season of learning together.
Let's resolve to try some new approach to programming in the year 2000. Our members are our most valuable asset. They buy plants, grow plants and show orchids. They are the backbone of shows and reason why orchid societies exist. Orchid societies are about caring and sharing the whole year through!
Marilyn Light, President
President and Conservation Committee Chair
LONDON 2000
Planning for the next COC meeting in conjunction with the
London Orchid Society show is well underway. All societies should
have received publicity and registration forms. Early bird
registration deadline is Dec. 31,1999. We look forward to seeing
you in London, Ontario in March 4-5, 2000. Check out the COC
website for a direct link to show information.
http://www.chebucto.ns.ca/Recreation/OrchidSNS/coc.html
17th WOC PLANNING IS UNDERWAY
Shah Alam, Malaysia is host city to the 17th World Orchid Conference, which will be held from 24th April until 4th May, 2002. They have just finalized the appointment of the full organizing committee. Abu Bakar Ahmad has been appointed as Chairman of the Proceeding and Editorial Committee. He is also in the Exhibitors Liaison Committee and the Sales Liaison Committee. We had the pleasure of meeting Abu and the Malaysian delegation in Vancouver. Expect more information about this exciting world class orchid event in the coming months.
A VIRTUAL SOCIETY : THE FIRST MEETING OF ORCHID SAFARI
On Nov. 10, Orchid Safari, the first internet-based orchid society, held a virtual meeting complete with Announcements, Treasurer's Report, Topic and Show Table with on-line judging and ribbons being awarded. Visit http://www.geocities.com/~marylois/arch249.html to see the show table plants.
AMERICAN ORCHID SOCIETY TRUSTEES MEETING AND SHOW, April 26-30, 2000
Belleview Biltmore Resort and Spa, Clearwater, Florida: Orchid Exhibits; Orchid Sales with Local, National and International Vendors; Ribbon and AOS Judging; Cultural and Scientific Lectures; Tours of Local Growers, the Marie Selby Botanical Garden and Orchid Identification Center; Meetings and Lectures by the North American Native Orchid Society, the International Phalaenopsis Alliance, and the Pleurothallid Alliance; Show admission$2, lectures $3 ea.; Contact Florida Spring Fling, 4713 Foxshire Circle, Tampa, FL 33624; phone: (813) 968-3402; email: orchidaholic@worldnet.att.net
VIDEO AVAILABLE OF THE 16TH WOC
Dick Oertel tells us that a 75 minute videotape of the 16th World Orchid Conference, Vancouver, 1999 is now available. The price per tape (VHS) is $20 plus $6 for shipping and handling.
Contact Dick at:
Avanti Productions
Attn: Dick Oertel
6650 Culloden St.
Vancouver BC V5X 4J2
Tel: (604) 321-2891
THE INTELLIGENT PLANT LIGHT ®
One new product of interest to hobbyists is the Intelligent Plant Light which combines a timer, light and moisture sensor in one compact desktop structure. Perfect for a livingroom coffee table which is where I have mine located. The one Phal growing as test is doing extremely well. A little green light tells me when to water. This is available in Canada at stores like Walmart, through mailorder from Stokes Seeds Ltd, and from indoor gardening centres. The price is in the $55-60 range.
BRITE-LITE GROUP
The COC is currently negotiating with the Brite-lite Group for group purchase of some of their books such as "Grow Rooms Simplified". As soon as negotiations are concluded, we will inform all societies how to take advantage of the offer.
WILDCATT UPDATE AVAILABLE
The Fall 99 Wildcatt Orchids database update is available. This update is a great improvement over previous versions in that earlier Awards data has been included as well as Sander's orchid registration data and Awards Quarterly data up to August 1999. You can order by phone, fax or at the secure order web site.
Wildcatt Database Co. Tel: (515) 232-4720 Fax: (515) 233-8445
Email: orchids@WildcattData.com
WEB: www.WildcattData.com
FRAGRANT ORCHID SLIDE PROGRAM AVAILABLE
A 40-slide program has been developed by Marilyn Light for loan to orchid societies. So far, the program has proven popular for live presentation. Marilyn travelled to Halifax in June (OSNS), to Kingston ON (KOS) in September and will be presenting in Montréal QC (ECOS) in late November. The program comes with slide descriptions and an article about orchid fragrance. Program rental is by reservation. Plan well ahead to be sure to get the program when you want it. The rental fee is $25 payable to the Canadian Orchid Congress. In addition, the society borrowing the program is responsible for the expense of insured return postage and packing. Contact Marilyn Light for information.
NATIVE ORCHIDS OF QUÉBEC SLIDE PROGRAM SOON AVAILABLE
An 80-slide program covering orchid habitats and species likely to be found in such habitats in Québec has been developed. It has already been given once: another two bookings have been made. So far, Marilyn Light has or will give the program in person but a bilingual text is being developed to permit the delivery of a program from a north-south or a south-north viewpoint. More information will be available in the next newsletter.
NEW WAPPRIITA REGULATORY PROPOSALS
The Canadian Orchid Congress has been given the opportunity to respond to the regulatory proposals recently circulated and which were discussed in detail at the public consultation meetings attended by the COC President in the spring of 1998.
PERSONAL AND HOUSEHOLD EFFECTS EXEMPTION
This initiative applies to exemptions from CITES permit requirements for temporary movement into and out of Canada of personal and household effects. "This in no way would affect any permits or other requirements under Canada's Plant Protection Act". We are particularly interested in this provision as it applies to the movement of orchid plants transported for non-commercial exhibition purposes. We have suggested that the sole document needed to accompany plants to and from the USA be a phytosanitary certificate as this will both attest to the identity and health of the effects being exported and later imported. We have requested clarification of this process. We would be particularly interested in taking part in consultations during the development of information materials to explain the proposed exemptions to the public. We certainly want to inform our membership of new regulations rather than having them find out what they can and cannot do on an ad hoc basis. We are willing to post the new rules at our COC website and/or cross-link with Environment Canada's CITES Web pages and publish the information in our newsletters and have requested that they continue to keep us informed.
EXPÉRIENCE ENRICHISSANTE/ AN ENRICHING EXPERIENCE
In late September, I travelled to the Lac-St.-Jean region of Québec to present a slide program about the native orchids of Québec. It was my first visit to the region. The host society was the 70-member Les Orchidophiles du Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean who meet monthly in the CEGEP (college) de Jonquière. The trip was a fascinating and beautiful 8-hour drive from Ottawa/Hull through Montréal, Québec City then northwards towards Lac-St-Jean. The presentation was geared to the area and covered orchid habitats and species likely to be found there. We then examined more southerly regions such as in a the Ottawa-Hull region where many more orchid species may be found. The society wants to start an orchid survey in 2000 and were pleased to have some pointers.
I was pleased to visit a more distant region and participate in a meeting of enthusiasts who are like all of us, hobbyists concerned with getting orchids to bloom and showing what they grow at their monthly meetings. Their annual show is planned for April 15-16, 1999.
We returned via the St. Maurice River valley past fast-flowing waters and rolling hillsides covered in colourful autumn foliage. It is a wonderful region to visit. The hospitality is superb.
En Septembre, j'ai voyager à Jonquière, Québec à faire un exposé sur les orchidées du Québec au Club des Orchidophiles du Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean. Une de mes objectifs est a donné le goût d'aller plus loin dans l'aventure d'observation des espèces présentes en grand nombre dans la région. Certains des membres veut faire des sorties. Il est sûr qu'à la venue du printemps un petit comité intensifera ses recherches et planifera des sorties bénéfiques pour leurs connaissances en matière d'orchidées indigènes de la région.
N'oubliez pas une opportunité de voyager dans la région de Lac-St-Jean. La prochaine exposition d'orchidées est organisé pour les 15 et 16 avril 2000. Ils vous accueilleront avec joie.
Marilyn Light
NORTH AMERICAN REGIONAL ORCHID SPECIALIST GROUP ESTABLISHED
The North American Regional Orchid Specialist Group (NAROSG) has been established as part of an international network of professional and non-professional volunteers to assist in international efforts to conserve orchid diversity. Marilyn Light, SFP-PTS, University of Ottawa, President and Conservation Chair of the Canadian Orchid Congress will Chair the North American Regional Group.
The NAROSG is a sub-group of the Orchid Specialist Group of the Species Survival Commission (SSC) of IUCN-The World Conservation Union. The NAROSG has over 15 active members from Canada and the United States whose expertise is essential to implementing the IUCN/SSC Orchid Specialist Group Strategic Plan in North America. Disciplines represented in the NAROSG include orchid taxonomy, ecology, population biology, molecular biology, in vitro propagation, nature reserve management, communication and education. There is representation from botanic gardens, governmental departments, nurseries, orchid hobbyist societies and universities.
One of the first tasks of the NAROSG will be to develop an Action Plan for the region.
For more information:
Marilyn Light
174, rue Jolicoeur
Hull QC J8Z 1C9
Canada
Tel: (819) 776-2655
Fax: (819) 776-3703
E-mail: mlight@uottawa.ca
CROSS-CANADA SPEAKER TOUR BEING ORGANIZED FOR SEPT 2000
Vice President Lynne Cassidy reports that a Canada-wide
speaking tour has been arranged with Francisco Miranda. Possible
topics were listed in the last newsletter. The cost of this very
exciting tour will be divided equally amongst the participating
societies. Lynne will shortly be in touch with all societies as
to their preferred dates. It is likely that some societies will
have to accept a date other than their regular meeting time.
Lynne asks that societies get in touch with her to confirm their
preferred topic, meeting date preference, etc., by the end of
January 2000 at the latest. Her telephone is (604) 536-8185; fax
(604) 536-6377;
email c/o Bruce Hickey at <bruce.hickey@home.com>
THREE SOCIETIES FOLD
Three COC member societies have ceased operation in 1999. These are Westman OS, David Thompson OS and the Orchid Society of New Brunswick. While society business activities are suspended, hobbyists are still actively growing orchids in these communities. We encourage these hobbyists to join another active society in their province or region. This way they will maintain contact with the Canadian hobbyist community. We hope to hear of one or more fledgling societies starting up in these regions soon.
Treasurer, Janette Richardson has sent dues notices to all societies. Please respond promptly.
Past President, Jeanette Arthurs is Chairman of the Nominating Committee. She will have a complete slate to present in the next Newsletter which will be published at least 30 days prior to the COC meeting in London, Ontario. Please contact Jeanette directly at (613) 225-6941 if you have any suggestions or nominations.
by Elmer Spence <espence@tampabay.rr.com>
Copyright April, 1999
The genus Phalaenopsis was constructed by Karl Ludwig Blume in 1825. It contains plants having a wide variety of characteristics and was in great confusion until 1968 when Dr. Herman R. Sweet published a system of classification in the American Orchid Society Bulletin. He divided the genus into ten sections and classified the various species into sections based upon common floral and vegetative characteristics. He named one of the sections Stauroglottis based upon the species historically known as Stauroglottis equestris but which was determined to be the same as Phalaenopsis equestris. Sweet placed three species in the section, Phal. lindenii, Phal. celebensis and Phal. equestris. Dr. Eric Christenson told us during his talk in March that he ready to publish a re-evaluation of genus Phalaenopsis. During private conversations he stated that he still concurs with Sweet's placements for Stauroglottis.
Long thought to be endemic to the Philippine Islands, Phalaenopsis equestris is also found on Taiwan, on Orchid Island off the southeast tip of Taiwan and Syokotosyo (Riteiwan) Island, Little Borel and Tobago Island. Phalaenopsis equestris is found all over the Philippine Islands and has been recorded from Batane, Bohol, Camaguin, Leyte, Luzon, Mindinao, Panay and Saman in the lowlands up to 300 meters. Phalaenopsis celebensis and Phal. lindenii, in contrast, are found in the mountains of the Philippine Islands at elevations above 500 meters. The annual minimum temperature in the region is about forty-two degrees F.
From the above discussion it can be seen that species of the Stauroglottis Section range from near the equator at about four degrees north latitude to about twenty three degrees north latitude near the south end of the island of Taiwan. For orientation, these latitudes are comparable to the Caribbean Sea in the western hemisphere.
The three species are very similar in appearance to the casual observer. They all have many small pink or pink blushed or striped flowers which are 3-5 cm across and held on branched arching inflorescences. Upon closer examination, as a taxonomist might do, we discover that distinguishing characteristics for Phal. lindenii are mottled green leaves, green rachis or main stem of the inflorescence, rounded lip, and a 6-8 sided callus. Phal. celebensis is similar to Phal. lindenii in having richly mottled leaves but differs by having a triangular callus. Often the sepals are strongly reflexed and the petals a cupped. This makes the flowers look like kernels of popped corn. P. equestris can be distinguished from Phal. lindenii by its green leaves having no mottling, its purplish rachis and a lip more sharply pointed than Phal. lindenii.
Obviously, it can be difficult to distinguish one species from the other. This has long been a problem for taxonomists and breeders working with this section. Sweet recognized Phal. equestris as a variable species with two major color forms--a solid pink form and a pink-blushed form. Many taxonomists and hybridizers believed Phal. lindenii was a hybrid between Phal. schilleriana and Phal. equestris. Phalaenopsis lindenii was often mis-identified by breeders and growers as the pink-blushed form of Phal. equestris. In addition, the hybrid Phal. Venus, a cross between Phal. equestris and Phal. lindenii, was widely distributed and mis-identified as pure Phal. equestris (Griesbach, 1998). This confusion led to some interesting situations for Phal. equestris breeders and the registration records for hybrids made prior to 1969.
Phalaenopsis equestris has been and continues to be used widely in hybridizing programs. It has contributed to several lines of breeding including the white with red lip Phalaenopsis hybrids, the multifloral lines and until recently was widely accepted as the primary contributor to the breeding lines which produced striped Phalaenopsis hybrids. However, Dr. Robert Griesbach published a report in 1998 which offers convincing evidence that Phal. Ruby Lips, the first good striped hybrid, was the product of Phal. lindenii influences in one of its parents. That parent was Phal. Roselle . It is officially registered as a cross between Phal. Elizabethae, which has a large white flower, and Phal. equestris. Dr. Griesbach's research led him to the conclusion that the Phal equestris clone used for the cross was, in all probability, a misidentified Phal lindenii.
Phalaenopsis celebensis, the popcorn orchid, has received seven flower quality awards from the AOS and its best know progeny is Phal. Little Skipper (P. Cellinde x P. equestris) which has received three quality awards. Hybridizers have increased interest in Phal. celebensis in the 1990's.
Phalaenopsis lindenii has received eleven flower quality awards from the AOS and can be found in the background of over 287 hybrids. It conveys pink stripes to its progeny, including such well known hybrids as Phal. Peppermint (P. lindenii x P. Profusion), Phal. Chorus Girl (P. lindenii x P. Show Girl), Phal. Little Hal (P. Cassandra x P. Peppermint) and Phal. Peppermint Girl (P. Malibu Girl x P. Peppermint)
Phalaenopsis equestris, by far the best known of the Stauroglottis Section, has received 40 awards from the AOS and has been used extensively for hybridizing. It is credited with providing the red lip in the semi-alba breeding line, represented in our society by the award-winning hybrids produced by Gene and Donna Sitton. They have received numerous awards, capped by the Award of Quality given to Phal. Eugene Sitton (P. Donna Sitton x P. Fifi). Phal. equestris is also being used extensively in breeding multifloral hybrids. These include such award-winning hybrids as Phal. Carmela's Pixie (P. Terilyn Fujitake x P. Cassandra), Phal. Zuma's Pixie (P. Carmela's Pixie x P. equestris), P. Be Glad (P. Swiss Miss x P. Cassandra) and Phal. Be Tris ( P. Be Glad x P. equestris).
2000
February 12 - 13: Southern Ontario Orchid Society, Toronto Civic Garden Centre, 777 Lawrence Ave. E at Leslie St., Toronto, Ontario.
March 2-5: The Victoria Orchid Society. 'A Window to Orchids' At the Leonardo da Vinci Centre, 195 Bay St., Victoria. Viewing and sales March 4-5. Contact: Mrs. Jeanette Franson, #213 2575 Alexander St., Duncan, BC Phone:250-715-0899.
March 3 - 5: Orchid Odyssey, COC Show, London, Ont. Contact: Judy Worrall, jworrall@ciaccess.com or by snail mail: Judy Worrall, London Orchid Society, Suite 162, 509 Commissioners Rd. W., London, Ont., N6J 1Y5. Phone: 519 471-2027
March 17 - 19: The Manitoba Orchid Society. For more information, please email: mosorchids@home.com
March 25 - 26: Orchid Society of the Royal Botanical Gardens, the 19th annual Show, 680 Plains Rd., Burlington, ON. Contact: Jim Brasch at jbrasch@mcmaster.ca
April 1 - 2: Les Orchidophiles de Montreal Show, College de Maisonneuve, 2700 Bourbonniere St., Montreal, Quebec. For more information: http://www.dunord.com/orchidophiles
April 7 - 9: The Regina Orchid Society at the Core Ritchie Community Centre, Regina. Contact Bryan Hebb, President, ROS For more information: bhebb@sk.sympatico.ca (306) 586-4789 fax (306)586-4790
April 29 - 30: Ottawa Orchid Society show, Nepean Sportsplex, 1701 Woodroffe Ave., Nepean
Sept 30 - Oct 1: Central Ontario Orchid Society, Peter Clark Hall at the University of Guelph, Guelph
Nov 4 - 5: Niagara Region OS, Queen Elizabeth Centre, Facer St. (QEW and Niagara St), St Catherines
The purpose of COC news is to inform members of the meetings, policies of the COC, to profile members, and to provide technical information regarding happenings, trends and techniques in orchid culivation across the country and around the world.
We welcome your suggestions and contributions. Deadline for each issue is one month before the issue dates previously announced.
Recipients of this newsletter are strongly urged to pass a copy on to other members of their society
Officers of the Canadian Orchid Congress
President ..... Marilyn Light
819-776-2655
email: mlight@uottawa.ca
Past President Jeanette Arthurs
613-225-6941
email: arthurs@cyberus.ca
Vice-President Lynne Cassidy
604-536-8185
Treasurer ........ Janette Richardson
306-543-0560
Secretary .......... Judy Browne
204-888-2656
email: browne0@ibm.net
Education ...... Ken Girard
403-283-6013
Conservation . Marilyn Light
819-776-2655
email: mlight@uottawa.ca
COC Web Site:
http://www.chebucto.ns.ca/Recreation/OrchidSNS/coc.html
Please send in your show information - date, location, contact, etc.