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Is it spring yet? Well, not
really, but on a couple of recent sunny days the greenhouse temperatures
have risen into the 90s and we have begun to add shade cloth to protect the
plants. Another harbinger of spring is the Philadelphia Flower
Show which takes place at the PA Convention Center from March 2 - 9th.
I want to remind you that we will NOT be a participating vendor at the show
this year. We decided after last year's show that our ten year run at
the show would be enough for us. However, we have decided that
there is no reason we can't continue to have our Post Flower Show Sale!
This will take place daily from March 12th to March 16th. There will
be lots of great plants on sale. A mailing and email will be sent
around the first of March for more details.
John and I attended the World Orchid Congress in
Miami back in January and it was a fun and satisfying experience. The
show was spectacular and the exhibit by Frank Smith from Krull-Smith
Nurseries was the finest orchid exhibit I have seen in the past 20 years
(see Phrag besseae bridge and Phal schilleriana tree above).
It was completely artistic and the plant selection was remarkable. We
have included a few pictures at the top of this letter to demonstrate.
I have never seen such high quality and well grown Paphiopedilums and
Phragmipediums in my orchid lifetime. I am so glad we did not miss
this experience. Of course, there were other great exhibits and
exciting plants throughout the large exhibit center. Lectures were
interesting but most of all we visited with many, many friends from all over
the world. It was sometimes difficult to look at the show and
sales area because every time you turned around there was someone else from
Taiwan, Ecuador, Colombia, Hawaii and Europe to greet. I felt that
this event was a big success for the United States and that the organizers
should be very pleased with the result of years of planning and
organization.
John is off to Taiwan on March 4th for a week.
He will be giving a talk at the Taiwan Orchid Show and Symposium. His
topic will be The Business of Biodiversity: Orchid Conservation.
As a new member of the AOS Conservation Committee, this
is a timely topic for John to be learning about.
While there he will also be searching for interesting plants for our nursery
and he has visits scheduled at several nurseries in Taiwan.
On April 5th, I will be speaking at the American
Orchid Society Headquarters in Delray Beach, Florida. ( I like my trip
better as there is a LOT less flying involved). The AOS offers a
series of educational classes at the Headquarters and I will be speaking on
The Latest trends in Intergeneric Oncidinae and their culture. Many
are being bred for their tolerance to warmer temperatures, so this will be a
good topic for southern Florida. If you're in the area, consider
signing up for my class.
Also in our future schedule, we will be
participating in the Southeastern Pennsylvania Orchid Society Show at
Longwood Gardens in Wilmington, DE on March 28 to 30th. We
certainly hope to see many of you at that show. Longwood puts on an
orchid exhibit throughout their Conservatory and Greenhouses at this time of
year, and the event culminates in the Orchid Show at the end of the month.
It is not to be missed.
That's all from me for the moment, but I will
ask John to sign off with a short paragraph about the Paphiopedilum Forum he
attended. This event is sponsored by the National Capital Orchid
Society in Washington, DC and is always a great day.
The Paph Forum as always was a wonderful day for
Paphaholics, a big thanks to Bill and Lynn and their faithful
volunteers . There were about 10 Vendors with many interesting plants. Lots
of AOS awards were given out including or Paph. (wenshanense x Hsinying
Sceptre) pictured above. It received a 78 point HCC. This hybrid was
bred by Ching Hua Nurseries in Taiwan. They will be registering the hybrid
soon. They also produced a Paph. (bellatulum x Hsinying Sceptre) which
should also be very dark but more purple in color. I heard one of the best
talks yet on "Natural Variation of Paphiopedilum Species in Vietnam" by
Leonid Averyanov, Ph.D. from the Russian Academy of Science. It was a very
in depth and thorough discussion of this topic, with an incredible
collection of pictures to illustrate. I can't imagine what Dr. Averyanov had
to do to get these pictures.
All the best, Tom and John @ Parkside
To view old newsletters click here:
September 2007,
November 2007,
January 2008 |
