You are invited to view Ron Ludwig’s photo album: SCOS Greenhouse Tour 2011
SCOS Greenhouse Tour 2011
May 14, 2011
by Ron Ludwig
Annual SCOS greenhouse tour.
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Excellent Orchid Pictures from POE 2011
Thank you to members who submitted their photos of 2011 POE:
View Gail Beach’s photo album on Picasa
View Ron Ludwig’s photo album on Picasa
POE Teardown Went Quickly
Thanks to those who helped out, the display was dismantled and packed up fairly quickly. Special thanks go to: Pat Olson, Cathy Thompson, John and Sandra Merlo, Adam Anderson and his friends Jack and Ryan, Bill Stott, Bill and Paaget Lenarz, Jerry and Judith Miller, Solveig Erlingsson, Gail Beach, Ron Ludwig, Mary Ann Aleandri and her Italian cousin Renato, Paul and Phyllis Chim, and Sandra Fallat. If you helped and were not listed, please accept our apologies.
MOS orchid display at POE 2011
MOS’ innovative display featured the Natural Wonders of orchids in their natural habitat and in the home. Orchid logs and mountainous terrain were features of nature while the home display showed how an orchid lover can create a habitat at home that mimics fairly closely the natural one. Two awards were given to MOS, as shown in these pictures.
2011 PACIFIC ORCHID EXPO – Setup
Wednesday March 2 setup photos of 2011 Pacific Orchid Expo.
REPOTTING FOR BETTER GROWING
Already Thinking About it?
Take Advantage of Mary Ann’s Experience
Over the summer and fall, I repotted all of my orchids … over 400 (I lost count). Our editor asked me to share my experiences because I am using the redwood bark that Tom Perlite discussed.
For those who did not know, I was an avid fan of a potting mix names Aussie Gold and I used it almost exclusively. (I sometimes I used sphagnum moss and still use it.) While I had amazing results using Aussie Gold when I grew indoors, I ran into problems growing in my greenhouse. My fault really; I just could not stop watering every week! in the higher humidity of my greenhouse, the poor roots were kept just a little too wet. Not so wet that they did not survive, but wet enough that they did not thrive. To remedy the situation, I repotted almost everything (except for those who loved that moisture) in Rexius Bark, medium or small, depending on the type of roots. Even all my bare-root Vandaceous orchids went into bark.
I have also been experimenting with gorilla hair (shredded redwood bark that can be cheaply bought at any landscape company). I really like it; so far it is working well. I have a couple of small Catts, a couple of Oncidiums, and a couple of Bulbos in the stuff. All are doing okay. We’ll see what summer brings. I don’t want to have to water more than once or twice a week, so I may go back to moss for some; time will tell and I will report the results later in the growing season.
Because I was worried about the orchids being too dry compared to their previous medium, I added diatomite to the bark and to the gorilla hair. (I also added a little charcoal.) The neat thing about the diatomite is that the water it holds evaporates out of it s-l-o-w-l-y without keeping a whole lot of wet at the roots. I used roughly a 1 to 5 mix of diatomite to bark. For the gorilla hair, I lined the bottom of the pot with diatomite, depending on how much moisture that orchid likes.
I am happy to report that all my hard work (and it really was, although a labor of love) really pleased “the girls” as I like to call them! The Catts have thanked me from week one; they seemed brighter and stood up better and I now have new growth and plants flowering that would not before. The Vandas are also spiking and flowering well: no more blasting (as they were doing before being repotted). The Oncidiums seem to be doing okay, although I am worried that they may need more than weekly watering in the summer. If this turns out to be the case, I am unwilling to do this and they may need to into moss.
For those who want to know, you can buy enough Rexius bark at the Marin Orchid Society meetings to report a few plants. This mix contains charcoal and perlite. If you need to replant a lot of orchids, I bought huge bags of Rexius bark from Jim and Kris Foster of the Sonoma Orchid Society. The diatomite can found online.
Happy repotting next season!
Tour of California Orchids, Bolinas, CA
Members of the Sonoma County and the Marin County Orchid Societies tour Mary Nisbet’s California Orchids on November 20, 2010. Although the weather forecast said 80% chance of rain, sunshine with some clouds favored the tour.
Mary’s story behind her cork orchid logs, featured in a recent AOS Orchids magazine, was much more meaningful when participants could see how the plants grew and spread in a habitat that resembled their natural ones. The northernmost one is covered with Central and South American plants while the one in the southern, warmer part of the greenhouse is loaded with Asian orchids. They are not fertilized but are watered in the warm seasons. Because many of them like to go dry in winter, Mary hand waters those that requirement moisture in the cool winter months.
Because she allows most of the natural flora that come from the logs to flourish, we got to see orchids and mushrooms growing side by side. In a few situations where two hearty species grew side by side, it became apparent that one or the other would likely dominate in the next year or so.
Now four years old, the logs have begun to decay from the inside out. One has broken apart and some of the others have developed weak sections that are propped up with bamboo poles. Mary intends to let them decay naturally.
THE MARIN COUNTY FAIR WAS A GLOBAL SUCCESS!
Applause to all those who helped set up the fair, brought plants, met with the public to talk about orchids and MOS, and especially to those early risers who took down the display. Wow! Your enthusiasm and your dependability are much appreciated.
The display was truly spectacular and Ron Ludwig’s stand worked perfectly to show off the orchids. Black cloths were the backdrop to illuminate the big orchid-inspired masks. These in turn set off the gorgeous orchids in the display.
Charlie Barboni, who is the manager in charge of the entire agriculture area of the Fair, said that it was Marin Orchid Society’s “BEST DISPLAY EVER!” Yea!! Huge, well-deserved congratulations!
MOS members really gave it their best, time and time again. Set up was done by Mary Ann Aleandri, Bill Stott, Sandra Fallat, Linda Tripp, Sandra and John Merlo, Ron Ludwig, Cathy Thompson, Barbara Herod, and Susan Anderson.
Beautiful blooming orchids were shown by Sandra Fallat, Linda Tripp, Sandra and John Merlo, Bill Lenarz, Mary Ann Aleandri, Ron Ludwig, Barbara Herod, Kathy Keller, Carolyn Fisher, Bernie Kepke, and Susan Anderson. Plus an extra thank you goes to Sandra Fallat for going all the way home in rush hour traffic to get an extra dozen plants to get MOS over our bare minimum of 50 plants as required by the Fair contract.
Thank you to everyone who did shifts at the Fair: Debra Ryves, Lisa Miller, Carolyn Fisher, Julie Walker, Carol Gotti, Mary Ann Aleandri, Lynne Murrell, Bill and Paget Lenarz, Bill Stott, Sandra and John Merlo, Barbara Herod, Kathy and Melissa Keller, Ron Ludwig, Cathy Thompson, Linda Tripp, Susan Seelig, Cristy Herrmann and her friend Jo, and Susan Anderson. Thank you to Jeff Mulanax for doing the orchid demos.
One last thank you: Thank you to everyone who showed up at 7am on Tuesday morning after the Fair for a speedy take down! There were about 10 of us and it went really fast!
Special appreciation to the organizational skills of Susan Anderson who made things go smoothly and easily!
JUNE 5: RE-POTTING FOR MEMBERS AND THE PUBLIC!
On June 5, from 10-2, MOS staged a second orchid re-potting and culture event for members and the public at MAGC. This event gives MOS two opportunities:
- Make re-potting simpler for members and the public
- Attract new members.
Members had arrived at 8:30 for setup and soaking bark so that everything was ready at 10. Our signs plus infomercials in the area’s papers caught the attention of our visitors.
Weather was excellent, the turnout good, and plants looked happy to be re-potted, particularly some large ones that had been in the same container and medium for quite a few years.
It was fun to meet orchid growers who had had great success with their plants and who appreciated our guidance in moving them into new media and new pots. And, in a few cases, orchids may have been saved from a certain early demise because they were so crowded and new roots were struggling to find life among old, dead root systems. We did what we know best and gave growing tips to those who came. Thanks to you MOS members who put in a good day’s work: Glenn, Bill L, Bill S, John, Susan, Lynne, Carol, Ron, Gail, Sandra M and Sandra F!