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CALOOSAHATCHEEBROMELIADSOCIETYs

CALOOSAHATCHEEMERISTEM

3836 Hidden Acres Circle N

North Fort Myers Fl 33903

(239) 997-2237

DrLarry@COMCAST.NETMay 2010

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EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

leanor Kinzie (bprevattpcc@aol.com)ohn Cassani (jcassani@comcast.net)oss Griffith etty Ann Prevatt (bprevattpcc@aol.com)onna Schneider (sgarydonna@aol.com)

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STANDING COMMITTEES CHAIRPERSONS

Larry Giroux (DrLarry@comcast.net)Brian Weber

Bruce McAlpin Steve Hoppin (steveandlarry@comcast.net)Gail Daneman (bob@fesq.net)Vicky Chirnside (vickychirn@aol.com)

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htia rosettekes of nummeliads to y also havent, a uniqud tolerant.

OTHER COMMITTEES

Bob Lura, Terri Lazar and Vicki ChirnsideTerri Lazar (terriLML@earthlink.net)Mary McKenzie; Sue GordonBetsy Burdette (betsy@burdetteinc.com)Greeter/Membership table volunteers - Dolly Dalton,Luli WestraLarry GirouxBetty Ann Prevatt, Dolly Dalton (dollyd@comcast.net),Luli WestraDale Kammerlohr (dzdase@mbrqmail.com)Mary McKenzie Kay Janssen

The opinions expressed in the Meristem are those of the authors. They do notThe opinions expressed in the Meristem are those of the authors. They do notThe opinions expressed in the Meristem are those of the authors. They do notThe opinions expressed in the Meristem are those of the authors. They do notThe opinions expressed in the Meristem are those of the authors. They do notnecessarily represent the views of the Editor or the official policy of CBS. Permissionnecessarily represent the views of the Editor or the official policy of CBS. Permissionnecessarily represent the views of the Editor or the official policy of CBS. Permissionnecessarily represent the views of the Editor or the official policy of CBS. Permissionnecessarily represent the views of the Editor or the official policy of CBS. Permissionto reprint is granted with acknowledgement. Original art work remains the propertyto reprint is granted with acknowledgement. Original art work remains the propertyto reprint is granted with acknowledgement. Original art work remains the propertyto reprint is granted with acknowledgement. Original art work remains the propertyto reprint is granted with acknowledgement. Original art work remains the propertyof the artist and special permission may be needed for reproduction.of the artist and special permission may be needed for reproduction.of the artist and special permission may be needed for reproduction.of the artist and special permission may be needed for reproduction.of the artist and special permission may be needed for reproduction.

PRESIDENTVICE-PRESIDENT

SECRETARYTREASURER

PAST-PRESIDENT

EJRBD

AUDIO/VISUAL SETUPDOOR PRIZE

HOSPITALITYSPECIAL HOSPITALITY

RAFFLE TICKETS

RAFFLE COMMENTARYGREETERS/ATTENDENCE

SHOW & TELL

FM-LEE GARDEN COUNCILLIBRARIAN

ASSISTANT LIBRARIAN

CALOOSAHATCHEE BROMELIADSOCIETY OFFICERS

NEWSLETTER EDITORFALL SALES CHAIR

FALL SALES Co-CHAIRPROGRAM CHAIRPERSON

WORKSHOP CHAIRPERSON SPECIAL PROJECTS

CBS FCBS Rep. CBS FCBS Rep.

nt tour of the terrestrial house at Tropiflora by grower Rayotographed this Hechtia lyman-smithii in full bloom. Althoughs (see picture on back cover) are seldom ostentatious, their longerous and sometimes colorful flowers make them worth-whilegrow in your collection, including a succulent garden. On occasions the trait of being able to bloom a second time from the mother

e characteristic among bromeliads as well as being somewhat morePhotos by Larry Giroux.

FM

THECALOOSAHATCHEEBROMELIAD SOCIETY

May Program(Will start shortly after 2 PM)

“Fertilizers: The Old, the New and into the Future”By Craig Morell

During a previous program, Craig talked to us about pesticides. Thisprompted a return visit and a continuation of the topic. At the May meetinghe is going to discuss the different types of fertilizers and which are mostbeneficial to our plants. If you are confused about the numbering systemused to quantify the ingrediences in fertilizers, you need to attend thismeeting.

May Workshop(starts at 1:15PM)

“Bromeliads - from Brazil back to Cape Coral”By Geri and David Prall

Just returning from attending a Palm Society Conference in Rio, the Pralls willpresent an improptu slide show of photos of bromeliads & other plants both inhabitat and in gardens including the Rio Botanical Garden & the Roberto BurleMarx Garden. They will compare how bromeliads were grown in Brazil to theirown collection in Cape Coral.

MEETING TIME AND PLACE:

May Meeting Sunday May 16th 2010ST. JOHN the APOSTLE CHURCH 3049 McGREGOR Ave. FT. MYERS.

DOORS WILL BE OPEN AT 12:30 FOR SETUP.MEMBERSHIP SALES WILL BE PERMITTED

at the May Meeting. Friendship plants, Raffle items are always welcome.

There will be a Door Prize and Show and Tell

The Caloosahatchee Bromeliad Society is an active Affililate of:

-LCGC CBS

Cryptanthus

Society

Bromeliad Society

International F

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Society News

Change in Meeting FormatTo accommodate Craig Morell’s schedule, following the opening of the meeting at2 PM by President Eleanor Kinzie, Craig will start his program. After thepresentation, we will resume the Business Meeting, Show and Tell, theRefreshment Break and the Raffle.

Our May SpeakerCraig Morell is the chief horticulturist at Pinecrest Gardens (formerly Parrot Jungle)in East Miami. He is an experienced horticulturist in tropical gardening and isquite familiar with and proper use of the various chemicals including fertilizersand pesticides, which are available in the marketplace. Be sure to attend thisprogram for good practical advice about these products from an expert who actually

uses these products.

Message from the President

I am sorry that more of you didn’t come to our 30th Birthday Party; I’msure the weather forecast prevented others from not attending.. Even with a littlerain, we had a great time.

I thank the nearly 30 that did brave the weather - the gardens were beautifulin the rain and we really didn’t get too wet.

Between the drops we shopped the sales tables, toured the gardens andenjoyed our raffle under the Gazebo. We used two of the available rooms andLarry Giroux provided us with a slide presentation about Guatemala that continuallyplayed during the day. Many thanks to Mary McKenzie and Betsy Burdette, whoarranged and organized our party. Well done!

Our raffle table at our meetings has been a little bare lately, so please tryto bring something to share, either a plant or a bromeliad related item. Also, don’tforget the Show and Tell table, great opportunity to show off your bloomingbromeliads, get plants identified or learn about their care from more experiencedgrowers.

Many of us had a lot of damage from the winter, but it is nearly summerand our plants are looking much better. It is not too soon to start potting pups forour sale at the end of the year.

I hope some of you got to attend one or more of the shows held on April17-18. These are terrific times to see many different plants, meet new friends andbuy new bromeliads. Bromeliad Society of Central Florida is having their show onMay 8 & 9 in Orlando. And don’t forget to make plans for the World BromeliadConference in New Orleans, Louisiana.Hope to see you at the meeting. Eleanor

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Our Birthday CelebrationFor those who attended our 30th Anniversary Party, we countered the

rainy day with our usual enthusiasm. Besides conversation, sale plants, a great layout of food, and raffle, there was a continuous slide presentation featuring a 2006tour of Guatemala by Larry Giroux and Steve Hoppin.

Many thanks to all who turned a soupy day into a fun celebration of our30 years as the largest Bromeliad Society in the US.

Bromeliad Expose By Larry Giroux

Passing of a Long Time Friend

It is with deep sadness that I have to report the loss of adevout member of the Caloosahatchee Bromeliad Societyand personal friend, Polly Pascal. Although Polly lived inthe Fort Lauderdale area and was a member of the BrowardCounty Bromeliad Society first, she was a long time friendof Gene McKenzie, and seen on our coast often. The two ofthem were traveling companions at World BromeliadConferences as well as many Shows and Sales. Polly becamea member of CBS in 1996. She would attend our Shows andvolunteer on various committees. She was an active BSI

accredited Judge and of course judged our Show on many occasions. Polly willbe very, very badly missed from our lives. Thank you Polly for your frequentwords of praise and your offers of help.

A trip to Tropiflora in Sarasota Florida is always a fun time, especiallywhen I have my camera in tow. This past visit with friends from Houston was noexception. Although Dennis and Linda Cathcart were away, Brian Weber, aCaloosahatchee Bromeliad Society member and past President, made us feel rightat home. Our friends are especially into terrestrial bromeliads - cryptanthus,dyckias, hechtias, etc. And fortunately for us, Ray Lemieux, expert terrestrialgrower at Tropiflora, was able to give us some of his time and show off the multiplesuccesses he and other growers are having at the nursery.

For the last few years, Tropiflora has been filling a contract with aSingapore gardens for 100’s of thousands of plants. Reports in the Media hasgiven the public the impression that Tropiflora is closing down or is no longerable to provide plants to US and other worldwide consumers. If you have been toany of the Spring or Fall Plant Festivals at Tropiflora in the last years, you willknow this is far from reality. Propagation of existing plants and the creation andimportation of new items is an ongoing process.

The following photographs document just some of the plants our friendsand I discovered during our tour. And I highly recommend if you have a freeafternoon and want to go bromeliad exploring, check out Tropiflora. But be sureto make room at home for a few new additions.

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During the past year orso, a new temperature regulatedarea has been provided for thecryptanthus collection atTropiflora. I made straight to thishouse to check out how theseplants fared during the winter. Iwas impressed by their condition,numbers and variety.

Having visited largegardens in the Far East, I knewimmediately that the largegroupings of C. bivittatuscultivars like ‘Ruby’ seen herewere destined for topiary designsin Singapore.

It was nice to seeCryptanthus bromelioides, redform; one of the few crypts withcolored petals (pink). BrianWeber is just starting topropagate in quantity,Cryptanthus acaulis ‘RayColeman’ (syn C . ‘RubensRangel’). The clone he has, turnsa pink-bronze color infused in theleaves when exposed to brighterlight. Nearby was the othervariegated Cryptanthus acauliscalled ‘Variegata’, which wasdiscovered in Japan almost 4decades ago.

The somewhat rare largeform of the species Cryptanthuslutherianus, named for HarryLuther. is also available.

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Ray Lemieux is propagating and hybridizing many of the terrestrialsat Tropiflora. I was impressed by the variety of orthophytums, which he isworking with.

A recent species introduction from Brazil is the pink floweredOrthophytum conquistense from Bahia Brazil. Already this is a sought afterspecimen. Of the spiked types of orthophytums, the red petaled O. lemei caneasily be distinguished from others when in bloom.

The pin-wheel orthophytums have always been desirable plants forthe collector and exhibitor. Here we see Orthophytum navioides (Amaralclone), burle-marxii and albopictum. There are several other Orthophytum“species”, which are being grown by Ray for evaluation and identification.

Photos by Larry Giroux.

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I treat each visit to Tropiflora as a learningexperience. How would you know what theinflorescence of the bigeneric cross of a cryptanthusand a billbergia should look like? Here is seen (1)Cryptbergia ‘Red Bird’ in bloom answering any of mydoubts. For years I have been mis-labeling myBromelia penguin as B. balansae; now I have seen thetrue 5-6 ft tall flesh eating monster (2). Even Botanicalgardens aren’t guaranteed to have Lymania spiculate(3) or Ronnbergia columbiana in flower (5). The“Smith clone” of Aechmea tayoensis (4) was available

for purchase theday I was there. (6)shows a smallportion of RayLemieux’s “lab”where he is work-ing with terr-

estrial bromeliads.

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

(6)

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(7)

(8)

(9)

(10)

From a common cryptanthus to the rare variegated Pitcairnia echinata (7),Tropiflora is trying to accommodate all bromeliad collectors. Throughoutthe public areas of the nursery, the Cathcarts have planted small displays of“yard” plants such as this Aechmea mertensii (8) and the colorful variegatedAechmea ‘Little Harv’ ((10), both of which make outstanding landscapeplants. Besides acquiring new species, which may have commercial value asstand alone specimen plants, Ray Lemieux and Ray Coleman areexperimenting with these plants to create unusual and attention worthycultivars such as the Dyckia ‘Mercury’ X reitzii ‘Ruber’ hybrid (9) for futureuse. Photos by Larry Giroux.

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A blooming Alcantarea vinicolor in the tropical jungle created by Lyle Bowenat his South Fort Myers home. Previously classified as a Vriesea, this andmany vrieseas were moved into the new Genus- Alcantarea created bytaxonomist Jason Grant. Photo by Lyle Bowen.

The Beautiful and Unusual in Steve’s and Larry’s GardensPhotos by Larry Giroux

Acanthostachys strobilacea bloomsalong its tubular, stiff leaves. Seldomseen is the unusual fruiting bodies.The infloresecence has beencompared to a miniture pineapple,another bromeliad to which it isclosely related.

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Aechmea brassicoides has an unusualrosette of crinkled leaves, whichenvelop its center. At blooming theinflorescence has to poke itself throughthe constricting leaves in order to befertilized.

Aechmea caudata ‘Blotches’ (above) doesn’t look like the typical aechmeauntil it blooms. The 12-15 inch rosette is an eye-catcher due to the intenseblue-purple blotches on the lime green leaves; many of which are in aconcentrical pattern on the rosette of leaves.

By combining traits ofAechmea nidularioidesand bicolor an unusualplant with colorfulleaves and a vibrant,long lastinginflorescence wascreated. Presumablymany plants of the grexof this cross are incultivation, whichexplains the variouscolor versions incollections.

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There are many cultivarsand varieties of Aechmeanudicaulis in cultivation.When I was new tobromeliads, I had somedifficulty distinguishing anyAechmea nudicaulis not inbloom from billbergias. Itwasn’t until I was pointedout the tell -tale“thumbprint” along eachleaf of nudicaulis, that myconfusion disappeared. Inthis picture these impressionsare clearly seen fromdifferent angles on severalleaves.

Billbergia are easy to grow,preferring to be grown hard.They have been given a badrap for the short duration oftheir blooms, which are reallybeautiful and bizarre upclose. Hybridizers like DonBeadle and Jim Irvin havegiven more reasons to growbillbergias by introducingcultivars with beautifullycolored foliage. A visitseveral years ago to JimIrvin’s shadehouse wasrewarded with a vision of anentire wall of high hangingbillbergias. With the sunshining through their leaves,it was reminiscent of astained glass window in achurch. This effect has beenachieved by the use ofBillbergia vittata ‘DomingosMartins’ in the creation ofmany billbergia hybrids,such as Billbergia‘Hallelujah’ seen here.

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Cryptanthus come inmany different shapes,colors and patterns.Cryptanthus leopoldo-horstii (seen to the right)and warasii are twospecies of cryptanthusthat seem more likedyckias or hechtias.This particular reddishclone of leopoldo-horstiiis much scarcer thansome others and is moresort after by succulentgrowers and xeric cryptanthus growers alike. Note the “waffling” of theleaves, which is produced by the unfolding of the leaves as the rosette iscreated. These are present in several other bromeliads, which also have themore succulent type leaves.

For many bromeliads,in order to obtain avariegated pup off avariegated mother, theoffset must arise fromthe base of a variegatedleaf. Sometimes insteadof a variegated plantyou may get a totallygreen plant and in somecases an albino plantwith no greenchlorophyll in theleaves. In the case of the

variegated cultivar Cryptanthus acaulis ‘RayColeman’ (syn C. ‘Rubens Rangel’), becausethe variegation is unstable, green, variegatedand albino offsets can be expected.

Not all the beautiful plants in our yard arebromeliads. This unnamed croton has acombination of unusually shaped leaves aswell as great color and pattern. I hadmentioned earlier about the passing of PollyPascal; this plant was acquired from hermany years ago and is a beautiful livingreminder of my friend.

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The bigeneric xCryptananas‘Pink Utopia’ was produced over 30years ago by Hummel at his nurseryin California. It is ironic in that thebest growing conditions for thisplant is a hot and humid environs,not typically available in California.I was first introduced to ‘PinkUtopia’ at a combined InternationalCryptanthus Show and a SouthwestBromeliad Show. John Andersonwon Best in Show with this plant.Obviously Texas’ weather conditionsare favorable for this bigeneric.

Another point of interestabout this bromeliad is thedescription given by Don Beadle inthe 1998 BCR. Although the exactparentage of this cross is unknown(as is true of many of Hummel’scultivars), Don suspected that aPseudoananas was used since thefruit does not have a terminal pup(as does a typical Ananas pineappleplant). However, my plants and theplant pictured in the Photo Index onthe FCBS website has a “top” offset,suggesting that ‘Pink Utopia’ isindeed a cross with a true Ananas.

This series of pictures (theseare three different plants) show theemergence of the inflorescence, theformation of the “pineapple” likefruit and maturity of the ovum. Aswith most bigenerics, I would expectno seeds or infertile seeds. The thirdpicture shows the effect of 28, 29,and 30 degree F nights on theterminal offset. I hope to have betterluck with the pup developing seenin the middle photo.

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This is the time of the year whendyckias are blooming. Typically theprimary bracts and petals of dyckiaflowers are either yellow or orange asseen in the two pictures above. Ofcourse with hybrids all bets as far ascolor as off as in this unnamed hybridwith peachy colored primary bractsand yellow petals. Although hechtiapetals can be yellow or orange, white,pink or red are common. (See photo ofHechtia lyman-smithii on the frontcover.). Other distinguishingcharacteristics between hechtias anddyckias are that usually dyckias haveno or minimal branching of theinflorescence, which emerges frombetween the leaves, while hechtias havemultiple spike branching and developsfrom the center of the rosette.

Hohenbergia stellata is a stellar performerin any garden where it is grown.The 3 footspike covered with clusters of red bracted,violet flowers, stands out in any landscape.The inflorescence seems resistant to heatand sun with little fading for weeks. It alsomakes great floral arrangement materialfor the home if you are willing to cut it off.

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For 40 years this uniqueplant was simplyconsidered a differentlooking cryptanthus.Initially calledCryptanthus duarteiafter its discover, in1990 due to differingpetal characteristics, itwas moved to the GenusOrthophytum and giventhe new species namesupthutii, since thename Orthophytumduartei already existed.A few years ago, still notfitting in with the twotypes of orthophytumsand with the discoveryof another bromeliadwith remarkablesimilarities, Lapaitambensis, these twoplants were “lumped”together in the newGenus Lapa. the olderspecies name duarteiwas resurrected. Lapaduartei has succulenttype leaves and

develops offsets from the base of the plant. It is blooming in April/May herein Southwest Florida. We have recently

acquired a newtillandsia, which wewere told was anunidentified species.Does anyone knowwhat it might be?The flowers suggestthat it is a tillandsia,

but the 2 dimensional paddle like bracts mayindicate a vriesea. Leaves are thin and resemblethose of Tillandsia cyanea. At first glance, withsimilar leaves, upright inflorescence, samecolored bracts and flowers thought of T. foliosa,but it is not.

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The unique covering of hairy trichomesof Tillandsia ehlersiana, makes this avisually very interesting plant. I can’thelp but touch it every time I pass it.

Many of the pitcairnias are in bloomright now; including this unnamedhybrid by Steve Hoppin. The threefoot inflorescence is covered withtypical 3 inch long flowers. It isunique due to the salmon coloredpetals and yellow and light peachstem of the spike. I’m sure it willhave a name soon.

I have always been intrigued by the rosetteson the spikes of orthophytums from whichthe small flowers emerge. As many as 10 ofthese clumps can develop. I’ve been told thatif you peel off the lower layers of leaves, eachof these can produce a new plant. I’ve triedit and it works, but the offsets which arisefrom the base are faster growing and morevigorous.

And last , but not least you allneed to go outside soon and findsome Spanish Moss (Tillandsiausneoides) and search out thetiny (0.6 cm) highly fragrantflower on this very uniquebromeliad, native to our state.

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May 8-9 Bromeliad Society of Central Florida’s Annual Mother’sDay Bromeliad Show. For further information contact BetsyMcCrory at betsymccrory@aol.comJuly 26-August 1, 2010The BSI World Bromeliad Conference - Bromeliads in the BigEasy (Astor Crowne Plaza - New Orleans). “Catch the Fun”.

Calendar of Bromeliad Events

Join the Bromeliad Society Internationalfor less than $0.80 per week

Join the Cryptanthus Societyfor less than $0.40 per week

and as a first time subscriber the CBS will pay for1/2 of the first year. So for $0.60 per week you can get 2 great colorful Journals

and be part of the bigger picture.See Betty Ann Prevatt for more information.

To all of our of our readers

Read the Expanded NewsletterI have been asking members who have e-mail, if they canstart receiving the Meristem exclusively by e-mail and Ihave gotten a good response from the membership. I wantto remind the members that even if they can not receivethe e-mail version, because they have dial-up internetservice, they can still go to www.fcbs.org and read theexpanded Meristem directly online. Go to www.fcbs.org to view this expanded electronic issue, if you are not already opting to receive itor let me know if you want me to send it to you. Editor

NEW EDITOR IS NEEDED FOR THECBS MERISTEM. Please contact Dr.Larry Giroux at DrLarry@comcast.net

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E-m

ail - DrL

arry@com

cast.net

The Program by Craig Morrell will about 2PM---This is a change from ou

schedule---Please note this time ch

Caloosahatchee B

romeliad Society

3836 Hidden A

cres Circle N

North F

ort Myers, F

l 33903

start atr normalange!