|
BACPS | Newsletter |
| Fall 2005 |
Location: UC Botanical Garden, Berkeley
Program Topic: Joe Mazrimas and Larry Logoteta on "Sarracenia
and Darlingtonia in the Field"
Schedule:
| 12:00-1:00 | Plant sales and Q & A with CP experts |
| 1:00-1:30 | Club business and presentation shorts |
| 1:30-2:30 | "Sarracenia and Darlingtonia in the Field" |
| 2:30-4:00 | Raffle, Auction, Q & A with CP experts |
There once was a great place to view Sarracenia flava and its variants. It was in Southeast North Carolina on SR 211 in the Green Swamp area. Today most of these plants are gone, being replaced by vast plantations of trees grown under cultivation. These trees are grown to make paper fiber. The plantations have dirt roads with deep ditches on the sides for drainage. The last vestiges of CP grow in these ditches. Also, some of the last savannah plants seem to be coming back in small pockets of water-saturated bog. We will show you what is there along with Drosera and Dionaea and Utricularia.
In the foothills of California near Nevada City, there is a colony of Darlingtonia that is small but spectacular. The yellow-flowered Darlingtonia grows here in a very small area. This is also the most southern location where this plant grows. Larry has many great slides of these plants, and we will gladly show them to you at the next meeting.
by Judith Finn
Date: November 19, 2005
Location: UC Botanical Garden, Berkeley
Attendance: 28
We began the meeting with an informal nomination/election by show of hands.
President: Stephen Davis
Vice President: Bill Baumgartl
Treasurer: Joe Mazrimas
Secretary: Judith Finn
Annual Show Manager: Dominic Diaz
Stephen Davis began by throwing open for discussion the date when we should hold our annual show. Very few vendors could attend the September show, and the attendance was down from the previous year. The International Carnivorous Plant Society Annual Meeting will be held the first week of June in Maryland. We would be competing with quite a few plant societies if we had the show in Spring. The temperate-climate Sarracenia are good to show early in the season, and the tropical Nepenthes shine late in the Summer. The availability of the room at Lakeside Garden is also a factor. Hopefully we will have this resolved by next meeting.
Joe Mazrimas announced that the BACPS is donating an addidtional $500 to make $2000 for the donation of the new display cabinets in the Fern/Carnivorous Plant House at UC Botanical Garden. (As of Dec. 22, the glass enclosure is almost complete. It is very much larger than the former display. I think our members will be pleased. I am hoping for a lot of input in the new year on how best to display our carnivorous flora.)
We were reminded that membership issues are taken care of by Larry Logoteta, not Stephen Davis, so please write Larry if you did not get your newsletter.
We made $115.00 from the raffle.
Stephen Davis showed us Drosera burmannii grown from seed that were planted in mid-summer. Joshua showed a mini bog that he has been raising for one year from plants obtained from California Carnivores. Dominic Diaz displayed Pinguicula 'Aphrodite', P. gypsicola, P. laueana, P. primuliflora, and P. 'Pirouette'. Lois Ochs brought P. laueana, P. 'Sethos', P. morenensis, P. agnata × morenensis, and Utricularia parthenopipes.
[More meeting photos by Albert Huntington can be found at http://www.bacps.org/20051119/]
First Prize ($35): Dominic Diaz -- photo of Heliamphora
Second Prize ($20): Dominic Diaz -- photo of Drosera ramellosa
Dominic has a difficult venue for growing carnivorous plants. He lives in Turlock,
which is known for its hot, dry summer weather. Yet Dominic has managed to be the top winner
in the last two annual BACPS shows for his superbly grown and displayed Pinguicula.
In his presentation, Dominic shared some of his secrets. He grows his wonderful plants
in fish tanks with artificial light. He maintains separate growing climates in each of
his fish tanks. At the bottom of some tanks he has a heating pad to supply extra warmth.
He also starts seeds in trays very close to the lights. His soil mix is one
part each of perlite, vermiculite, sand, and peat moss. You can substitute pumice for
the perlite. He occasionally adds dolomite, gypsum, or oyster shell to give the Mexican Pinguicula
their calcium. He has added up to one cup dolomitic limestone to two gallons of mix to
really put growth onto his Pinguicula gigantea.
For the southeastern United States Pinguicula, Dominic makes a mix that combines long-fibered sphagnum, perlite, peat, and sand. He raises his plants in terra cotta pots, glazed ceramic, or plastic if they are going to be in a water tray all the time. Clay has the disadvantage of salt buildup on its surface, and ceramic pots are wonderful for the different shapes, but they are expensive. Dominic advises growing the plants on lava or pumice rocks in trays of water for drainage since it is problematic to leave the plants in water all of the time. It is important to have a source of pure water, and he prefers to flood community trays with reverse osmosis water instead of overhead watering individual pots. He warns that some plants like Pinguicula gypsicola need to be completely dry during their dormant period. For lighting, Dominic reminds us that sunlight is best, but, in places like his home in Turlock, that would result in sunburn. He uses 40-watt cool fluorescent lights. He does not feel that it is particularly important to use expensive full-spectrum lights. He places them on a timer to achieve 16 hours of light in summer and 12 hours in winter. A totally red-leaved P. laueana can be obtained with 16 hours of artificial light. For temperature, Dominic gives Mexican pings a low of 45 degrees to a high of 90 degrees. For southeastern U.S. species, the range is from 35 to 95 degrees with frost protection. For fertilization, he recommends SUPERthrive and Epiphyte's Delight at quarter strength on Mexican Pinguicula.
For propagation, Dominic uses damp vermiculite or long-fibered sphagnum as a medium, exposed to bright light but not direct sunlight. After flowering is a good time to split up clumping rosettes. When transplanting, if leaves break off from the main plant, they will produce new plants around the mature one. As for pollination, P. lusitanica is self-pollinating, and Mexican pings like cyclosecta are butterfly- or hummingbird-pollinated. You don't have to wait for a critter -- pollinate your own with a toothpick, and two or three weeks after the capsule swells it will split open. Germination takes place after between one and three weeks. Of all of Dominic's plants, I think his Pinguicula 'Pirouette' is the most fabulous. It varies from a glistening peach to a perfect copper when grown under lights under his care.
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by Lois M. Ochs
Disclaimer: This was not a scientific experiment. This is my experience with obtaining and germinating Drosera regia seed.
First a quick introduction of myself: I am the primary propagator at California Carnivores. I have worked there for five years in this position. I have an additional two years' experience as a volunteer at California Carnivores, doing most other aspects of nursery work.
Shortly after we opened the new nursery in Sebastopol, someone brought in some D. regia
that he had started from seed. They were less than an inch tall. Peter, as in THE PETER D'AMATO,
author of The Savage Garden, said this was only the second person he knew to have successfully
grown D. regia from seed.
In the summer of 2003, when the D. regia began blooming at California Carnivores, I began attempting to pollinate the king sundew. I took the pollen -- sometimes the entire anther -- of one bloom and applied it to the stigma of another bloom. I didn't take notes or even keep good mental notes of this process.
Toward the end of summer, the flower died, dried up, and turned black. The seed pod did not appear to be swollen like so many of the other Drosera species. After the seed pod and the supporting stem turned black, I took a seed pod and pulled out the spent, dried flower petals. Then I gently rubbed the seed pod between the pad of my thumb and forefinger. Well, nothing happened!!! So, I applied a bit more pressure between the pad of my thumb and forefinger, and rolled again. This time something came popping out of the seed pod onto a piece of white copy paper that I was using as a collection device.
I wasn't sure what was seed and what was chaff. With the aid of a 10× magnifying glass, I saw some cashew-, banana-, or half moon-shaped particles among the material. With a gentle blow across the material accumulated on the paper, these crescent-shaped particles remained. I presumed them to be the seeds.
I planted the seed on top of a mix of damp 50-50 peat and perlite, covered with a
1/4-inch layer of damp, milled sphagnum moss. This is the usual mix and
conditions that I use to germinate other Drosera seedlings.
I misted the seeds with pure water and placed them in the warm house (85° day, 60° night).
I waited weeks, months, with no apparent signs of germination.
Germination never occurred, and I finally threw them out in December of
2005.
Although I felt a sense of failure because the seeds didn't germinate, I was jubilant that I had succeeded in producing D. regia seed.
During the summer of 2004, when the D. regia bloomed, I was super vigilant. The method used to pollinate the flowers was: yesterday's pollen on today's stigma. The stigmas all turned bright yellow. I felt assured that pollination had occurred.
There was one long wait for the flowers to die and dry.
Around the middle of August, the flowers had died and the seed pods had turned black.
The pods were removed from the stems. I firmly rolled the seed pod between my
thumb pad and forefinger with great results. Several crescent-shaped seeds
tumbled out and slid across the white copy paper away from the remaining
nondescript chaff.
This time (8-19-04) I planted the seeds on a base of 50-50 peat moss and perlite, with an overlay of moistened New Zealand sphagnum moss, in a four-inch pot. After misting the seeds, the pot was covered with a plastic bag, similar to a mini greenhouse. The pot was left in the cool greenhouse part of the nursery, with daytime temps ranging from 80° to 95° and nighttime temps as low as 45° on occasion. I would mist and observe (for fungus or fungus gnats) the seeds every 2-3 days.
After several weeks or so, I could see an ever so slight glistening amongst the NZ LFSM. First one, then two, then a whole bunch were sprouting. With the aid of a 10× magnifying glass, I could see very small plants. The seedlings varied in color from green to reddish. Once I was able to see the little plants with the naked eye, I removed the plastic bag from the top of the pot and started feeding them crushed-up dried insects every two weeks. This was to beef them up so that they were more easily seen.
By the time the February 2005 BACPS meeting occurred, it was quite evident
that they were thriving, so I took the pot for show and tell.
The largest plant was about one inch tall and across.
At the meeting, I told the other members about the secret to getting seeds,
i.e., today's pollen on yesterday's stigma, like the method used to
pollinate a Venus flytrap flower. The shape is crescent-like, and they are
about three times the size of a VFT seed.
Another member, Joe Mazrimas, was extremely interested in my observations and the plants.
During the May BACPS meeting, Larry Logoteta brought some D. regia seedlings for show and tell. Joe had given him the seeds, which were 15 years old and had been stored in a refrigerator. He had six very tiny plants growing.
There were 21 plants growing in my four-inch pot. I have since separated them out into two-inch pots. The largest plant is four inches tall and across.
Now that I have identified the size and shape of the seed, I need to do some further experiments:
Oh, one last thing that I forgot to mention. You have to say bzzzzz as you pollinate or it won't take.
by Stephen Davis
CP movie buffs will want to check out Mike Wilder's The Carnivorous Syndrome in 3D, a short film that discusses briefly the evolution of plants and photosynthesis and then shows fun 3D images of carnivorous plants growing, flowering, and eating.
After donning the supplied 3D glasses, the first step for some should be to take a quick shot of caffeine to get you through the first segment on photosynthesis and a brief history of the evolution of plants. Others, however, will appreciate the animated 3D models of molecules used in photosynthesis. This is a fun segment and educational.
Since most of us are here for the CP, though, I'll skip ahead quickly to the plants. Most of the CP kingdom is represented somewhere in the film. Opening sequences are of pings blooming and sundews unfurling their leaves and eating. The ping's flower -- caught in time-lapse photography, as are most of the 3D images -- quickly grows and unfurls its petals in front of you, just out of reach. A Drosera scorpioides sequence shows leaves from their earliest formation to unfurling and then eating.
Some sequences are clearer than others. My favorite sequence of a Drosera capensis, with tentacles wrapping themselves around what is probably egg white, is crystal clear. The leaf quickly begins to secrete digestive juices and then folds over the "prey." It's amazing to see the juices nearly covering the whole leaf in a great time-lapse sequence. Some sequences unfortunately are not as clear but are still interesting and fun to watch.
For Utricularia, 3D modeling explains the trap mechanism, and time-lapse video shows underground traps with the many wriggling creatures that they probably prey on. A U. sandersonii sequence is really fun to watch as the "bunny ears" unfurl and the spur pops out.
I'm not sure how he did the 3D footage of the tepuis, but he did a good job, and the close-up shots of Heliamphora are beautiful. I enjoyed the down-to-the-hairs close-ups. I've always felt Heliamphora are the most artistically appealing of the CP, and they don't disappoint here.
The shots that probably get my vote for most captivating are the really cool shots of Cephalotus slowly spinning to show you all angles. It's nice to see these small, intricate traps in 3D the size of your screen. There is one particularly eye-opening shot from the captured-bug's-eye view inside the trap. What a helpless feeling that must be.
The Venus flytraps glow in one shot, and slow-motion footage of the leaves growing, unfurling, and opening for the first time is fascinating. Some very close up shots of the trigger hairs are included, of course, as is a bug being captured.
Nepenthes fans will not be disappointed, as there are several good shots of these plants. N. hamata is probably the most exciting.
Unfortunately, most of the plants throughout the movie short are not identified, but that is the CP collector in me talking. The film isn't really for the collector, although I think it is one most collectors will enjoy, if only for its novelty.
We hope to try and show this at a BACPS meeting at some point in the coming year.
On the technical side, besides the 3D glasses, a Lego robot was used for filming. I'd have liked to see how that was done, although there are some images of them in the end of the video. Some discussion of how he did it can be found at http://www.rollanet.org/%7Evbeydler/van/3dreview/3dr0512.htm#3dcenter
3D technology is still not up to Star Trek's holodeck, but it's as fun as it was when I was a kid.
The Carnivorous Syndrome in 3D
Studio Mikra
Mike Wilder
$15 plus $4 shipping
www.3dsyndrome.com
by Stephen Davis
Another successful show. This year's show saw many examples of exceptional Nepenthes as well as pings and other genera well displayed and incredibly well grown. An opportunity to see unique plants from others' collections is a real treat, and I always enjoy the annual show more than any other event.
Many unique plants were on sale, and the first, as far as I know, of the Allen Lowrie seed order were there. I purchased an incredible bright pink Drosera burmannii from Lois of Raccoon Ridge. Forbes Conrad from LA had some unique plants that I have never seen for sale before, although I have seen them mentioned many times as exceptional and unique plants. Lois also brought down some very choice plants from California Carnivores. My daughter and wife set up our first shop, called Winky's Wonders, with a few common and a few choice plants for sale along with some earrings featuring a Venus flytrap eating a bug.
One of the highlights was a donation from Sam Estes of Leilani Hapu'u Nepenthes Nursery.
Sam came to a show a few years ago and sold some Nepenthes he had brought from his
nursery in Hawaii. Although he couldn't make it again this year, he kindly sent some
great Nepenthes to us to put in our raffle. They were a big hit, and people stayed
quite awhile as we auctioned off only a few of his plants, with the others, every hour.
We were better coordinated and made a number of improvements. I want to thank the board and numerous people who pitched in to make this happen. Each year we get better.
We need to thank the judges -- Geoff Wong, Judith Finn, and Christina Palmer -- for their expertise and help. Perhaps one of them could write an article on how they make their decisions so we can grow our plants that much better.
The PA system loaned to us by Paul Bourbin was a huge help. Joe Mazrimas, Larry Logoteta, Fran Davis, David Davis, Tony Gridley, Melissa Mork, Christina Palmer, Christine Lam, Bill Weaver, Dominic Diaz, John and John Pizzacara, Forbes Conrad's mom, and others did a lot to set up the show and keep it running smoothly. Doris Quick, who ran and operated the Plant Hotel for nearly the entire show should be greatly applauded. Not the most romantic job we have, but one we have found to be important for a smooth and enjoyable show.
Do you have an idea that would make the show better next year? Get together with us as we plan for next year's show, and make your idea happen.
Everyone wants to know the winners, so here we are:
[And check out the slideshow at http://bacpsphotoalbums.homestead.com/.]
Best of Show |
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| 1st | Nepenthes ampullaria (Bau, spotted) | Dominic Diaz | 
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| 2nd | P. esseriana | Dominic Diaz | |
| 3rd | Cephalotus follicularis | Tony Gridley | |
Bog/Dish gardens/Terrariums | |||
| 1st | U. sandersonii, D. burmannii, aliciae | Dominic Diaz | |
| 2nd | P. primuliflora, S. flava, D. capensis, U. sandersonii | Dominic Diaz | |
| 3rd | P. gigantea, P. laueana, 'John Rizzi' | Joe Mazrimas | |
Cephalotus | |||
| 1st | Cephalotus follicularis | Tony Gridley | |
CP Other | |||
| 1st | Drosophyllum lusitanicum | Forbes Conrad | 
|
| 2nd | Heliamphora heterodoxa × minor | Joe Mazrimas | |
Dionaea (Venus flytrap) | |||
| 1st | D. muscipula 'giant clones mixed' | Dominic Diaz | |
| 2nd | D. muscipula | Doris Quick | |
Drosera | |||
| 1st | D. scorpioides | Dominic Diaz | |
| 2nd | D. pygmy species | Stephen Davis | |
| 3rd | D. regia | Joe Mazrimas | |
Nepenthes | |||
| 1st | N. ampullaria (Bau, spotted) | Dominic Diaz | |
| 2nd | N. 'Predator' | Max Schaefer | |
| 3rd | N. glandulifera | Damon Collingsworth | 
|
Pinguicula | |||
| 1st | P. esseriana | Dominic Diaz | |
| 2nd | P. 'Sethos' | Dominic Diaz | |
| 3rd | P. primuliflora | Dominic Diaz | |
Sarracenia/Darlingtonia | |||
| 1st | S. 'Hummer's Hammerhead' | Dominic Diaz | |
| 2nd | S. 'Dixie Lace' | Dominic Diaz | |
| 3rd | S. leucophylla × | Bill Weaver | |
Utricularia | |||
| 1st | U. bisquamata | Dominic Diaz | |
| 2nd | U. humboldtii | Tony Gridley | |
| 3rd | U. uniflora | Tony Gridley | |
by Joe Mazrimas
| BACPS TREASURY REPORT | |||
| May 1, 2005 | |||
| ASSETS | DEBIT | BALANCE | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sellers | $16.00 | ||
| Raffle | $191.00 | ||
| TOTAL | $207.00 | ||
| Current Balance (05-01-05) | $207.00 | ||
| Previous Balance (02-05-05) | $2531.62 | ||
| TOTAL | $2738.62 | ||
| Berkeley Fund | $1450.00 |
| BACPS TREASURY REPORT | |||
| Sept. 11, 2005 | |||
| ASSETS | DEBIT | BALANCE | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sellers | $230.00 | ||
| Raffle | $140.00 | ||
| TOTAL | $370.00 | ||
| Postcards | $2.00 | ||
| BACPS Donation | $550.00 | ||
| Oakland Hall Rental | $378.00 | ||
| Sign materials | $64.00 | ||
| TOTAL | $994.00 | ||
| Current Balance (09-11-05) | ($624.00) | ||
| Previous Balance (05-01-05) | $2738.62 | ||
| TOTAL | $2114.62 |
| The Berkeley Fund of $1450 plus the BACPS donation of $550 for a total of $2000 was sent to the UC Botanical Garden to help in building a new CP display cage. |
| BACPS TREASURY REPORT | |||
| Nov. 19, 2005 | |||
| ASSETS | DEBIT | BALANCE | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sellers | $19.00 | ||
| Raffle | $115.00 | ||
| TOTAL | $134.00 | ||
| Current Balance (11-19-05) | $134.00 | ||
| Previous Balance (09-11-05) | $2114.62 | ||
| TOTAL | $2248.62 |
by Tony Gridley
Nobody submitted anything for a summer newsletter, and so, I'm sorry to say, we didn't have one. I realize newsletter editors sound like broken records about this issue, but if there are no submissions by members, newsletters just can't happen. On top of this, I'm not good enough at padding or providing filler material. I can't make botanical line drawings or even recognizable stick figures. I don't have my own digital camera, and I don't know any interesting quotations having to do with carnivorous plants.
OK, actually, I know one, by a Tibetan Buddhist:
The tendency of consciousness to get engrossed in the objects of the six senses is the root of all samsara's hallucinations and the source of all suffering. This is how the moth dies in the lamp-flame, because its visual consciousness is attracted to forms; how the stag is killed by the hunter, because its hearing draws it to sounds; how bees are swallowed by carnivorous plants, seduced by their smell; how fish are caught with bait, their sense of taste lured by its flavour; how elephants drown in the swamp because they love the physical feeling of mud. In the same way, whenever you are listening to the Dharma, teaching, meditating, or practising, it is important not to follow tendencies from the past, not to entertain emotions about the future and not to let your present thoughts get distracted by anything around you.
-- Patrul Rinpoche [1808-1887], The Words of My Perfect Teacher
But that's my entire collection of CP quotes right there.
Thanks to the efforts of Joe Mazrimas and Albert Huntington, our website now has a great archive of newsletters from the 1990s. My favorite feature of these first issues is the member self-introduction, and I'd like to try starting these again as a regular item. I suppose I should volunteer myself for the next newsletter, so I'm off to see about getting that camera.
Happy growing.
March 25, 2006: Spring Meeting
May 13, 2006: Summer Meeting
June 1-5, 2006: ICPS Conference, Frostburg State University, Frostburg, Maryland
November 11, 2006: Fall Meeting
Drosera regia -- Lois Ochs; all Pinguicula photos -- Dominic Diaz;Utricularia longifolia, display table -- Albert Huntington; 2005 show photos -- Stephen Davis
The BACPS Newsletter is a quarterly publication produced by the Bay Area Carnivorous Plant Society.
Please send newsletter submissions to Tony Gridley (tgridley@comcast.net). For more information on membership, subscriptions, or events, please visit our website: www.bacps.org.
