THE BROMELIAD SOCIETY OF GREATER CHICAGO THE BSGC NEWS June, 2001

We planted various seeds from the BSI that were left over from last year and also this years seeds. We will see if those from last year are viable. (We don¹t know but we¹ll try anyway.) First Potting soil was put in a plastic sandwich container (first eat sandwich) and tree fern bark was put on top. The container must have bottom drainage. The seeds are left uncovered. The planting container is than put in an enclosure such as a sweater box to keep the humidity high. You need to water with distilled or rain water from below. Place the container on top of the refrigerator where the heat will help germination. (Just don¹t let hubby eat the seedlings as a midnight snack!) Neoregelia and Aechmea germinate in 10 to 14 days.

Mike Field opened the business meeting. Henry Schmidt suggested we start to think about our plant order for the August Show. We suggested that we reduce the amount of plants ordered. (If you are coming to the Bromeliad Show and want plants just let John McNichols know!) John McNichols will be talking with Russell¹s regarding the order. The group also suggested that we not order plant name tags as there are so many left from Navy Pier.

The other discussion was on the cost of the color newsletters. We decided to have a maximum of four or five color pictures to help reduce the cost. The newsletters are sent not only to members but also to Newsletter Exchange people from around the U.S. (Needless to say, we borrow a lot of material for the newsletter from other newsletters! If more people would try writing for the newsletter, it would help!) The newsletter is also used to try to recruit people to join our club. Further discussion of the cost was tabled until January on a motion by Patsy Schmidt. The motion was seconded by Micki Ogrosky. In January we will be reviewing the issue. Special thanks to those who brought treats.

The June 20th satellite meeting is at 7:00 P.M. at the McHenry Health Food Store at 4509 W. Elm St. (Elm street is Route 120) McHenry, Illinois. The program is "Learning about the Rainforest Flowers" by Wally Fox. There will be raffle plants. Birthday wishes this month go to Dana Field 6/1, Cheryl Nelson-Ulrich 6/12, Phyllis Piper 6/17 and Patsy Schmidt 6/30. We would like to welcome new members Mimi and Perry Moy and Ron Tenny. You need to add to your membership roster the following: Ilene Sievert 729 Central St, Evanston, IL 60201-1734 Ron Tenny 119 Dartmouth, Flossmoor, IL 60422 Perry & Mimi Moy 3917 W. Main St. McHenry, IL 60050-5242 Carol Allergretti, the Convention Chairman of the Aftrican Violet Society, wanted us to announce that the African Violet Society of America¹s convention is open to the public Saturday June 2 from 9 AM to 5 PM at the Sheraton, Arlington Park Hotel in Arlington Heights. The admission and parking is free. There will be hundreds of violets and gesneriads on display and plants for sale. For more information visit their website at www.avsa2001.org or contact Morgan Simmons at (847) 869-1697.

Orthophytum is a genus of bromeliads with around 20 species and varieties in cultivation. The name means "straight plant". This refers to the upright inflorescence of some species such as O. gurkenii. There are two other forms: the climbing or creeping kind which look good in a hanging basket such as O. vagans and those with a nestled inflorescence like O. navioides. O. navioides is green before it is ready to flower. It lets you know when it is going to flower by wiring you via Western Union, (turning red.) The flowering period lasts several weeks. All species have white flowers. The plants come from the dry areas of eastern Brazil. They grow on rocky ground. They are exposed to intense sun and can take extreme dryness. They retain some water in their thick leaves. The roots grow into the cracks of rocks which always contain some moisture. They absorb water and nutrients only through their well developed root system. The culture for growing orthophytums is bright to full sun with temperatures between 50-75E F. The suggested potting medium is one part Canadian peat and one part perlite. Up to 1/3 leaf mold may be added but good drainage is important. Water the plant then let it dry out for 2-3 days between watering. Apply a liquid fertilizer at full strength at one to two month intervals except during the winter. Pictures of plants are from http://www.fcbs.org/pictures.htm Peter Franklin took the one of O. navioides , Dorothy Berg took O. gurkenii and O. vagans by Ken Marks. Bromeliads for Modern Living. Louis Wilson. Merchants Publishing Co., 1977 Blooming Bromeliads. Ulrich Baensch. Tropic Beauty Publishers, 1994 Bromeliads. Werner Rauh. Blandford Press, 1979