FRASER COAST BROMELIAD SOCIETY INC.NEWSLETTER

Volume 13 Issue 2 25 February 2017

Please put your names down for the sausage sizzle meeting at the Botanic Gardens nextmonth. The meeting will start at 11.00 am. BYO garden hand tools for a bit of a tidy up in ourBromeliad Garden. If you have a few spare plants please bring them along in case someplants need replacing.

If you want to go on the bus trip to the SunnyBroms conference on 1 April please put yourname down and pay by the next meeting. Cost is $20. At this stage there are only 17members wishing to go on the trip.

HAPPY 7o'h BIRTHDA Y TO ROSIE

This is my last newsletter to you all. I would like to thank all of the members who have takenon roles on the committee and in supplementary positions over the last 11 years. Withoutyour help our Society could not have run as smoothly has it has.

Debbie.

DIARY DATES 2017 BYO chair, coffee mug, plants you need help with, sales plants,plant of the month entries, and raffle donations to our meetingsPlease note - meetings are on the fourth Saturday of themonth, which may not always be the last Saturday.

February 25 376 Honeyeater Drive, Walligan

March 25 Sausage Sizzle at Hervey Bay Botanic Gardens, followed by atidy-up of the Bromeliad garden

April 22 Venue TBA

AUSTRALASIAN BROMELIAD CONFERENCEHosted by Sunshine Coast Bromeliad Society

March to 2 A ril 2017

THE FRASER COAST BROMELIAD SOCIETY'S PRICE LISTEffective February 2016

POTTING MIXFERTILISER

$2.90 for 10$3.50 for 10$3.00 for 5$3.50 for 5$3.00 for 10$1'.25 for'25$2.00 for 25$6.00 for 100$3.60 each$3.65 for pack of 50(both sizes)$8.00 per bag$2.75 for 500 grams

125MM SQUAT POTS140MM SQUAT POTS165MM POTS200MM POTSHANGERS (4 PRONG)SMALL WHITE LABELSLARGE WHITE LABELSYELLOW SALES LABELSLABELLING PENCILSCELLOPHANE SLEEVES FOR PUPS OR POTS

PLANT OF THE MONTH RESULTS FOR JANUARY

Pot of One Single Neoregelia(Both Classes)

Open - Judge's Choice (Narelle Hoffmann)1. Val Honeywood Chrissy2. Val Honeywood morreana3. Debbie Kruger Shep

Members' Choice1. Ian Fluerty Dyna-Mite2. Val Honeywood morreana3. Debbie Kruger Shep3. Val Honeywood Chrissy3. Ian Fluerty Wild Rabbit

Novice - Judge's Choice (Narelle Hoffmann)1. Esmay Neilsen Dear One2. Esma), Neilsen SmalLWorld3. Janine Blaber Hybrid

Members' Choice1. Esmay Neilsen Dear One2. Janine Blaber Hybrid3. Esmay Neilsen Small World

Sun tolerant Bromeliads

People often ask which are the best brorneliads to grow in full sun. This can be a difficultquestion fQ"~~"'~ik.inIYl:.fieFH3n~~ on growing conditions. For example, bromeliadswhich may grow well'lnltie full sun in Cairns or Hawaii can become a 'burnt offering' in

F.CB.S. Inc. Newsletter -2- February 2017

southern Queensland. What causes this difference? The first issue is what is meant by theterm 'full sun'. I take it to mean a plant which is fully exposed to the sun's rays for the entireday, throughout the year. However, when many people say their plants receive full sun allday, what they actually mean is that they have not provided their bromeliads with protectionfrom the sun. This is a significant difference.

For example, in coastal southern Queensland quite a few bromeliads can grow reasonablywell in situations where they receive full sun in the morning, provided they have shade from abuilding or a wall in the afternoon (especially in summer). Some people consider these plantsare growing in 'full sun'. Locations, for example Cairns, which have high humidity at thehottest times of the year, have a wider range of bromeliads which can be grown in full sunthan those areas, such as southern coastal Queensland, which have periods of low humidityand high temperatures. For example Aechmea blanchetiana, a large plant (usually withyellow-gold leaves and a long, arching flower spike), will grow well in Cairns in full sun. Thesame plant will 'burn' in southern Queensland on those days which have a combination oftemperatures exceeding 35 degrees Celsius and less than 40% humidity.

For a given location, the following practices will increase the range of bromeliads that can begrown without addition8f protectionfrom the sun: --

• Place the plant where it will receive shade from a wall or building on summerafternoons.

• Acclimatise the plant to full sun by gradually increasing its exposure to the sun's raysover several months, starting in the cooler months of the year. (If the plant's leaves'bleach', it is receiving too much light.)

• Some bromeliads will, over several generations, gradually improve their sun-hardiness.So, while the first generation may look 'sad and sorry' the third generation may lookmuch better.

For the larger bromeliads, growing them in the ground (but in a well-drained medium) maygive better results than keeping them in pots. This occurs because the plant can develop alarger 'root run', and thus obtain more moisture than if it was grown in even a large pot.Bromeliads likely to have some tolerance to full sun conditions nearly all have leaves edgedwith spines. So avoid plants without spines, such as nidulariums, vrieseas, guzmanias, andthe greenMleavedtillandsias.

Bromeliads I have grown in full sun conditions, for the entire year in southern coastalQueensland include several dyckias and hechtias, and a range of orthophytums. Bromeliaswould also take these conditions. Most puyas can tolerate full sun as well, but many appearprone to rotting and dying in hot, wet weather. Bromeliads which can tolerate full sun duringthe cooler times of the year, and at least morning sun during summer include: manyaechmeas, for example blanchetiana, bracteate, disticantha, luddemaniana, maculate,mexicana, mulfordii, the many forms of nudicaulis, orlandiana, 'Echidna', gamosepala,racinae, and recurvata. Some of the larger-growing neoregelias such as cruenta (or the manyhybrids which have it as one of their parents) are also suitable. Lists of plants such as theseare only a starting point. The best advice is to try a range of bromeliads under your growingconditions.

Reprinted with acknowledgement to the eaboolture and districts Bromeliad Society Inc. (Oct-Nov 2007 Newsletter), writer Bob Reilly, and the Bromeliad Society of Australia Inc. Vo143,No1,2005.

F.CB.S. Inc. Newsletter -3- February 2017

REMOVAL OF PUPS (An extract from 'Under the Mango Tree' by John Catlan)

The removal of off-shoots, pups or suckers (they are just different names for the same thing)from Broms is a very easy task. In most instances Broms are stoloniferous, which meansthey grow on the end of a runner, and on Neoregelia Fireball this is very obvious. There are alot of plants where this stoloniferous trait is not obvious, but it is there just the same. Whenremoving the pups the easiest way is with secateurs, by-pass types, or a 200mm to 300mmlong Stanley saw. With big Aechmeas, I find a pair of tree loppers, by-pass type, the best.The long handles keep your hands and arms away from the plants and give better leverage. ..

When you start into Vrieseas and Guzmanias there are stoloniferous varieties, but you willcome across plants where the pups are hard up against the mother; and for these you need aknife. I use a 200mm total length kitchen knife with a rounded tip, and only half of the tipshape. You will beoome profioient at removing pups with very little practice. Hold the knifevertically and wriggle the knife downwards in crow-bar like motion, not a saw, between themother and the pup, and when you are certain that the knife has reached the spot where thepup joins mother, change the angle of the knife from vertical to about 20° from vertical andgently cut through the very small stolon. The crowbar motion will help to lever the pup awayfrom mother and settle the knife in the right position to remove the pup.

The most common problem you will come across is from mothers planted too deeply in thepotting mix. The main cause of this is taking pups off when too large and then having to potthem very deeply in the mix, in an effort to stop them falling over. If the plant has been pottedtoo deeply you will have to de-pot the plant, remove the pups and re-pot at a sensible level. Ifyou have problems holding pups or plants upright, use a couple of river washed stonesagainst the plant. When the plant becomes stable, the stones can be removed.

The next type of pup that makes everyone stop and begin to think are those plants that, afterflowering, the pup emerges from the centre of the plant, such as Vriesea splendens, V. elata,V. zamorensis, G. sanguinea, etc. and for those people who obtained Mezobromeliapleiosticha from Peter Tristram, you can look forward to this plant doing the same thing.When the pup is a third to half the size of mother (and it is not coming into flower) it is time forit to be removed. It is not easy to judge the pup's size because its growth blends in very wellwith mother. Draw an imaginary straight line through the centre of the scape (stem of theflower) and the centre of the pup and at 90° slit one side of the foliage of the mother plant untilyou find where the pup joins. Then using your customized knife exactly the same as withother pups, remove the pup. This leaves the foliage of the plant intact so it can manufacturefood for the crop of pups that you will get. ~o_og heal1tJy Rlant of Vriesea elata will produce

-~over SIX plJpS. . - ~ - --

Reprinted from the Hunter Distr_ictBrom9liad Soc Inc. Octob9r 2007 newsl@tter. withacknowledgement to writer John Cat/an.

Please remember that all sales now finish at afternoon tea, plants travel much better in boxesor recyclable bags than plastic bags, and you can borrow books from our library for onemonth. If the book you want is not available, please ask Rosie to put your name on a waitinglist. If you can't return your books when they are due, please phone Rosie on 4124 8658.

F.CB.S. Inc. Newsletter -4- February 2017