November Monthly Meeting:

Date: Sunday November 20th ,2016

Time: 10:00 am

Venue: St. Xavier's Primary School

Directions:
- Proceed along the Eastern Main Road to St. Joseph.
- Turn onto Abercromby Street at the Traffic lights.
- Turn right at the Eastern Credit Union park.
- Continue straight.

This meeting will feature the winning photos from our photography competition. Members will also be able to purchase plants to join the Dendrobium Seedling Contest.

There will also be a Raffle. The prize is an Orchid. Will this month be your month to win it?

Don't forget to bring along your flowering orchids for the Monthly Show Table especially those new members to win your plant prizes. Winning members get to feature their plants in the following newsletter.

Summary of Orchids! A Diamond Celebration Part II.

This year our Annual October Show was held at the Trinidad Country Club. It was a new venue for our show and proved to be well suited. The show was opened by Mrs. Hassanali, the former First Lady of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago made a special appearance on the Saturday morning of the show.
This year we were very fortunate to have Claude Hamilton of Hamlyn's Orchids from Jamaica. He gave three very informative lectures on the days of the show and a very nice variety of plants on sale.

Our local vendors and exhibitors showed their worth as everyone gave an extra effort to ensure the display area of the hall was filled with beautiful orchids. Some of our members gave of their time for all days of the show assisting at the gate or even helping the general public around. The management committee will likely to specially thank each of everyone who contributed to the success of the show with a special thank you to Antonio de Gannes, Christopher Watson and Judith Davis.

Members' Choice.

Angie Forde won the Members' Choice for September with her beautifully flowered Renanthera Kalsom X Ascda. Varut Fushia. She purchased the Vanda a little under one year ago and this was the first time flowering since. She waters all of her Vandas twice per day and feeds them every one to two weeks. This was a truly rewarding flower.

Annual Christmas Lunch.

Our annual Christmas Lunch will be held on December 11th at the Headquarters of the Horticulture Society, Lady Chancellor Road. Cost of tickets are $150. each. Tickets will be available at the November Monthly meeting.
At the lunch, trophies will be distributed to winners from the October Show.

Seedling Growing Competition.

The following are the rules for the competition:

1) Only financial members of the TTOS are permitted to participate throughout the competition.
2) Each entrant is allowed only one seedling orchid.
3) Eligibility to the competition is validated by purchasing the seedling orchid from the society and receiving a receipt.
4) The name of the orchid seedling plant will be withheld until the winners are declared
5) To claim prize, plants have to be presented at a regular monthly meeting of the TTOS and accompanied with the proof of purchase. Winners are required to make a presentation on how they grew the plants.
6) Two prizes will be awarded as follows
a. First fully flowered plant (no buds)
b. Plant with the most opened flowers by the following TTOS monthly meeting from the declaration of the first flowered plant.
7) In the event there is more than one winner the prize will be shared equally
8) The adjudicated results are final
9) Members of management will not be eligible to claim prizes but can participate
10) Cost of entering is $25.00

Cultural Corner.

Without question, more orchids are killed by incorrect watering than by any other reason. Proper watering consists of two separate components; quantity and frequency. Orchids should be watered just as they dry out. There's unfortunately no magic formula; i.e., water a plant in a 6" pot every 7 days and you'll be trouble free. This is because your growing area is different from anyone else's. Humidity, air movement, potting medium (type and age) and light levels all play a role. There are several ways to determine when a potted orchid is almost dry: 1) the surface of the potting mix will appear dry; 2) dry pots will feel lighter; 3) clay pots feel dry; 4) a wooden stake or skewer inserted into the potting mix will come out almost dry (Figure 2). If in doubt, a finger inserted into the potting mix is perhaps the best tool to determine the moisture content of the potting mix. It will cause no harm to the plant.
When orchids are watered, they should be watered copiously. Water should be provided until it runs freely from the drainage holes. Not only does this soak the potting medium but it also flushes salts that naturally accumulate. At a minimum, try to thoroughly water your plants at least once a month.
Watering frequency can be controlled by the choice of pot. For those who really like to water their plants or live in humid, rainy areas, clay pots, especially slotted pots are a good choice. Growers in drier climates or those who tend not to water often enough might want to use plastic pots to hold moisture longer.