Mount Baker Orchid Society Show 2011

Our orchid society had its show last week, the first show I've participated in for many years.  The show was held at the Skagit Valley Gardens Nursery in Mount Vernon, Washington - they give us space in their large display and sales house both for the show itself and for vendors and are very accommodating.

Our society is quite small and so the show was quite small also, but I was impressed by the variety of plants as well as the quality of the plants.  In both respects it was one of the best shows I've ever seen. Six American Orchid Society (AOS) awards were given and thirteen trophies, including the AOS Show Trophy.

Some of the plants that were in the show and for sale by the vendors are pictured below.  I took a lot of pictures, but that only reflects the difficult of getting good pictures at a show where one has so little control of background, lighting, etc.  I did not get all the names, however.

Cymbidium Rodco's Creation

Epidendrum radicans

Dendrobium Little Sweetscent

Unregistered Miltonipsis hybrid and Phalaenopsis Winning Spots 'Kulani #1'

Epidendrum stamfordianum

Paphiopedilum glaucophyllum x Pinocchio and Unregistered Paphiopedilum Maudiae hybrid

Colmanara Wildcat 'Carmela'

Beallara Tahoma Glacier and Oncidium Space Race 'Koko'

Brassia Jeanne Nixon

Wilsonara Fortin 'Calico Cat'

Vascostylis Hilo Rose

 

Psychopsis Kahlihi

Some of the plants that were in the show are pictured below.  The Phalaenopsis are almost all by one grower in our society, David Edgley.  I got as many names as I could and hope I've got them all straight.  With so many plants and flowers it is difficult to be sure.

Phalaenopsis Carmela's Wild Thing x Paul Tatar

Phalaenopsis Carmela's Wild Thing x Paul Tatar and Doritaenopsis The Pride of Ben Yu

Doritaenopsis Sogo Golden 'Fangtastic'

Phal. Sogo Yukidian 'V3'

Doritaenopsis Fusheng's Mystical Dream 'Come True'

 Doritaenopsis Scarlet in Snow and Phalaenopsis Small Sensation

Doritaenopsis Chian Xen Magpie

Doritaenopsis Ganlin Fairy 'K59804'

Ascovandoritis Prapin

Sarcochilus Cacross

Jumellea arachnantha

Schoenorchis gemmata

Phragmipedium Cardinal

Phragmipedium Living Fire

Phragmipedium Noirmont 'Hellen Illsley'

Phragmipedium Grande

Paphiopedilum Iantha Stage

 Paphiopedilum St. Swithin

 Paphiopedilum sukhakulii alba and Paphiopedilum Harry Sadler

 Paphiopedilum sanderianum

Dendrobium odiosum

Dendrobium epidenropsis

Dendrobium Andre Millar

Dendrobium Princess 'Asai'

 Encyclia fragrans

Cattleya skinneri

Unregistered Wilsonara hybrid

Masdevallia Claude

 Restrepiopsis inaequalis

 Pleurothallis teaguei

Masdevallia princeps 'Grim Reaper'

Angulocaste Paul Gripp 'Hull'

 

Angulocaste Evelyn Chang 'Isaac'

Stenosarcos Vanguard

Bulbophyllum graveolens

Bulbophyllum hians

Trigonidium egertonianum and Pleione confusa

Maxillaria variabilis

Calanthe rosea

Our society put in an exhibit of plants from the members which had some very unusual and beautiful plants.  We have less than 25 active members, and I thought this a very nice exhibit from so few people and very well arranged also.

I built and put in a showcase modeled after one that had been used by the Pleurothallid Alliance and which I used on their behalf in 1993 at the AOS spring meetings in Houston.  The picture below is of that showcase and the orchids displayed in it.  The similarity is evident.

The showcase I put in this show was about 36 x 42 x 42 inches, was enclosed in plexiglass on three sides and could be used either free standing or on a table top as it was here.  I had planned on using lights but they were not needed in the bright conditions of the greenhouse-type showroom.

The plants were displayed on a kind of mountain made of sheets of construction styrofoam glued together, lightly melted on the edges with a blowtorch to give them a more natural look, and then spray painted which also melted the styrofoam a bit more.

There were 39 plants in the display including two that were not mine, mostly miniature Dendrobiums and Pleurothallids.  For those who are interested the list of plants follows:
     1.   Masdevallia (Alaticaulia) don-quijote
     2.   Masdevallia constricta
     3.   Masdevallia decumana - blue ribbon
     4.   Masdevallia glandulosa
     5.   Masdevallia datura
     6.   Masdevallia mendozae
     7.   Masdevallia hirtzii
     8.   Masdevallia ventricularia          
     9.   Masdevallia (Tritosiphon) bangii - red ribbon
     10.  Masdevallia Ruby Slippers (coccinea x calura) - blue ribbon
     11.  Masdevallia Falcon’s Gold (Falcon Sunrise x constricta) - white ribbon
     12.  Masdevallia Hampshire Prolific
     13.  Trisetella hoejeri - white ribbon
     14.  Trisetella gemmata
     15.  Trisetella dressleri
     16.  Trisetella klingeri
     17.  Scaphosepalum ovulare
     18.  Lepanthes elegantula
     19.  Lepanthes ingridiana
     20.  Lepanthes manabina - CCM/AOS, red ribbon
     21.  Condylago rodrigoi 
     22.  Lepanthopsis astrophora ‘Stalky’
     23.  Pleurothallis talpinaria (Talpinaria bivalvis) - HCC/AOS, blue ribbon
     24.  Pleurothallis alata (Muscarella marginata)
     25.  Epidendrum escobarianum - white ribbon
     26.  Dendrobium malvicolor
     27.  Dendrobium limpidum
     28.  Dendrobium sulphureum
     29.  Dendrobium cuthbertsonii semi-alba
     30.  Dendrobium seranicum 
     31.  Dendrobium agathodaemonis
     32.  Dendrobium pentapterum
     33.  Dendrobium Illusion (cuthbertsonii x lawesii)
     34.  Dendrobium Illusion (cuthbertsonii x lawesii)
     35.  Dendrobium hellwigianum 
     36.  Dendrobium masarangense
     37.  Chytroglossa paulensis- CBR/AOS
     38.  Lepanthopsis astrophora (not my plant)
     39.  Dendrobium porphyrochilum (not my plant)

I must admit that I am a little embarrassed by all the attention it received, but that had a lot to do with the fact that many of these orchids are not commonly seen at shows because of their size.  Not only were the visitors to the show quite interested in the tiny orchids but the plants and display received a number of awards.

There were three American Orchid Society awards for different plants, a trophy for the best Pleurothallid, Masdevallia decumana, and the American Orchid Society Show Trophy, shown below in addition to a number of ribbons awarded to different plants.

The three AOS awards were an HCC/AOS (High Class Certificate) awarded to Pleurothallis talpinaria, a CBR/AOS (Certificate of Botanical Recognition) for a plant of Chytroglossa paulensis, and a CCM/AOS (Certificate of Cultural Merit) awarded to a plant of Lepanthes manabina.

It was a lot of fun but also a lot of work.  I spent a day and half at the show and was worn out by the end of that time.   The case itself sets up and breaks down in about half an hour, but I helped with all the show activities, too, and even took part in the ribbon and show judging.