Happy Fourth of July

That's right we are celebrating the fourth of July with a giant indoor picnic on the first of July at the FWCBS meeting this month. We will have an expanded show and tell program. So you can bring and brag, ask questions or show off the weird plants in your collection.

In place of refreshments everyone is asked to bring a picnic item to share. So we will have a special social time while eating the picnic.

This would be a good night for members to bring plants to sell. Also we want to have an especially big raffle, so that everyone will hopefully be able to take a plant home with him or her. Also invite friends and family and wear something red, white and blue if you have it.

Our guest speaker for the June meeting was George Aldrich from Ocala. We enjoyed George's slide program on a recent trip that he made to Peru. This is an unusual part of the world with extremes in climate and terrain, which makes for some unusual bromeliads. George also had a table full of items that he had brought back from Peru with him.

Judging from the activity at the sales table, George must have brought some unusual plants to sell. By the time that I got to look the table was pretty well picked over. I am sure that made him happy, as I am sure that he did not want to drive home with a bunch of plants. Thanks to everyone who bought plants and supported our speaker by making his trip worth while.

The Refreshment committee wants to thank everyone who brought refreshments to the refreshments to last month's meeting. Although no one had signed up to bring refreshments in advance there was plenty to go around.

This month is going to be a bring a dish affair. No not an empty dish, we will have those, drinks and plastic wear. Please bring something to share at a picnic.

While you are at the meeting, please remember to stop by the front desk when you bring food to pick up your extra raffle ticket. You will also find the refreshment sign-up sheet at this desk for future months.

The plants on the cover of this month's newsletter have recently been registered. Formerly just known as Dyckia platyphylla x fosteriana. They are now known as Dyckia 'James Grey' and Dyckia 'James Green'. They both have the same parent's, so I guess that makes them brothers at least in the plant world. Ervin Wurthman hybridized them probably 20 years ago now. I bought all of the plants that he had left at the nursery cheap as he wanted to get rid of them. Ervin was not pleased with them and wanted to make room for other plants.

I know that I sold some of them at FWCBS meetings and sales 10 to 15 years ago. Although they are not spectacular, they are nice small Dyckias that handle full sun. I have been very pleased with them and they have slowly multiplied in my collection over the years with very little care.

When I notified Derek Butcher that I had this plant, some history and wanted to know if he wanted me to register it, his reply was very enthusiastic. He knew that the cross existed as it is the parent of another cross, but he did not know anything more about it.

I waited several months for the second variety to bloom and then registered the plants online with Derek, who is in charge of the BSI Bromeliad registration program and lives in Australia.

So now I have 2 plants named after me and have shared a little knowledge of these plants with the rest of the botanical world. It is really very easy to do and you do not need a degree in botany to make up the plant description. With the help of a digital camera or a scanner the required photos can be sent over the internet. If you have a plant in your collection that is not registered, please consider registering it yourself.

Hopefully this newsletter will reach everyone in time for them to make plans to attend a special event at Tropiflora this weekend. Friday and Saturday, June 27 and 28th from 8:00 to 5:00 3530 Tallevast Road, Sarasota FL 34243, 941-351-2267.

This is going to be a special meeting: