Contents of the Summer 2011 Northants News
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People, Plants and Things (The Branch Show 2011) Trevor Wray |
As Ed of Northants News and willing to report the show I had a bit of a disappointment as Manchester BCSS had booked my services as a speaker that evening while our committee was still cogitating a date. No matter; I staged my exhibits first thing, took a few pictures of the plants and Rick Gillman, our very able judge, and then sped up the M6 to the fairly far north...
The prize cups were evenly spread around the better growers and every exhibiter won at least one prize card. Here is a picture record of the weekend.
People...
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Tina, Jack, Rick and David discuss Tina's curious plant of Kedrostis africana |
Good to see members Doug and Vivi Rowlands at the show again. Time we saw you at some meetings - your expertise would be valued by our members. |
Judge Rick Gillman did a great job and gave more prize cards to the Ed than he deserved. So we'll invite him back again, please. |
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Last year I managed to exhibit an oversized Aloe and was congratulating myself on avoiding the same mistake this year. (Same plant, same class. It was close!) However my Echinocereus slipped through the net and was NASed by Rick. Yup, miles too big. |
Mike Haywood exhibited this interesting variation on Echinocactus grusonii with the name 'var. pachyspinus'. I could find very little information on the internet but the plant is similar to the var curvispina. Click the image for more. |
The Darbons brought along this curious hybrid between Pseudolithos miguitanus and P. dodsonii. Back home it is kept on the windowsill in case it catches a cold. I just look at all those potential cuttings! |
Plants...
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Best cactus in the Show - the Darbon's Ariocarpus kotschoubeanus. Certainly worthy of the title! |
This caudiform Cibirhiza albersiana had the judges among us reaching for our 'Guide to Shows'. Was it in fact an 'offocial' BCSS succulent? In fact it is and related to Ceropegia. |
Tina drew my attention to this pretty Haworthia. She wasn't sure of the spelling but a bit of detective work on the internet produced the cultivar name 'Kintaikyo'. I thought it was a new plant but turns out this was described in 1825 and is a hybrid between H. venosa and H. koelmaniorum. |
and Things...
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This close-up of Senecio mweroensis var. sagitatus shows a weird plant closely related to the popular 'candle plant'. It is dormant and will have leaves in the winter months. |
This Mammillaria 'Wooden Top' fits neatly into the category 'things'. What is it? Well if you remember 'Fred' who was a deformed Mammillaria bocasana this is more of the same. Yes, a thing. |
Guess why this Euphorbia unispina is called unispina. OK, too easy; why is it called Euphorbia? |
Our thanks to the management and staff of Billing Garden Village who again provided an excellent venue for our Show
