Tag: NOSSA

Australian Orchids: Their Role in Human Lives

In July, NOSSA resumed face to face meetings but with an innovation. We introduced Zoom meeting as part of our face to face meeting. We are hoping that this will allow more members to become involve with the meetings.

Our first speaker, Greg Steenbeeke, spoke to the meeting from Sydney; and we had another member joining in from Victoria. Greg kindly allowed us to record his talk which is available for all to hear.

Australian Orchids: Their Role in Human Lives
Speaker: Greg Steenbeeke

Anyone wanting to join our General Meeting, please contact the treasurer via email – nossa.treasurer@gmail.com

NOSSA Inaugural Calendar 2019

2019 Calendar Flyer sm amended.jpg

Every month, NOSSA holds a photograph competition. The entries were varied and beautiful but they were only being seen by the members at the meetings, so it was decided to showcase these lovely orchid images in a calendar.

The overall winner from 2018 would be on the front cover and we would select twelve from the fifty-one 2018 entries. The challenge was to select the twelve. This was done by having an on-line vote for the twelve most popular pictures. And I would like to thank all who entered and all who voted.

Having collated the votes to find out what was the most popular orchids, the next task was to design an informative calendar giving information about the South Australian orchids featured as well as significant NOSSA event dates and a very rough guide indicating when the orchids are likely to be flowering.

If you are interested in ordering a calendar, contact NOSSA as per the details on the flyer above.

October 2014 Winning Photograph

 Caladenia procera

This month’s entries of Oligochaetochilus arenicola, Caladenia flava, Calochilus robertsonii , Diuris palustris and Caladenia procera illustrated the variety of shapes to be found in orchids.

All but one are reasonably common; all but one were photographed in situ and that one was the winning picture by Kris Kopicki – Caladenia procera. Its common name, Carbunup King Spider Orchid, reflects its location near Busselton Western Australia. This species has a severely limited distribution with a small population and is threatened by land clearing for development. Consequently it is rated as critically endangered.

The other aspect of this plant is that it is a photograph of a plant in a pot not the bush. Kris benched the original plant at the September Tuesday meeting when it was still in bud. By Saturday it was in glorious flower.

This picture exemplifies the two objects of NOSSA which “are to promote and engage in activities for the promotion and furtherance of:

  1. the culture, propagation, conservation, knowledge and scientific study of the native orchids of Southern Australia and the Australasian region;
  2. the preservation of orchids as a species and their preservation within their native habitat.”

Some terrestrial orchids are relatively easy to grow but not this one. It takes time patience and skill to grow them. C procera is one of the fungi dependent species and though capable of living many years, it can take up to six years before flowering, although under ideal condition it could mature in as little as two years.

Being able to grow the different terrestrial orchids is one of the ways NOSSA can help in their conservation. NOSSA has a Growers’ Forum each meeting night where members can attend and learn from experienced growers how to grow both epiphytes and, importantly, the terrestrials.

Reference:

Native Orchid Society of South Australia Inc. (NOSSA) Rules of Association 2007

Caladenia procera – Carbunup King Spider, Orchid Species Profile and Threats Database (SPRAT) – http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicspecies.pl?taxon_id=68679 – access 6th November 2014

Remember November’s theme is Orchids and Insects (Spiders and other critters accepted as Honorary Insects)

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