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Volume 12 February 2009 Number 2

THE NEWSLETTER OF THE BAKERSFIELD CACTUS & SUCCULENT

Monthly MeetingTuesday, Feb. 10Olive Drive Church,

5500 Olive driveat 6:30 PM

(Building 6, Room 604)

Have YouHave You Paid YourPaid Your

Dues?Dues?

This Month's Program

CaudiciformSucculents

Volume 12 Number 2

February 2009The is the official publication of the Bakersfield

Cactus & Succulent Society of Bakersfield, California

Membership in the Bakersfield Cactus & Succulent Society costs $10 per year for an individual and only $15 a year for a family.

Visit Us On the Web!www.BakersfieldCactus.org

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Caudiciform Succulents

Start saving your stuff for our

annualYARD SALE

May 9th!

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CONTACT INFORMATIONPresident: Ed ColleyCactusWoodsEd00@aol.comMembership: Maynard Moelithops44@bak.rr.comNewsletter/Website: Stephen Cooleythecactuspatch@bak.rr.com

FEBRUARY’S PROGRAM

This month's presentation will be a slide program developed by Gordon Rowley, author of Caudiciform & Pachycaul Succulents. The program will include many examples of succulents from the caudiciform group. I will also bring in a few plants from my collection to go along with the slides.

Bring in some of yours as well! Paul

Our January program began with discussions about when to hold our annual Yard Sale (my notes have the yard sale as the 3rd weekend in April, but, that has been crossed out and replaced by the 1st – the 18th is on the edge of the page, but it is also crossed out and replaced by the 4th). Fortunately, Sidney emailed that the date will be May 9th! Start saving up your stuff, this has been a good money maker for the club in the past.

Your tiresome tireless editor asked everyone to consider trying the Online version of the and consider switching to receiving an electronic, paperless version in the future.

It was noted that the Gardenfest at Bakersfield College will be April 18th – we met a lot of new people last year, and made some money as well. Let’s do it again!

It was then time for Jack Kelley to give his talk on meteors, meteoroids, and meteorites. Though it had nothing to do with succulents, it was very informative and enjoyable (I’m sure that there

must have been one or two cacti obliterated at Meteor Crater, Arizona). Among the many things we learned was how to tell a meteorite from a meteorwrong.

The brag table contained some nice plants as usual and the raffle was also good.

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Euphorbia grandicornis

The genus Euphorbia, is a large and complex one that I have become interested in for reasons that are not entirely clear to me. There are over three thousand species in the genus and about two thousand of those species are succulents so you see we may have our work cut out for us if we are to become familiar with it.

The genus is widespread with both old and new world representatives.

My first acquaintance with this thorny shrub was at Singer’s Growing Things in the San Fernando Valley. They propagated large numbers of Euphorbias and had large specimens in the ground. One of those specimens was moved to our house in Simi Valley some years later. There we learned that they don’t like frost. Ours froze a couple of times. It didn’t die but just sacrificed the thin edges of the flanges that run up the stems. In nature it forms shrub like mass of multiple stems coming off a single base reaching a height of 1-2 m.. Each stem has three or four flanges or ridges that extend out about 3-4 cm. On the edges of each flange are pairs of stout thorns between 1-5 cm. long, which give the plant its common name of “cow’s horn”. I have discovered that the plants respond to water in the summer months by growing rapidly and the flanges will be very long during this growth spurt. When the plant dries out the flanges will shorten only to lengthen again at the next watering giving the stem a sort of jointed appearance. During rapid growth there will form small leaves at the

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points where flowers will form later. Spines also form at these points.

Flowers are small about 5 mm. across and a light greenish yellow. They appear to be monoecious . Flowers are produced from spring to summer depending on water and fertilizer.

E. grandicornis is native to So. Africa, where it grows in well draining soils up to about 1000 m. elevation. There the seasons tend to be warm wet summers and cool dry winters. It is a credit to the toughness of this plant that it will live in the ground in southern California with its cool wet winters and hot dry summers. It probably is happier in a greenhouse were conditions can be controlled better.

Jack G. Reynolds

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The Garden Fest is a good way to give our club some exposure and talk to the public about our plants. This event is getting bigger every year. We can sell plants and make some money for the club, but the real nifty part is getting people interested in succulent plants. Consider volunteering to help at our booth this year (it’s not an all day/all weekend thing like the show and sale.)

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A field trip is in the works to go over to Vice President Paul’s House and see how

he grows all his wonderful plants.

Lynn

70 Common Cacti of the SouthwestAdenium and Pachypodium HandbookAfrican Botanical Diversity Network ReportAgaves, TheAgaves, Yuccas and Related PlantsAloe, The Succulent Riches of South AfricaAnza-Borrego Desert Region, TheBaja California, The American WildernessBaja California, Plant Field GuideBradleya. British C&SS. August 2003British C&S Journal Vol 21 No 1-2Cactaceas, Y Suculentas MexicanasCacti & Succulents for Modern LivingCacti & Succulents, 101 Essential TipsCacti & Succulents, A Complete GuideCacti & Succulents, A Practical HandbookCacti & Succulents, The Ultimate Book ofCacti & Succulents. Step-by-StepCacti and Succulents for the AmateurCacti in BrazilCacti of Arizona, TheCacti of CaliforniaCacti of the SouthwestCacti, A Gardener's HandbookCacti, Shrubs and Trees of Anza-BorregoCacti, The Illustrated DictionaryCacti, The Illustrated Encyclopedia ofCactus and Succulent Journal.Cactus and Succulents In Your HomeCactus and Succulents, House & Landscaping

Hooker's Icones Plantarum, Vol. 39 Part 3Lesotho's Heritage in JeopardyLithops, Treasures of the VeldMammillaria, A Collector's GuideMammillaria, Cactus File Handbook #6Mesembryanthemaceae, Cultivation of the MesembsMorphology & Infrageneric Relationships of JatrophaNational Museum Monuments & Art GalleryNative Cacti of California, ThePilosocereus (Cactaceae) in BrazilPlants of Arizona, A Field Guide To ThePocket Encyclopedia of Cacti & SucculentsPopular Exotic CACTI in ColourPunctured Thumb or Cactus & SucculentsRebutia, Cactus File Handbook #2Sedum, Cultivated StonecropsSouthern African Plant Red Data ListsStapeliads, An Introduction to theSucculent Spurges of MalawiSucculents of Botswana, The; A ChecklistSucculents, The Illustrated DictionaryResults of The Oman Flora & Fauna Survey 1975Thelocactus, The Cactus File Handbook #1To The Point (C&SS of America)Trees of Botswana: names and distributionTyler's Honest HerbalVygies, Gems of the VeldWhat Kinda Cactus Izzat?World Encyclopedia of Cacti & Succulent

Cactus and Succulents, Indoor & LandscapeCactus Club Killings, A Joe Portugal MysteryCactus Handbook, TheCactus Patch, The. Bakersfield C&SSCalifornia Garden Clubs. 2005-2006Checklist of Plants in Lesotho Herbaria, AConophytum, New Views of the GenusCopiapoaDeath of an Orchid Lover. Joe PortugalDeserts, A Closer Look atEating Well for Optimum HealthEcheverias, A Guide to CultivationEchinocereus, Quarterly JournalEuphorbia, The Euphorbia Journal, Vol 1-5Euphorbias, The Succulent, Handbook No.2Familiar Cacti of North AmericaFantastic Clan, The. The Cactus FamilyGasterias of South AfricaGenus Dioscorea in the Cape ProvinceGenus Tillandsia, Most Unusual Air PlantsGlossary of botanical terms (Succulent Plants)Growing Cacti & SucculentsGrowing the Mesembs, The NewGuide to the Aloes of South AfricaHandbook of Succulent Plants, A.Handbook on Succulent PlantsHaworthia and Astroloba, A Collector's GuideHaworthias, The First FiftyHaworthias, The Second FiftyHistory of Succulent Plants, A

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Library Books of the Bakersfield Cactus & Succulent SocietyThis is a list of the books in our library. Here you will find a wide variety ranging from scientific to novice. These books are for the use of our members, so, please use them. Check with our librarian Rose Mary Maguire for information about borrowing a book – it’s really easy!

[NOTE: I have had to abbreviate or truncate some of the titles so that they would fit on the page - editor]

A Peripatetic New YearA Letter From Bruce

We began the New Year in Fresno at a party hosted by Polly’s sister Martha. Next Day we watched

the Rose Parade on TV and exchanged Christmas presents at another sister Nancy’s. I got a book

titled Her Stories by Virginia Hamilton (1995, Blue Sky Press, N.Y.). Some are similar to the Uncle Remus stories except that all of them are about women. I never understood why a matriarchal society used a male story teller although he’s obviously related to the Caribbean Aunt Nancy which is a name related to Anansi the Spider of West Africa who “owns” all tales. The book is beautifully illustrated.

Another present which I received earlier from my brother Robert was a 100 billion dollar bill from Zimbabwe. It expired on 1st

Jan.! This expiring money is indicative of the major problems in Mugabe’s country. I was astounded when he tried to deny the Cholera epidemic. But I should have been prepared. Others have tried to deny the reality of disease. When I started as a parasitologist at the University of Malawi in 1976, I learned that my predecessor had had all her research on bilharzia confiscated because they wanted to hide this disease as it would discourage tourism. I found a backpacker’s guide to Africa recently which had an insert stating that their earlier statement that Malawi was bilharzia free was wrong.

Back in Bakersfield we saw The Beverly Hills Chihuahua, a rather silly Disney film which traces a dog’s journey back home from Mexico. The geography is quite confused. From a section of the Mojave transported to Mexico, the movie goes north to overgrown Mayan ruins full of Chihuahuas ruling in their “native” home!

We returned to Fresno on the 8th for the CSS meeting which featured Ernesto Sandoval of Davis who showed us great pictures of Western South Africa and Namibia. We again returned to Bakersfield for the CSS meeting on the 13th which featured Jack’s meteorite collection. One may wonder about the succulent connection, but there is one! It wasn’t brought out, but it is believed that the Asteroid which landed in the Yucatan 65 million years ago caused the extinction of Dinosaurs. This in turn freed flowering plants from major consumption and allowed the great variation (including succulents) we

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see today. (Of course this is all speculation.)On 16th Jan. we went to the Ontario Conference Center for a

quilt show called “The Road to California”. I did not expect many succulents, but even the parking lot had minute crassulas. Right off I found a picture puzzle based on the “Cactus Flower” quilt pattern.

Also in the commercial booths was a kit for making a Christmas Cactus quilt bordered with poinsettias. Polly was amazed at how expensive the South African indigo prints were. She should have filled our luggage with them! We also found cloth from East and

West Africa. We bought a little, but couldn’t afford all we wanted. In the competition section there were only two quilts with succulents: a bull looking disgustedly at a prickly pear and a “Geranium” fairy on a flower that looked more like a Pelargonium.

That evening we stayed with my nephew Leo in La Mirada. It was his son Elijah’s 2nd birthday and everyone was busy setting up an elaborate party for the next day. The theme was trains based on Thomas the Tank Engine.

On the 17th we went to the Huntington Gardens which was open to succulentophiles. It was cool enough to actually enjoy the green house, but it was a bit crowded. (The crowd included three of us from Bakersfield and another three from Fresno.) At one point there was a loud crash, but by the time I could get to that end of the greenhouse, the broken pot was cleaned up. It held a hybrid of Euphorbia obesa and E. ferox which needed repotting anyway. Outside there were spectacular beds of Aloes in bloom. After wearing out our feet in the desert garden we went over to the propagation houses for lunch. We then took in shows including a history of science which included an original book on astronomy by Ptolemy which is the oldest book in the Huntington Library. There were great plants for sale. Anne got the best: for $10 a cactus with succulent buttercups and a beady Senecio. I

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Polly & Anne with Indigo

bought a book on Darwin by the New York Botanic Garden (Darwin’s Garden, 2008, $17.99). Although Darwin claimed he was a geologist and not a botanist, the book had many examples of his botanic work, including a sketch of a Galapagos Opuntia.

We retuned to La Mirada for the tail end of the birthday party and next day went to the Doo Dah Parade in Pasadena. The spectators often outdid the marchers in this anything goes event. One interesting feature was the dogs. They had both marching dachshunds and basset hounds. Although Polly and I had chairs at a sidewalk restaurant (Bar Celona) by ordering soup and salad and Anne sat on her Raggedy

Anne

-12-blanket, we had even more exhausted feet by the time we got back to Bakersfield.

Next day we relaxed while watching programs on Martin Luther King Jr. and the civil rights movement. This brought back memories of the 60s when we played our own minor role in the movement. On Tuesday we went to the Fox and watched the inauguration on the big screen. It was exciting to feel the audience reaction even in conservative Bakersfield. In many ways this is a culmination of the 60s! The parade was a totally different genre from the two seen earlier in the month.

Bakersfield Cactus & Succulent Society2009 Officers, Directors and Chairpersons

Bruce & Fresnans at the Huntington

Anne at the Doo Dah Parade

President Vice-President

TreasurerSecretary

Editor CSSA Representative

 HospitalityLibrarian

Field TripsHistorian

Show & Sale

––––––––––––

Ed ColleyPaul BowlesMaynard MoeAnne LeeStephen CooleyMaynard Moe Bill McDonaldRose Mary MaguireLynn McDonaldStephen CooleyMaynard Moe

-13-Maynard and I went out to the Cal State succulent garden last month to install a small tool shed that will house the tools we have for weeding and digging. In the future we will stock it with hoses and other items that will be needed to maintain the garden.

With the rains that we have had so far, it looks like we will need a weeding work day to help control them (the lack of rain

the last two years meant very little in the way of weeding).

I have chosen the weekend of the 14th for the work day, but, we will decide at the upcoming meeting the exact day and time.

Stephen

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Feb 10 BCSS Meeting at 6:30PM Olive Dr. Church.program: Caudiciform Succulents

Feb 14 TENTATIVE Garden Work Day at Cal State. 9am.For more info check www.BakersfieldCactus.orgor contact Stephen thecactuspatch@bak.rr.com

Mar 10 BCSS Meeting at 6:30PM Olive Dr. Church.Mar 10 BCSS Meeting at 6:30PM Olive Dr. Church.Apr 14 BCSS Meeting at 6:30PM Olive Dr. Church.Apr 18 Garden Fest. Bakersfield College 9am-4pmMay 9 BCSS Annual Yard Sale

Feb 14 San Diego C&SS Show and SaleCasa Del Prado Rm 101 at San Diego's Balboa Parkhttp://www.sdcss.com/SDCSSWinterShow2009.html

Apr 10 CSSA Convention, Tucson

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UPCOMING EVENTS