Geoff Laird Orchid of the Year Award
Geoff Laird Award 2024
Rhyncholaeliocattleya Hsinying Aloha ‘C. H. Super’
This year’s award is a prestigious honour for Wen Teo and Sue Chau. They received the Geoff Laird Orchid of the Year Award, and their plant was also granted an FCC. This is only the third time an FCC has been awarded since the New Zealand Orchid Society Judging began in 1959.
Plant Name: Rhyncholaeliocattleya Hsinying Aloha ‘C. H. Super’
Award Achieved: FCC/NZOS
Grown By: Wen Teo & Sue Chau.
Description: Sepals have a velvety, deep magenta colour. Petals are deep magenta with a purple tint on the edges and a strong magenta central line. The labellum is deep magenta with a yellow central band. The ruffled outer edge is deep purple, and the anther cap is pink. The plant is clean and well presented. The bloom measures 123 mm in width.
Wen & Sue's Comments: Wen Teo and Sue Chau began focusing more on orchid care during the COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020. They purchased Rlc. Hsinying Aloha ‘C.H. Super’ from Ninox Orchids in December 2021.
The plant is grown in their living room, where winter daytime temperatures are kept at 19°C and night temperatures at 16°C. It sits on a west-facing windowsill with other cattleyas, positioned behind a sheer curtain year-round.
This orchid is a reliable performer, producing flowers five times in the three years since purchase.
Geoff Laird Award 2023
Sarcochilus Sunvale Heidihart 'Emma-Jin'
Plant Name: Sarcochilus Sunvale Heidihart 'Emma-Jin'
Award Achieved: AM/NZOS
Grown By: Yvonne Tapsell
Description: The sepals are white with red edging on the reverse, and crimson red on the front with faint yellow markings at the base. The petals are crimson red on the front, with the reverse white and edged in red. The labellum is yellow with a red streak on the tip and side lobes. The plant is clean with medium to dark green foliage. The bloom measures 24 mm in width.
Yvonne's Comments: This was grown in my shade house, in a pot attached to the south side of a pole where is gets bright light and plenty of air movement. It is fertilised and watered along with all the other genera. Has shelter from winter rains.
Geoff Laird Award 2022
Fredclarkeara After Dark 'Korean Dragon'
Plant Name: Fredclarkeara After Dark 'Korean Dragon'
Award Achieved: AM/NZOS
Grown By: Rossy Fleischer
Description: Sepals are dark brown, becoming paler toward the tips. Petals are light green-yellow at the base with dark brown blotches along the edges and lighter mottling elsewhere. The labellum is pale green with dark brown mottling, heavier toward the centre. The plant has a cascading spike from two large bare bulbs, carrying 26 blooms. Flower width is 55 mm.
Rossy's Comment: I bought this orchid about 2½ years ago. It grows on my west-facing bathroom windowsill, where it receives full, unfiltered sunlight. I keep a small gap in the window open to provide good air movement.
I reduce watering when the leaves begin to yellow. Once the last leaf drops, I stop watering completely and wait for the next shoot to reach about 150 mm before watering again. In summer, I place the plant in a saucer of strong, fertilised water for most days.
It was sold to me as Catasetum pileatum, but after flowering, it proved to be Fredclarkeara After Dark. I named it “Korean Dragon” because my Korean colleague insists there are no Korean dragons—only Chinese ones.
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