The Hawaii Chapter of the American Rhododendron Society is inviting everyone interested in learning how to grow tropical rhododendrons to its Nov. 16 meeting at the Keaau Community Center. The meeting starts with a potluck lunch at noon. Sherla Bertelmann will give a talk on hybridization and registration of new varieities at 1 p.m. To encourage interest in tropical Vireya rhododendrons, each newcomer will be given a plant to take home.
The Hawaii Chapter of the American Rhododendron Society is inviting everyone interested in learning how to grow tropical rhododendrons to its Nov. 16 meeting at the Keaau Community Center. The meeting starts with a potluck lunch at noon. Sherla Bertelmann will give a talk on hybridization and registration of new varieities at 1 p.m. To encourage interest in tropical Vireya rhododendrons, each newcomer will be given a plant to take home.
Folks in the society are always coming up with new hybrids. According to Bertelmann, two new Australian hybrids will be registered this year. They are Sunset Gold 50 and Coral Sea.
It is uncommon to find Vireyas at our local nurseries, so by getting involved in the local chapter, you can obtain new ones to enjoy.
Vireyas come from tropical southeast Asia and are well-known for their beautiful flowers that vary in size from 0.5 inch to 5 inches across. Some are fragrant. Colors vary from white to yellow, pink to red. Like hibiscus, each flower may be multicolored.
The plants vary from shrubs to small trees and grow in a variety of environments. Some species thrive in well-drained soils and others will grow as epiphytes along with orchids. Some are lithophytes. That is, they grow on rocks with mosses and ferns.
In Hawaii, they are well-suited for our porous, rocky lava soils with high humidity and rainfall. A good opportunity to see some major plantings is to visit the Panaewa Rainforest Zoo and Gardens in Hilo. The society members have planted a display garden there.
One of the main goals of the Rhododendron Society is to protect endangered species, since so many come from fast-disappearing rainforests and cloud forests.
With climate change and pressures of human population, even the vast forests of New Guinea, Borneo, peninsular Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines, as well as the Himalayas, are being lost.
By growing Vireyas in our gardens, we are helping to save them from extinction. Another advantage is they are easy to grow as long as you give them good soil drainage. There are some tricks to help them do their best, but these are easily learned from other Vireya lovers.
For more information on the meeting and the society, call Bill Miller at 982-8290. The society’s website is hawaiivireyaars.org.
I first fell in love with this amazing group of plants while climbing Mt. Kinabalu in Borneo. We were at about 7,000 feet elevation as the sun was about to set. The forest was ablaze in bloom with oranges and reds of Vireyas growing as epiphytes on the gigantic ancient trees of the mountain.
Only recently have I seen the gardens of some of the society members who have incorporated Vireyas into their landscape design. The riot of colors in these lush gardens of East Hawaii and mauka West Hawaii is every bit as beautiful as the natural habitat of this amazing plant family.