March Plants of the Month:

Cacti: Columnar Cacti Succulents:Monsonia Pelargonium,

Save These Dates:

March 22, Sale atNewcomers’

March 29 &30, annualOpen Gardens at theHemenways

March 28 & 29 OrangeCounty C&SS Show &sale

April 12 & 13 SouthCoast C&SS Show & Sale

May 16 & 17 GATESC&SS SHOW & SALE

Open Gates A publication of the

Gates Cactus & Succulent Society March 2014

From the President: We finally started our monthly meeting in February and it looks like everyone

had an enjoyable evening. Most of you attended but we did miss some members. If youcould not attend last month I sure hope to see you in March. Please do not hesitate toremind your friends and other members to attend the meeting. A big gesture ofappreciation goes out to all of those who have renewed their membership. Those whohave not, please do so as soon as possible.

Once again, the mini show in February highlighted the horticultural talents of ourmembers. The plants are always amazing to view and a delight for everyone. Iencourage those who have not participated yet to consider entering. We can all learnsome bits of critical points on judging these plants and how we can stage them better forcompetition. Think of the mini show as preparation for the big annual show and sale.You can get many ideas regarding specimen presentation by seeing how others havestaged their plants. I also want to thank the volunteer judge(s) who have or will assistBuck in the judging. Buck is always looking for some new judges so step up your time.

Finally, winter rain has returned to give us some much needed water. Althoughit is not spring yet, I know everyone is busy making plans for another growing season ofour favorite cacti and succulents. Most everyone probably took advantage of the lasttwo unseasonably warm months to get an early start with their spring planting. I hopeBuck’s presentation last month gave you a boost to start your gardening. We areplanning to have a mini “instructional” session pertaining to our hobby from each of ourscheduled speaker in this coming year. More details will be available in each newsletter.Woody Minnich will join us this month as the speaker and he will have some incitefulthoughts as usual.

As spring is fast approaching, the season is here for many outdoor andhorticultural events. Each month our newsletter and general meeting will be a source formany local shows and sales. The CSSA website will also provide detailed information onContinued pg. 2

President 909-910-9195 Phuc Huynh Director 909-797-8214 Kim Urman e-mail: hunyhphu@excite.com Director 909-499-5865 Crystal Rojas Vice President 951-247-3420 Diana Roman Director 760-881-0184 Trisha Davis Treasurer 951-369-7180 Karen Roholt Director 951-849-1618 Ray Cardenas Secretary 909-234-4388 Linda McConnell Librarian 951-682-3795 Karen Fleisher Past President 909-783-2477 Don McGrew Greeter 951-781-8205 Teresa Wassman Membership 951-369-7180 Karen Roholt Editor 951-360-8802 Buck Hemenway Leadership Team 2014

Sweepstakes Winner

NEXT MEETING, WEDNESDAY, March 5, NEW TIME! 7:00 PM

AT THE SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY MUSEUM I- 10 AT CALIFORNIA STREET IN REDLANDS, CA.

From the President Con’t.upcoming events, sponsored by other CSSA chapters.If you know of other future events and activities pleaseshare the information with us. Be sure to attend someof the events taking place this month that are listed inthis newsletter. Spring and summer will once again bea busy but fun filled time for all of us.

Enjoy the program,Phuc

March SpeakerWendell S “Woody” Minnich

“Madagascar, Land of the Giants”To show and tell the story of Madagascar

requires that I also tell the stories of: “Madagascar, the Plants, People and Places” and “Madagascar, the Disappearing Island.” If you are a succulent lover, many of the plants from this island are probably well represented in your collection.

Woody, ashe is commonlycalled, has been inthe cactus hobbyfor some 45 yearsand has becomewell known for hisparticipation inmany of the cactusand succulentclubs. He is an honorary life member of nineclubs as well as a life member of CSSA (Cactus &Succulent Society of America.) He has served inalmost all positions of leadership from president,to newsletter editor, to show chairman and so on.He is also known for his extensive field workstudying primarily the cactus family.

The Newman Achievement Award Previous Recipients (* deceased) 1976 Col. J.W. Dennison* 1977 Davis Newman*

1978 Helen Herman* 1979 Joyce Tate* 1980 Marian Bell* 1981 Gonah Schreckengast* 1982 Brig. Will Mollet* 1983 Sylvia Gould* 1984 Mel Parks* 1985 Joe Casey* 1986 Leo & Lillian Pickoff 1987 Eleanore Pounds* 1988 Edith Crinklaw* 1989 Joe Casey* 1990 Dagmar Hert* 1991 Doris Lutz* 1992 Peggy Parks 1993 Joe Gardner* 1994 Diane Park 1995 Howard Craig* 1996 Ric & Marilyn Newcomer 1997 Helen Hughes 1998 Amber Jones 1999 Kimberly & Barry Urman 2000 Janet Burnham & Judy Horne 2001 Dennis Kucera 2002 Lois Utter* 2003 Helen & Bernie Teunissen* 2004 Buck Hemenway 2005 Eva Dye 2006 Chris & Karen Roholt 2007 Bob Laughlin 2008 Frank Nudge 2009 Joella Olson 2010 Mike Green 2011 Yvonne Hemenway 2012 Don & Mary Alice McGrew 2013 Tony Marino

Kitchen Duty for March 2014 Andrew Gould, Mary Alice McGrew

Newman Achievement Award The Hazelle and Davis Newman Award

Congratulations to Tony Marino whohas been awarded this award for 2013 with avote of the membership at the Februarymeeting.

DUES ARE DUEYour 2014 Dues are due now.

Please see the Dues submission form inthis newsletter. Get your money to Karen

as soon as possible

The Palms to Pines District of CaliforniaGarden Clubs Inc. invites the public toGarden Celebrations, an Inland Empireflower show and garden festival, to beheld 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. March 8 at theLawrence Hutton Community Center inColton 660 Colton Ave. Gates membersare welcome to enter plants. Call RonLang 951 849 8074 for info.

.2014 Plants of the Month

CACTI SUCCULENTS March Columnar Cacti Pelargonium, Monsonia April Echinopsis Agave May Best Staged Cacti Best Staged Succulent June Gymnocalycium Euphorbia July Photograph Photograph August Crests/ Monstrose/ Variegates Crests, Monstrose, Variegates September Opuntiadeae Sanseviera October Ariocarpus Stapeliads November Auction December Holiday Party

CALENDAR OF UP COMING EVENTS FOR 2013/14 Feb. 8 San Diego C&SS Winter Show & Sale, Balboa Park, 9:00 – 4:00 March 29 & 30 Annual Open Gardens & Sale at the Hemenways. 5890 Grinnell Dr., Riverside, 951-360-8802 www.pricklypalace.comMarch 28 & 29 Orange County C&SS Show & Sale, Anaheim United Methodist Church, 1000 S Sate, Anaheim. Call 562-587-3357 for info. April 26 Gates Home Tour. More info to come.

WHERE TO FIND STUFF Your club library is a fantastic resource for information about the plants in your collection!

CACTUS RESCUE

Just a reminder about our cactus rescue program; it's a great way for our members to acquire new specimens at a relatively low cost, and all funds go directly to our club. If you or anybody you know want to donate plants or an entire collection, contact Ray Cardenas or any other board member. We will collect and transport the plants, make arrangements for their care, prepare them for sale, and make them available to our club.

Ray

Blow Out Sale at Ric & Marilyn Newcomers’.March 22 9:00 AM til Noon. Ric is selling ALL of his ceramic Show Pots. He has

removed his great plants and is selling pots made by more than 9 different master potters.This is an unprecedented chance to pick up fabulous show pots, some by potters that are nolonger in business. He told me that he will be selling some of his fabulous collection plants aswell.

RIC & MARILYN NEWCOMER25265 Lyra Court (cross street Milky Way)

Sun City, CA951 672 3074, 951 566 6742

Columnar Cacti South American Columnar Cacti

By: Buck Hemenway Otherwise known as the Giants of the

Andes, many of them are among the largest cacti on earth, rivaling the North American Saguaro (Carnegia gigantea) and Cardon (Pachycereus pringlei). We include all of the upright columnar shaped cacti in this group, whether they end up being huge or not. Genera such as Cleistocactus are included, just because they tend to grow in a columnar way. We do not include the ball shaped Echinopsis, but we do include all of the newly introduced Echinopsis from the Trichocereus genus that was subsumed recently. We will accept the old or the new names for these plants.

Following are the genera from which these plants come: Armatocereus, Arrojadoa, Arthrocereus, Brasilicereus, Browningia, Calymmanthium, Castellanosia, Cereus, Cipocereus, Cleistocactus, Coleocephalocereus, Corryocactus, Echinopsis, Espostoa, Espostoopsis, Eulichnia, Facheiroa, Haageocereus, Harrisia, Jasminocereus, Lasiocereus, Micranthocereus, Neoraimondia, Oreocereus, Pierrebraunia, Pilosocereus, Praecereus, Stetsonia, Stephanocereus, Strophocactus, and Weberbauerocereus.

Many of these plants have enormous flowers that match the stature of the plant.

Most are extremely easy to grow. All they require in our area is good drainage and they can become huge in no-time. A little care needs to be taken when selecting a South American plant for your landscape. Even though they may grow at above 15,000 feet in the Andes, some are very sensitive to freezing. The closer to the equator that any plant grows, the more tropical it is and as such will have little or no tolerance for freezing temperatures. A little research will reveal which plants are more adaptable to colder temperatures. Insect pests are sometimes present and can be cared for as with any cactus plant.

Any good succulent landscape should have at least one of the large Echinopsis (Trichocereus) in it. The large white flowers of Echinopsis terscheckii in late spring are iconic in their symbolism of what a cactus flower should look like.

Echinopsis (Trichocereus) tarijensis - Poco

Oreocereus celsianus

Echinopsis (Trichocereus) atacamensis pasacana

North American Columnars

The most iconic of all cacti are the columnar plants that inhabit the arid regions of sub-tropical North America. From the giants such as Saguaro (Carnegia gigantea) and Cardon (Pachycereus pringlei), to the smaller genera such as Bergerocacus, Stenocereus, all of them exhibit the same general growth form. Some, don’t have the strength to grow upright such as the Creeping Devil (Stenocereus eruca), but a casual examination of the plant will show that they all look very similar as far as growth habit.

The two most common plants in the Sonoran Desert which takes up most of Arizona and the Northern Baja California peninsula are Saguaro and Cardon. They are the giants of the North American deserts, growing to well over 60 feet tall and with many stems until they are monster plants weighing in the several tons.

There are species of Bergerocactus and Stenocereus that grow on hillsides overlooking the Pacific ocean in San Diego County and Western Baja and others that grow in central Baja where measurable rainfall is very light and summertime high temperatures can be extreme.

In general, we find North American columnars very easy to grow in our inland valleys. Most will stand freezes to the mid-twenties and are happiest when our temperatures are at their highest in the summer. The key to success is drainage and not overwatering. Some of them come from regions that have summer or winter rainfall exclusively. Some care should be taken to not overwater a Saguaro in the winter for example. Others, such as Cardon experience summer and winter rainfall in habitat and are well adapted to life in an Inland Empire garden that gets water years around.

They all tend to have large, showy flowers, mainly white and occurring in late spring throughout the summer.

There is no better example of a cactus in a garden than a columnar plant from our own part of the world.

Pachycereus pringlei (Cardon)

Carnegia gigantea (Saguaro)

Stenocereus stallatus

Pelargonium, Monsonia

By: Buck Hemenway These plants are part of the Geraniaceae family that includes such garden favorites as Geraniums. The only succulents in the family occur in the Monsonia and Pelargonium genera. Sarcocaulon has been redefined as a genus and included in Monsonia. We will recognize both names in all shows for the foreseeable future.

Not all plants in either genus are truly succulent, but we admit all to our shows. The plants in this group are primarily succulent in nature and form woody shrubs and geophytic forms. The stem and bark of the Monsonia genus are highly resinous and flammable and have been used locally as firewood with the resulting name “Bushman’s Candle.”

All plants in these genera have showy flowers. Pelargonum flowers tend to be small, but the plants are covered with them with colors ranging from purple to bright red to yellow and white. Monsonia flowers are larger, fewer but showy and range in color from reddish pink to yellow.

Plants of both genera are easy to grow in Southern California. Monsonias’ habitats are for the most part in Namaqualand and southern Namibia where there is very little rainfall and many of them exist on fog for moisture. Drainage is key to successful cultivation of Monsonias and many Pelargoniums. They do well in the ground and in pots, liking a little afternoon shade in the hottest areas. They will take some freezing, coming back from a cold induced die back and always add showy color to our succulent landscape plantings.

Monsonias have spines and grow in some of the most inhospitable growing conditions in Southern Africa. A few Pelargoniums have spines, but they are such vigorous growers that they outgrow the occasional antelope that might find them delicious in habitat.

Pests are present, but we find that they will be the last to act as home to mealy bugs and aphids. Any bug infestations are quickly cured with normal practices.

If one researches specific Monsonia species, some will be found to grow at very high altitude in South Africa in the Richtersveld and as such will

be hardy in our coldest areas up to 3,500 feet elevation or so.

Monsonia ciliata

Monsonia multifida

Pelargonium echinatum

From: Gates Cactus & Succulent Society 5890 Grinnell Dr Riverside, CA 92509

FIRST CLASS MAIL