Breeders' Picks Yellows

Breeders' Picks - Yellows

I have elected to do this slightly differently than the five plants that Carri spoke about. I am actually looking at three breeding lines. Within my limited time, I can only scratch the surface of a relatively complex topic and will do my best to cover as much as possible. In case you are interested in discussing anything further, please stop by and see me afterwards.

When we breed for yellows we try to produce consistently high quality yellows. In order to obtain that goal, our approach is to try to determine if there have been any plants that consistently produce good yellow progeny (the type of progeny that we are interested in creating). Wherever possible we try to identify individual cultivars that have been able to accomplish that goal. We also try to determine if the progeny of these parent plants continue to produce improvements in their hybrids.

Before we go any further I would like to make some comments about the terms I have used. When I talk about "yellow," I am talking about a varying degree of yellow base colors, since many yellow flowers have markings. Also when I refer to "high quality", I am referring to quality as defined by the American Orchid Society awards system.

As I mentioned, we will be looking at three breeding lines and three parent plants that I think have made significant contributions to yellows. The first one we will look at is Phalaenopsis venosa, which is a Phalaenopsis species. It has been a little bit confusing because it started out being classified as a different species, Phalaenopsis psilantha and it is still considered by some taxonomists to be a form of amboinensis. However, it is currently considered for the purpose of hybrid registration as its own separate and distinct species. There are basically two color forms of the species, one being brown and the other green. It has been found that generally the best breeding results (for yellows) have been obtained with the brown form of the species. The desirable traits of venosa include color, substance and fragrance. The undesirable trait is its form since it is a star-shaped flower.

The first hybrid with venosa was registered in 1984. It has been a very prolific parent and to date there have been approximately 200 hybrids registered with venosa as a parent. It has produced progeny that have received over 130 AOS awards and has been very successful in producing high quality progeny.

As an example of the brown form of the species, here we have Phalaenopsis venosa 'Ontario' which has received an HCC. This is basically a deep yellow-green colored flower that is overlaid with the brown. I'd like to draw your attention to the white flower center, which venosa frequently passes on to its progeny. As I mentioned previously, this is a fragrant species.

When you cross venosa with another yellow Phalaenopsis species, amboinensis, you get this hybrid which is Ambonosa. This cultivar is 'Dottie' which received an HCC. Ambonosa itself has proved to be a useful breeder. Note the white center of the flower and the brown baring which is characteristic of venosa hybrids. Since both parents of this hybrid are fragrant, this hybrid is fragrant as well.

This is a first bloom seedling of Phalaenopsis Golden Sparkle which is a cross of venosa and Orange Glow. I would like you to note the rich golden-yellow color that we can obtain by using venosa as a parent.

This is Phalaenopsis Golden Bells. The cultivar is 'Delight'. It is a cross between Golden Sands and venosa. Notice the white center of the flower as well as the subdued brown markings that are characteristic of venosa hybrids.

Here is Phalaenopsis Bob Gordon. The cultivar is 'Phoenix' and this cross consists of venosa by Memoria Anton Smith. This is an example of what you get when you cross venosa with a large white. Notice we have a white flower center and also very light brown markings towards the flower center that actually fade with age and become yellow.

This is Phalaenopsis Taipei Gold. This cultivar is 'Golden Dragon' and it received an Award of Merit. It is a cross between Gladys Read and venosa, and is another example of what you get when you cross venosa with a large white. As Norman Fang pointed out to us yesterday, Taipei Gold itself is proving to be a useful breeder. Once again note the white flower center.

This is Phalaenopsis Lemon Candy and the cultivar is 'Orchidview' which has received an AM. This cross consists of Hausermann's Candy by venosa and it is an example of what you get when you cross venosa with a striped flower. The yellow color on this cultivar actually shows up best on the back of the flower, as well as, the flower margins and it adds a rich warm color to the flower color. Notice again the white center.

The next parent we will be looking at is Phalaenopsis Hausermann's Goldcup. This was originally registered in 1979 by Hausermann and consists of a cross between Acker's Beauty and Just Me. The genetic background of this plant is kind of interesting because it is mostly large whites plus the two species, mariae and lueddemanniana which is where the yellow color comes from. Hausermann mericloned a cultivar called 'Everlasting' and out of that mericlone population there were several polyploid variations that were produced. One of those is Hausermann's Goldcup 'Everlasting Lenette #1', which has been a very successful breeder. The desirable traits of this plant include color, form, substance, size and presentation. The undesirable traits include abnormalities around the column. This is somewhat of a newcomer to yellow breeding and the first hybrid was registered in 1986. It has been the parent of approximately 80 hybrids to date and has produced progeny, which have received about 40 AOS awards.

This is Phalaenopsis Hausermann's Goldcup 'Everlasting Lenette #1'. I would like you to note the even yellow coloration, relatively full petals, the subdued red markings centrally and the colored lip.

For those of you who think that it might be a good idea to cross Hausermann's Goldcup with venosa, you are right. That produces the cross Golden Eagle and this cultivar is 'Suntan' which received an HCC. Note the characteristic white center from venosa as well as the coloration of the lip from Hausermann's Goldcup.

Crossing Hausermann's Goldcup with amboinensis produces this hybrid which is Orchidview Gold. This cultivar is 'Phoenix'. Notice the red centrally, as well as, the coloration of the lip. We have seen the results of crossing Hausermann's Goldcup with the two yellow species, venosa and amboinensis. Some of you may have wondered what would happen if you crossed Hausermann's Goldcup with Ambonosa, which is the hybrid created by crossing the species amboinensis and venosa. That produces Phalaenopsis Beyond the Sunset, and this cultivar is 'Mary Goo', which received an HCC. Notice the red markings centrally again and the red coloration of the lip.

This is Phalaenopsis Miners Bonanza and the cultivar is 'Gosh' which has received an HCC. This cross consists of Golden Amboin by Hausermann's Goldcup. Notice the good yellow coloration, as well as, some red markings centrally. With this photograph you can see the fine presentation and good flower count that you can get from Hausermann's Goldcup.

This is Phalaenopsis Jim Krull and the cultivar is 'Riverside' which has received an HCC. This cross consists of Florida Snow by Hausermann's Goldcup and shows what you can get when you cross Hausermann's Goldcup with a large white. Again we have the colored lip from Hausermann's Goldcup.

We thought it might be a good idea to cross Hausermann's Goldcup with a candy stripe and we crossed it with Hausermann's Candy, which produced this hybrid, Memoria Ed Bulow. This cultivar is 'Radiant' which has received an HCC. We believe that both parents contributed to the fine coloration of the lip in this cultivar.

Finally, we have Orchidview Headliner. This cultivar is 'Nola' which has received an HCC. This cross consists of Mok Choi Yew by Hausermann's Goldcup. This plant has produced yellow flowers that are basically overlaid with magenta as you can see. It demonstrates how yellows can contribute to the breeding of reds.

The final parent that we will look at today is Phalaenopsis Deventeriana which was registered way back in 1927 by a man named W. van Deventer. This cross consists of the combination of two species, amabilis and amboinensis. It was remade around 1970 by a man named Fred Thornton and from that remake there were two cultivars that received AOS awards. It is the cultivar 'Treva' which has proved to be a parent of profound breeding potential. In fact, Deventeriana is the most successful Phal parent ever. The total awards to its progeny now number about 300. The first hybrid was registered in 1979 and it is the parent of approximately 150 hybrids to date. Desirable traits of this plant include color, form, presentation, floriferousness, substance, and I would add texture to that list. The undesirable traits are arguable although sometimes the desirable traits are not as consistent as we would like to see.

This is Phalaenopsis Deventeriana 'Treva' which received the Award of Merit. Notice that we do have some markings towards the center of the flower which are consistently passed on to its progeny. What seems to be very interesting from a breeding standpoint is that this cultivar seems to allow the color of its mate to dominate its own light yellow color.

This is Phalaenopsis Golden Gift and the cultivar is 'Rialto' which has received an HCC. Golden Gift has been a very successful Deventeriana hybrid and it has received a lot of awards. This cross consists of Deventeriana by Golden Buddha and notice that the color of the Golden Buddha parent is dominant in this plant.

A second generation Golden Gift hybrid is Sandra Livingston and this cultivar is 'Kelly'. This cross consists of Golden Gift by venosa. Note the deep yellow coloration that you might expect from venosa. Also note that although the flower center is not white, it is lighter than the rest of the flower.

We thought it might be a good idea to cross Deventeriana back to one of its progeny - in this case Golden Gift - and that produces Phalaenopsis Arizona Amber, which has received an Award of Quality. We used Deventeriana 'Treva' and Golden Gift 'Rialto' to make this cross. Remember that Golden Gift itself is a Deventeriana hybrid. There are 13 plants in this photograph and I would like to call your attention to the overall floriferousness of this cross as well as the variation of yellow coloration and markings.

An example of an awarded cultivar of Arizona Amber is 'Sun Tiger' which has received an HCC. Notice that Deventeriana once again has allowed the coloration and the markings of its mate to dominate this hybrid. In fact, the color and markings are very similar to Golden Gift 'Rialto' although the flower form has been improved.

Crossing Deventeriana with venosa (which we spoke about earlier) produces Nancy Gordon. We see here the characteristic brown barring and white center as well as the rich yellow coloration of venosa hybrids. Of interest here is that the brown markings that you see on this flower fade with age although the yellow does not, so actually, the flower becomes more attractive as it ages.

This is Phalaenopsis Sweet Memory 'Amy Dawn', which has received an HCC. Sweet Memory is another very successful Deventeriana hybrid and consists of the cross of Deventeriana by the species violacea. Once again you will see that the Deventeriana has allowed the color of its mate to dominate here. Another very nice thing about this hybrid is that it is very fragrant.

If you cross Sweet Memory with venosa you get Zuma Aussie Delight. This cultivar is 'Zuma Canyon' which has received an Award of Merit. Once again we see that venosa enhances the deep yellow coloration (and this cross is also fragrant).

Another Sweet Memory cross is Rare Vintage and the cultivar here is 'Patrick'. This cross consists of Sweet Memory by George Vasquez. This cultivar is basically a light creamy yellow colored flower that is overlaid with a deep vibrant magenta. It is another example of how yellows can be used in breeding reds.

Of course, no discussion of Deventeriana would be complete without some mention of the cross Orchid World, which consists of Malibu Imp by Deventeriana. This cultivar is 'Bonnie Vasquez' which has received an Award of Merit. Phalaenopsis Orchid World is the most awarded Phalaenopsis hybrid ever with approximately 100 AOS awards to its credit. Notice the very fine form and bright colors of this cultivar.

That concludes this presentation. Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today.