Firetail Orchids Cymbidium Flask List 2016/17

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Introduction

Welcome to the latest seedling flask list issued by Firetail Orchids.

This List is made up of crosses from the 2015 flowering season.  Pod retention and germination was good.  We continue with our usual practice of including in the list crosses with a reasonable germination (15 to 20 flasks) and good germination (more than 20 flasks available).  Some crosses with poorer germination have been included, always with an indication of flask availability.

Kevin Black continues in his mentoring role and we appreciate his help greatly.

Pam and Trevor Hughes

FLASK LIST G, 2016/2017
Miniature Seedling Flasks
(Bloom size less than 60mm)
G 01 Lancashire Jim ‘Relaxed’ x Jimbo Rose ‘Vanessa’
G 02 Bountiful Dan 'Records'Bountiful Dan ‘Records’ x Jimbo Rose ‘Vanessa’ (5 to 8 flasks)
May.  Pink.  We expect both of these crosses to be very pretty, very floriferous, and quite early in the flowering season.  Individual blooms will be unusually shapely for their size.  Although the blooms will be small, there will be lots of them on straight and naturally upright stems.  G 01 will be a lighter pink and G 02 a darker pink.
Intermediate Seedling Flasks
(Bloom size 60mm to 85mm)
G 03 Lancashire Jim ‘Relaxed’ x Pink Celebration ‘Tania’Pink Celebration 'Tania'
May.  Pink.  Both parents are fast growing and flower freely on straight and naturally upright stems.  Expect a range of pink shades and foliage sizes with bloom sizes towards the lower end of the Intermediate range.
G 04 Katy's Gold 'Cameron'Katy's Gold ‘Cameron’ x Gold Glimmer ‘Isorich’
May/July.  Yellow (25% Alba).  This early in the season, alba yellows like ‘Cameron’ are not as fully filled-in as much as later season varieties – ‘Isorich’ brings added shape here.  Bloom sizes will probably be at the upper end of the Intermediate range and some may even be Small Standards.  Like the vast majority of our crosses, these will be fast growing and free flowering.
G 05 Yellow Sun 'Bondi Beach'Yellow Sun ‘Bondi Beach’ x Firetail Adorn ‘Lola’Firetail Adorn 'Lola'
June/July.  Green.  ‘Bondi Beach’ is not as yellow as its full name would suggest, managing to produce fairly green blooms even under our high light conditions.  With ‘Lola’ contributing its very attractive clear and clean blooms we expect a good colour result.  The flatter ‘Bondi Beach’ should also alleviate the cupped blooms of ‘Lola’.  Labellums should be heavily and attractively marked, although not quite red-barred.
G 06 Aviemore ‘December Orange’ x Gold Carrot ‘Denise’Gold Carrot ‘Denise’
June/August.  Orange.  While there can be no certainties in breeding, we very confidently expect a profusion of blooms in this cross because both parents flower very freely.  This is a top cross for a commercial outcome.
G 07 Firetail Enchant 'Ava'Firetail Enchant ‘Ava’ x Misty Angel ‘Lovable’Misty Angel 'Lovable'
July/August.  White.  ‘Lovable’ has lovely wide tepals of glistening white, but the stems are short and the blooms are cupped and bunched together.  ‘Ava’ is a great complement, having quite tall stems with well-arranged, flat blooms.  Yes, they will also grow quickly and flower readily.
Small Standard Seedling Flasks
(Bloom size 85mm to 100mm)
G 08 Munno Para 'Chloe'Munno Para ‘Chloe’ x Firetail Contrast ‘Paige’
May.  Yellow.  ‘Chloe’ is one of our production mericlones.  It flowers reliably before Mother's Day (2nd Sunday of May in Australia).  It is so bright and attractive it is hard to imagine how its colour could be better!  ‘Paige’ brings larger, more filled-in blooms.  There will be a range of flowering times but most of these would have great potential to make a mother happy on Mother's Day!
G 09 Munno Para 'Chloe'Munno Para ‘Chloe’ x Firetail Wordsmith ‘Bigly’Firetail Wordsmith 'Bigly'
G 10 Munno Para 'Chloe'Munno Para ‘Chloe’ x Firetail Firmament ‘Meteor’Firetail Firmament 'Meteor'
G 11 Munno Para 'Chloe'Munno Para ‘Chloe’ x Firetail Larrikin ‘Murray’Firetail Larrikin 'Murray'
May/June.  Yellow.  These will be similar to G 08 above, but a little later.  ‘Chloe’ has a Margaret Thatcher parent that has filled-in, shapely blooms so we expect these attributes to readily come back in a high proportion.  They should all grow quickly and flower prolifically.  Some may have smaller blooms of a size at the upper end of the Intermediate range.
G 12 Firetail Praise 'Tamara'Firetail Praise ‘Tamara’ x Catamarca ‘105’Catamarca ‘105’
May/June.  Yellow.  ‘105’ is one parent of the extremely successful Gwen Thomas grex, and is known for its prolific flowering and its vibrant colour.  These qualities will be brought forward in the season by ‘Tamara’, which has excellent shape considering that it flowers so early in the season, in May.  With these parents, we expect them all to be very pretty.
G 13 Artistic 'Piper'Artistic ‘Piper’ x Firetail Grapevine ‘Maxwell’
G 14 Artistic 'Piper'Artistic ‘Piper’ x Firetail Guide ‘Kirsten’Firetail Guide 'Kirsten'
May/July.  Green.  Two very commercial crosses looking for masses of green blooms early in the season.  ‘Piper’ is another of our floriferous Mother's Day production mericlones, and with ‘Maxwell’ and ‘Kirsten’ we are looking for larger blooms and improvement in bloom shape.
Standard Seedling Flasks
(Bloom size greater than 100mm)
G 15 Firetail Praise 'Tamara'Firetail Praise ‘Tamara’ x Glowing Gold ‘Central’Glowing Gold 'Central'
May/June.  Yellow.  A constant theme in our breeding is to move quality forward in the season.  Here early plant ‘Tamara’ is already well on the road to high quality and its deficiencies are minor rather than major.  ‘Central’ flowers in June and is our signature plant, its bloom featuring on our website and business card.  We expect these will be very good in all respects, particularly for this time of the year.
G 16 Firetail Praise 'Tamara'Firetail Praise ‘Tamara’ x Black Pepper ‘Nadeen’Black Pepper 'Nadeen'
May/June.  Orange.  In the past we have successfully used two methods to secure better quality orange blooms.  The first - identifying two plants with good orange blooms and crossing them - runs into a brick wall rather quickly because there are not many plants with good orange blooms.  The second method - crossing a plant with red or brown blooms with a plant with yellow blooms - opens up many, many more options.  Those plants with "red" blooms that more truthfully have blooms that are dark pink or purple/red, in our experience do not produce good orange colour.  We now limit ourselves to the proper red, brick red and brown colours.  Thus our experience strongly suggests that ‘Nadeen’ is likely to produce blooms with intense shades of orange when crossed with a plant bearing yellow blooms like ‘Tamara’.
G 17 Cadel Evans 'Alpe d'Huez'Cadel Evans ‘Alpe d'Huez’ x Foxfire Khan ‘Sophie’Foxfire Khan 'Sophie'
May/June.  Red and Polychrome.  ‘Alpe d'Huez’ was champion cymbidium for us at the 2015 Shoalhaven Orchid Society Winter ShowCadel Evans 'Alpe d'Huez'.  May flowering ‘Sophie’ brings larger, flatter blooms of very heavy substance on taller stemsFoxfire Khan ‘Sophie’.  A wide range of colours should be present and the best will have full show-bench characteristics.
G 18 Firetail Praise 'Tamara'Firetail Praise ‘Tamara’ x Glowing Candle ‘Emphatic’Glowing Candle 'Emphatic'
May/July.  Yellow.  A similar plan to G 15 and we expect the outcome to have equally high quality.  However, the spread of flowering times will be wider because ‘Emphatic’ flowers in July.
G 19 Lancashire Khan 'Evie'Lancashire Khan ‘Evie’ x Red Fury ‘Checkpoint Charlie’Red Fury 'Checkpoint Charlie'
G 20 Lancashire Khan 'Evie'Lancashire Khan ‘Evie’ x King Karri ‘Nikki Heat’King Karri 'Nikki Heat'
G 21 Lancashire Khan 'Evie'Lancashire Khan ‘Evie’ x Red Nelly ‘Dazzler’
G 22 Lancashire Khan 'Evie'Lancashire Khan ‘Evie’ x Pink Blossom ‘Perfection’Pink Blossom ‘Perfection’
May/July.  Pink and Red.  ‘Evie’ has been prominent in our breeding program from the very beginning because of its fine qualities.  We have already made 7 registrations with ‘Evie’ as a parent.  Cadel Evans is one of those registrations and variety ‘Alpe d'Huez’ was champion cymbidium for us at the 2015 Shoalhaven Orchid Society Winter ShowCadel Evans ‘Alpe d'Huez’.  For George Serhan it also produced Serhan's Passion ‘Marion’, recipient of the highest award, a First Class Certificate.  With ‘Checkpoint Charlie’ and ‘Perfection’ we expect a preponderance of pink shades and with ‘Nikki Heat’ and ‘Dazzler’ there will be shades of dark pink or red.  These crosses have all of the elements required for a very strong commercial outcome with the bonus that the best have the potential to be great show-bench performers.
G 23 Cadel Evans 'Alpe d'Huez'Cadel Evans ‘Alpe d'Huez’ x Black Pepper ‘Nadeen’Black Pepper 'Nadeen' (10+ flasks)
June/July.  Red and Brown.  Two plants with lustrous blooms with wide tepals ensure an intensely colourful result of high quality.  ‘Alpe d'Huez’ is described above in G 17 and ‘Nadeen’ appears in G 16 above.
G 24 Khan Flame 'Rufus'Khan Flame ‘Rufus’ x Firetail Intuition ‘Marcus’Firetail Intuition 'Marcus'
June/July.  Brown.  We find that there is considerable commercial demand for plants with blooms with unusual colour and this cross certainly promises colours outside the traditional range.  ‘Marcus’ produces a striking displayFiretail Intuition ‘Marcus’, and ‘Rufus’ brings flatter blooms that are less crowded on the stem.  With green parentage on both sides, we may even see a few with green blooms.
G 25 Zen Era ‘Elizabeth’Zen Era ‘Elizabeth’ x Firetail Rock ‘Eagle’ (10+ flasks)
June/July.  White.  ‘Elizabeth’, from our good friend Kevin Black, has slowly built a formidable reputation on the show-bench.  We think very highly of our own grex Firetail RockFiretail Rock 'Around the Clock'Firetail Rock 'The Casbah'and expect that in combination, these parents will produce many top-quality plants.
G 26 Joan's Era ‘Liz’Joan's Era ‘Liz’ x Firetail Rock ‘Crocodile’Firetail Rock 'Crocodile'
June/August.  White.  ‘Liz’ has Zen Era ‘Elizabeth’ (see G 25 above) as one parent and is similarly highly regarded.  As we often try to do, this cross is attempting to draw late season quality forward in the season.  We expect quite a range in flowering times, and fairly consistently good-quality whites.
G 27 Firetail Justify* 'Amantha'Firetail Justify ‘Amantha’ x Firetail Verdant ‘Derek’
July.  Green.  ‘Derek’ is from the same seedpod as ‘Morgan’Firetail Verdant 'Morgan'.  ‘Amantha’ is an unexpected near green from a crossing that was expected to produce only yellow blooms.  We expect mid-green filled-in blooms with dot and dash markings on the labellum.
G 28 Firetail Delivery 'Dakota'Firetail Delivery ‘Dakota’ x Olympic Swimmer ‘Lucas’Olympic Swimmer 'Lucas'
G 29 Firetail Delivery 'Dakota'Firetail Delivery ‘Dakota’ x Firetail Guide ‘Penelope’Firetail Guide 'Penelope'
G 30 Firetail Delivery 'Dakota'Firetail Delivery ‘Dakota’ x Firetail Guide ‘Kirsten’Firetail Guide 'Kirsten'
July.  Green.  Every hybridiser has their own ideas about which attributes are most important and I think that colour plays a more important role in my decision-making than it does for a lot of other hybridisers.  After many years of observation I have formed a theory that, as far as tetraploid cymbidiums are concerned, green and yellow are just different shades of one colour, just like pink and red are just shades of one colour.  It is not fully clear from the photo, but when I look at ‘Dakota’ I see a hint of green.  There is a risk that these three crosses will not produce blooms of clear green, but there is also a strong chance that they will, so it is a risk that we are prepared to take – are you?  Tall stems and high quality blooms expected from these three crosses.
G 31 Khan Flame 'Rufus'Khan Flame ‘Rufus’ x Regent Pepper ‘Jackson’Regent Pepper 'Jackson'
July.  Brown.  There was a time not so long ago when commercial growers could hardly even give away a plant with brown blooms.  We now find that they are in high demand.  One aspect that makes both of these parents attractive is the white in the throat of the labellum.  The outcome here will include good stems and very shapely blooms in a variety of shades of brown.
G 32 Khan Flame 'Rufus'Khan Flame ‘Rufus’ x Blazing Carrot ‘Rabblerouser’
July.  Red/Brown.  We only flowered about 50 plants from the Blazing Carrot grex and kept seven, a very high retention rate when we often keep none out of every 50 plants.  They were all flowering machines, effortlessly producing masses of blooms on strong upright stems.  ‘Rabblerouser’ has red/brown blooms of a size on the border between Intermediate and Small Standard, so the outcome here should be mainly Standards with a few Small Standards.
G 33 Firetail Goddess 'Heather'Firetail Goddess ‘Heather’ x Firetail Fanfare ‘Jolene’Firetail Fanfare 'Jolene'
July.  Yellow.  Two intensely coloured and prolific parents ensure that this outcome will be colourful.  The plan is that the clear and clean colour of ‘Jolene’ will come through in a good percentage, as will the superior shape of ‘Heather’.
G 34 Firetail Goddess 'Heather'Firetail Goddess ‘Heather’ x Blazing Fury ‘Hades’
July.  Orange.  Whereas G 33 is looking for yellow clarity, this cross is looking for orange intensity.  Dark red ‘Hades’ is from Bryants Orchids and has been used extensively (about 30 registrations to date) and successfully to produce both superior red and orange blooms on tall stems.  We think these will be very good indeed!
G 35 Lunar Advent 'A-Stound'Lunar Advent ‘A-Stound’ x Firetail Weapon ‘Arsenal’Firetail Weapon 'Arsenal'
July.  Yellow.  ‘A-Stound’ is from Bryants Orchids and has very good shape and heavy substance.  Both of these cymbidiums bloom reliably and prolifically on tall straight stems.  Expect a high proportion of plants with very shapely blooms well presented on ideal stems.
G 36 Lunar Advent 'A-Stound'Lunar Advent ‘A-Stound’ x Blazing Fury ‘Hades’
July. Orange.  The two previous crosses each featured one of these parents.  As well as intense shades of orange and sunset tones, these will have tall straight stems, shapely blooms with wide tepals, and very good productivity.
G 37 Zen Era ‘Elizabeth’Zen Era ‘Elizabeth’ x Dalmeny Splash ‘Mystique’Dalmeny Splash 'Mystique' (10+ flasks)
G 38 Dalmeny Splash ‘Mystique’Dalmeny Splash ‘Mystique’ x Stargard ‘Sunset’Stargard 'Sunset'
G 39 Firetail Showtime 'Chicago'Firetail Showtime ‘Chicago’ x Stargard ‘Sunset’Stargard 'Sunset'
July/August.  White.  Yes, all three crosses here will be "white", but there will be much variation within and between these combinations.  ‘Mystique’ has the tallest stems and ‘Elizabeth’ the shortest.  ‘Mystique’ has the most pink blush on the petals and sepals, ‘Chicago’ the least.  There is pink blush on the labellums of ‘Mystique’ and ‘Sunset’ but there is a solid red bar on ‘Chicago’.  ‘Chicago’ has the smallest blooms while ‘Mystique’ has the largest.  However, importantly, they all have good bloom shape attributes.  We cannot pick between these so we will grow them all!
G 40 Firetail Goddess 'Heather'Firetail Goddess ‘Heather’ x Firetail Melody ‘Lindsey’Firetail Melody 'Lindsey'
July/August.  Yellow.  ‘Heather’ appears on our photos page under the heading "Predominately Orange", but the colour of its blooms could also be described as a very intense yellow.  ‘Lindsey’ has neat little blooms on tall stems.  These will be colourful for later in the season.
G 41 Lunar Advent ‘A-Stound’Lunar Advent ‘A-Stound’ x Firetail Melody ‘Lindsey’Firetail Melody ‘Lindsey’
August.  Yellow.  ‘A-Stound’ is described above in G 35 and G 36 and ‘Lindsey’ just above in G 40.  The words that come to mind here are shape, colour and substance.  These will be tough blooms on tall, straight stems late in the season.
G 42 Wyong Flame 'Verdelho'Wyong Flame ‘Verdelho’ x Dalmeny Splash ‘Mystique’Dalmeny Splash ‘Mystique’
August.  Pink.  This is probably the premier cross for full show-bench expectation on this list.  Gordon Giles' ‘Verdelho’ has full-shaped round blooms of heavy substance, but they are naturally cupped.  Our ‘Mystique’ on the other hand has much flatter blooms.  Possibly some Grand Champions here!
G 43 Zen Era ‘Elizabeth’Zen Era ‘Elizabeth’ x Firetail Showtime ‘Chicago’Firetail Showtime 'Chicago'
G 44 Joan's Era ‘Liz’Joan's Era ‘Liz’ x Firetail Showtime ‘Chicago’Firetail Showtime 'Chicago'
August.  White.  These three parents have appeared and been described above (G 25, G 26, G 37, and G 39).  More than a decade ago we did not believe that there was a market for white flowering plants, but of course we learnt that what you do not produce is exactly what your customers will be seeking.  We expect a fine commercial result here, but the best would do very well on the show-bench.
G 45 Joan's Era ‘Liz’Joan's Era ‘Liz’ x Firetail Showtime ‘Cabaret’Firetail Showtime 'Cabaret'
August/September.  White.  ‘Cabaret’ always flowers a few weeks later than ‘Chicago’ ensuring that this cross will flower later than G 44, but in all other aspects it will be similar.