ON: Reginaldo. Could you tell us a little about yourself and your interest in orchids? How was it awakened? Did you really start farming at the age of 9?
From an early age I had a sensitive and passionate look at plants, I was enchanted by the simplest flowers that grew in the corners of the streets, on the sidewalks, in gardens... My first contact with orchids took place very early and it was a sudden and intense enchantment. I was only 9 years old when I saw an orchid attached to the trunk of a mango tree. At that moment, many questions arose in my mind about what kind of relationship existed there, between the orchid and the mango tree. The first thing I heard about the relationship between them is that the orchid was a kind of parasite and this information only made me more curious about orchids and from that moment on I decided to look for answers. At the time, information was scarce, at least where I lived, there were few people who really dedicated themselves to the cultivation of orchids and publications (magazines and newsletters) were scarce and not very accessible. In my childhood and adolescence, I did everything to have access to more information about orchids. I did volunteer work in flowers and in collectors' houses and with that I learned a lot, studying orchids and living with them and collectors.
ON: Do you have an eclectic collection or have you adopted some philosophy?
I already had a more eclectic collection, but we must evaluate our cultivation possibilities so as not to make mistakes and end up losing precious species. I believe that the beginning of most collectors is to try to have as many species as possible, but this demands a lot from collectors, requires a lot of knowledge, time and money. Maintaining a collection with a huge amount of species is very challenging. Currently, I focused on plants that, over time, I started to like more. This naturally happens with most collectors, you will always look with more passion and appreciation for certain species or genera. Today I am more in love with Encyclia and Cattleya, but I confess that my heart is light, I flirt with many others.
Cattleya warneri concolor 'Wellington' |
ON: According to your recent publications on Facebook, do you have a good collection of Cattleya labiata. Is it your favorite? Which specimen do you like best?
Cattleya labiata is not my favorite species, in fact it is a very close sister to it: Cattleya warneri.
The region where I grew up and lived most of my life is a natural cradle for this species. In the forests of Vale do Rio Doce it reigns with all its exuberance and was the most popular species, called “the true orchid”.
In many homes, from poor to rich, those who liked orchids had a Cattleya warneri at home, especially in orchards. It carries a very strong symbolism, as they bloom around the end of days, many families had them as a memory of someone special who left.
I remember stories from older collectors who, as the fields were full of the purple parasite, they were brought to the backyards and tied to fruit trees. When the big trees were cut, whose tops were taken by Cattleya warneri and other orchids, the “true orchids” were rescued and went to the houses of the besiegers. |
Well, about Cattleya labiata... my family is all from Ceará and, once, my grandmother visited us here in Minas and saw a flowering Cattleya warneri in my house. She looked very carefully and told me that at my great-grandmother's house there was that “rose” in the orchard, which, in this case, was, in fact, Cattleya labiata.
My grandmother said that it was common in the Serra de Uruburetama, where my ancestors lived, so that day I realized that my passion for orchids had been established since before I was born, being something that passed through generations, through blood.
Today I dedicate a large part of my collection to Cattleya labiata.
I'm crazy about them. |
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ON: Is your greenhouse located in places with a cold climate or higher temperature?
When I lived in Gov. Valadares, I had more restrictions on the cultivation of orchids, because the climate is warmer there and that limited my collection.
Today I live in Betim, metropolitan region of Belo Horizonte. Here in Betim the climate is milder, relatively hot days and cool nights. In the summer it rains a lot, between November and March. From April to September we have cooler days and nights, varying the temperature between day and night. This helps in growing various species of orchids. The altitude here at home is 890m above sea level, cerrado climate, predominant biome.
ON: Do you have any cultivation tips to share with us?
In my opinion, we must first know what conditions we have to offer for orchids: what type of climate, altitude, if where we live is a house, an apartment, if there is more sun in the morning or in the afternoon in the place where we will cultivate the orchids, if there is a lot or little ventilation and luminosity. (*)
Based on this essential information, we will think about which types of orchids adapt best to these conditions and we can develop the best cultivation.
The question of the time we are going to dedicate to them is very important. Depending on our routine, we will know what time we can water, how often we will fertilize, control pests, diseases and replant.
We must first make this reflection and then reach the final conclusions, such as: what type of orchids to grow and what inputs to use. Many times you have an excellent space to grow Vandas, but you want to grow Pleurothallis.
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Cattleya labiata semi alba 'Esperança' |
Cattleya warneri rosada 'Célia Miranda' |
ON: Besides being a collector, have you dedicated yourself to visiting orchids in their habitat? Since when?
My profile is more of a researcher than a collector. From an early age I looked at those large rock masses that are present in the east and northeast of Minas and thought... what kind of orchids live there? These environments always called my attention and before the age of 20 I began to constantly visit some points near Gov. Valadares. The main one, at first, was Pico do Ibituruna and there, after many wanderings through the forest, I saw many species of orchids in nature, however, from the top of Ibituruna, a sea of hills was revealed to me and the desire to visit each point of those accelerated my heart.
It was simply an undeniable call. |
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I dedicated myself a lot to getting to know every stone possible, every point that was within my reach and all that effort, which is fueled by the passion for orchids, brought to science a series of plants never seen before and many possibilities were realized.
Each stone, each rocky outcrop, each side of the rock and each rock garden preserved something new, something almost unexpected, mysteries that, only in a few dreams, were revealed to me.
Some species that I discovered, even before I got to them in the wild, I had already discovered them in my dreams and just followed my heart to get exactly where they were.
Orthophytum vasconselosianum |
This happened with Encyclia oliveirana and Orthophytum vasconcelosianum.
These are things of the heart, of the spirit, which cannot be explained. |
ON: Which of these habitats was the most surprising for you?
I visited countless incredible environments throughout Minas Gerais, especially in the east and northeast. Two places I visited, for me, are true paradises of biodiversity: Serra do Pitengo and Serra do Padre Ângelo.
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Serra do Pitengo, east of Minas Gerais. |
Serra do Padre Ângelo, Conselheiro Pena-MG |
Serra do Pitengo is located between Itabirinha and Nova Belém, in a region where there are many rocky outcrops.
Serra do Pitengo is a complex of united outcrops, forming peaks above 1400m to flat and extensive slabs, sheltering an enormous amount of species of orchids, many of them new to science.
In this region, the number of species of Pseudolaelia is incredible. At the time, Michael Frey was very dedicated to the study of this genus and I ended up taking a ride on his enthusiasm and, together with my dear master Marcos Campacci, we studied and described many species from the Serra do Pitengo and region, among them: Anacheilium itabiriense(5), Pseudolaelia pitengoensis, Bulbophyllum pitengoense, Brassavola pitengoensis, Bulbophyllum reginaldoi.
Another important and very prominent place is Serra do Padre Ângelo, where I pioneered the scientific study and unveiling of biodiversity.
In 2011, I started studying the Serra do Padre Ângelo region, starting at Pico do Aliança, where I discovered Hoffmannseggella alvarenguensis (1) and populations of the rare Hoffmannseggella munchowiana (2).
The Serra do Padre Ângelo is a place with unusual characteristics, it is as if an arm of the Serra do Espinhaço reached the Rio Doce valley and the natural conditions existing there made an extremely rich flora and fauna emerge, revealing unbelievable species.
Certainly the most symbolic species of Padre Ângelo is the rare and endemic Drosera magnifica, a carnivorous plant that I discovered and which had an immense impact. |
Drosera magnifica |
As Serra do Padre Ângelo is being scientifically explored and known, many new species are being discovered and described.
Today Serra do Padre Ângelo is a place that is under the gaze of many researchers and especially the care of the community that lives in this paradise.
For me, this is the true success of my life, the result of love, dedication and respect for nature, a legacy that I am leaving to serve as an inspiration. All my dreams are coming true and these dreams have added to other people's dreams, the result of all of this is something unimaginable, many achievements for science and for the whole.
ON: So, in your excursions, you found several species, not only orchids, which had not yet been described, among them, some bear your name
Yes, several new species were found by me during the years of expeditions that I dedicated to discovering the natural habitats of the east and northeast of Minas Gerais, as well as part of ES.
Among the orchids: Anathallis vasconcelosiana, Coppensia vasconcelosiana(3), Pseudolaelia vasconcelosiana, Bulbophyllum reginaldoi, Hoffmannseggella vasconcelosiana(4). As well as other families Alcantarea vasconcelosiana, Orthophyttum vasconcelosianum, Quesnelia vasconcelosiana and Begonia vasconcelosiana.
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Anathallis vasconcelosiana |
Bulbophyllum pitengoense |
Gomesa vasconcelosiana |
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Hoff. alvarenguensis |
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Pseudolaelia pitengoensis |
Delfina, I am immensely grateful for this moment in which I can talk a little about my passion and my experiences.
Currently accepted nomenclature:
(1) Cattleya alvarenguensis
(2) Cattleya munchowiana
(3) Gomesa vasconcelosiana
(4) Cattleya vasconcelosiana
(5) Prosthechea itabirinhensis
(*) Editor's note: On the Brazilian Orchids website there is a topic -'Orchid Finder' that allows you to locate the places and conditions where orchids can be cultivated.
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