LIHU‘E — Mildred Matsumoto, 87, was modest in her anthurium entry being awarded Best in Show on the opening day of the Kaua‘i County Farm Bureau Fair at Vidinha Stadium yesterday. Catching her breath while the rest of the judging
LIHU‘E — Mildred Matsumoto, 87, was modest in her anthurium entry being awarded Best in Show on the opening day of the Kaua‘i County Farm Bureau Fair at Vidinha Stadium yesterday.
Catching her breath while the rest of the judging entries were being placed, Matsumoto said, “I was surprised when they said I won. I never expected anything. It’s just to fill space.”
But Matsumoto, who was being congratulated by last year’s Best in Show winner, Kimi Fujimoto, said she’s been growing anthuriums since 1969, never expecting to grow specimens that were worthy of prizes.
In addition to her Best in Show award for her Splash specimen, a pink-white obake (tinged with green), Matsumoto also earned a blue ribbon for her White Gemini, a pink-and-white novelty specimen, and a red ribbon for her unnamed green novelty specimen that touted a head full of blooms.
Matsumoto said she, Fujimoto, and Flora Bukoski, along with Gilbert Carvalho, are the charter members of the Kauai Anthurium Club, founded in 1969.
In the neighboring Garden Island Orchid Society exhibit, five judges, three flying in from off-island, poured over specimens before narrowing down the field to three American Orchid Society (AOS) winners.
Garden Island Orchid Society (GIOS) members are celebrating their 35th anniversary, and the GIOS display always exhibits a variety of exotic orchids, with this year’s AOS award winners being presented to an oncidium that displayed its blooms upright as compared to normal oncidium cascades, and two dendrobium specimens, a green-brown and a tricolor.
AOS award-winners are eligible for year-end national judging, with the AOS-certified judging panel flying in from O‘ahu to judge the specimens before adjourning to help GIOS members with the judging for other category winners.
While all of this took place, entries in the Big Save-sponsored produce section, as well as the home-making entries, poured in, with volunteers busily setting up the displays in time for the afternoon judging before gates opened at 6 p.m.
This year’s Kaua‘i County Farm Bureau Fair honoree is Mamo Kaneshiro and his family, for his and their work in and contributions to both the farm bureau and the community.
The fair runs through Sunday, with gates opening at 6 p.m. today, Friday, Aug. 26, and noon on both Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 27 and 28.
