Temecula Valley Rose Society

President's Message

We are counting on each and everyone of you to show up for our next "Last Rose of Summer" fund raiser as we need meaningful involvement in making a difference. Not only will you enjoy the garden but also the food and the music provided by Bob Coakes "The Valley Winds". See you on Oct. 9th at Rose Haven. Just show up and have a great time.

Kudos from Norway

"Hello Frank,
I have been reading your columns since my dear friend, May Olson, has become president of the Rose Society.

As someone who is new to the rose environment, I find what you write very informative and intuitive. I now live in the southern tip of Norway. Your helpful tips work well in this climate after moving here from San Diego. With your pruning tips, our roses have thrived this summer.

Now, it is fall here. This part of Norway is very similar to Seattle's weather. You have inspired me to do some research on how to protect these roses through the winter months so we can enjoy their beauty again next year.

This is a long email... just to thank you for a wonderful column.
Debora Cooper, (Stavanger, Norway)"

Member Profile: Ann Coakes

Ann Coakes has served as our Ways and Means Chair for the last several years, working exceptionally hard to win financial support for Rose Haven, and opening her home for the judges luncheon at the 2010 Rose Show. He life story illustrates why she is so good at the things she does.

Ann Coakes was born and grew up in Eschwege, Germany. She met her first husband there, shortly after graduating high school and beginning college. They married, had a son, and then moved to the U.S.

The next adventure of her life began with her first child still an infant in arms, her husband with a job waiting in California, and the utter confusion of the Big Apple in the late Sixies. She was from a medium sized city in Germany. The young family had to find a place to stay for a week while the car they were to drive cross country, a wedding gift from her father, was stuck aboard a ship during a strike. A friendly couple found them YMCA lodgings and fed them at a discount from their restaurant. Ann has since been large with hospitality and kindness always, never forgetting what they did for her.

The young couple drove cross country with the baby, she all of 18, along the old Route 66. Her husband had a job with Glendale Parks and Recreation department. They found a house in L.A. in Crescenta. Ann had a second son, and when her husband began staying out late (she was too young to be partying around alcohol in the U.S., unlike Europe), she showed him the door. Actually, she locked him out. And there she was with two young children, no support, no job, unable to drive, and she didn't even tell her folks in Germany. (Bad manners to bother them with troubles).

Ann went to the German Bakery she had frequented down the street, asked for and got a counter job, found child care with friends and went to work. Her ex never paid the child support he was ordered to: her youngest was three months old. She learned right away to depend on herself. Ann got a better job waitressing at Bob's Big Boy, earned good money with tips, moved to a nicer home in a friendly complex. She again found good help with child care in her building, took courses at Glendale College, and moved up to service manager with Bob's, which was a good job for many years.

Bob and Ann met when the her boys were 8 and 9. She was not looking for a husband, but he "was fun and decent," a divorced dad of three girls with an insurance investigation and medical records business. His franchises took them to the Bay Area and homes in several other cities in that part of the state. At one point they blended the two families, but after a move to Redding, Ann found herself between jobs.

She noticed that banks had much better hours for raising a family than she was used to. Starting as a teller, she learned the business and moved up with Wells Fargo, earning advancement through many training classes and lots of test taking. She found a mentor who taught her how to make airplane loans, and became an expert in personal banking. After the kids were through with college, they moved to Temecula to be near Bob's siblings and other family members. Ann was working at the bank in Hemet, then in Sun City. It was not friendly enough for her. She started opening supermarket branches when Wells Fargo expanded that way and really liked working in Temecula. We almost all remember when Ann was managing the branch here. After she was transferred back to Sun City she looked for early retirement when it became available. She had twenty nine years with the bank.

Ann works part time now at the Stater Brothers store in Temecula, where she ran the branch bank so happily. Her husband, Bob, is a great musician who kept his alto sax skills alive all through the years of work. Now he belongs to several terrific Big Bands. They have a lovely home where Ann likes to provide comfort and food to a wide array of people from many countries and places. A gracious and expert hostess, she and Bob are some of our most beloved and gracious members.

Member Meeting Program

“How large a space the rose idea occupies in the world… A mysterious something in its nature–an inner fascination, a subtle witchery, a hidden charm which it has and other flowers have not–ensnares and holds the love of the world.” So says Candace Wheeler, and so say many of us!

Several members have volunteered to prepare either a recipe or a craft from our own “Rose Haven Recipes: Cooking and Crafting with the Roses We Love.” Join in the fun of making gifts with roses and sampling the culinary delights.

A light buffet luncheon will be served around noon. Guests are welcome.

October Birthdays & New Members

Little Rose Show Results For September

Probably because of very hot weather in the area, only one blossom was entered in last month's Little Rose Show. May Olson presented a beautiful bloom of the climber, Altissimo, and was rewarded with a Blue ribbon as well as Rose of the Day.

Let's try for a table full of beauty next month. This is a fun show which gives our members a little experience in entering rose shows.

Rose Haven Update

Fall colors are popping out all over the garden. The succulents, water-wise plants and, of course our beloved roses, are showing their blooms once again. The heat wave at the end of September pretty well fried the rose blossoms–and the workers too–but all are enjoying cooler nights and warm days now.

On October 9th please plan to join us at the Last Rose of Summer event. Tickets are available from Ann Coakes or Bonnie Bell. The cost is $25 per person, and proceeds are used for garden maintenance, plus it's great fun to get together for eating, drinking, walking, talking and listening to the live swing band.

The students from Chaparral High School have been out in force every Saturday since school began, working not only in the vegetable area, but also giving a helping hand in many other gardening projects. We really appreciate their help so much. Thank you also to our gardening angels (volunteers) who keep the garden shipshape.

The next garden committee meeting is Wednesday, October 27th at 9 a.m. We've been researching grants, cost of covering the pathways, printing advertising flyers, and making improvements in the Hall of Fame area, so there is plenty to discuss. All members are welcome to attend. The Garden address is 30592 Jedediah Smith Rd., Temecula.

October is a good time to do a major garden clean up. Pick up all cuttings, dead leaves, weeds, and other debris and put it in the curbside green waste bin: Don't compost it. Most people's compost never gets hot enough to kill the many disease organisms, pests and seeds that rose debris can harbor, and these can over-winter in the compost pile to infect your garden next Spring. Add a new layer of composted mulch at this time, if you have it. Mulch will insulate the soil and regulate soil temperatures to maintain moderate temperatures and retain soil moisture. Mulch will also limit/prevent the weeds in your garden, but you will need to apply about 3-4 inches of mulch.

Many gardeners choose to use herbicides for perennial weed control. If you go that route, you'll find that late Summer and early Fall are the best times for treatment. Cooler nighttime temperatures in these seasons signal the weeds to send most of the carbohydrates they produce from photosynthesis down into their root system. If you apply an herbicide during this period, it is more likely to be carried into the roots, from where it can destroy the plant. For optimal results, water perennial weeds so they are healthy and growing before you treat them. That may seem counterintuitive, but science shows it's the best approach. If a weed is water-stressed and not growing actively, it won't photosynthesize as much: Less carbohydrate–and less herbicide–will be translocated into the root system. One important thing to note: Follow-up is critical. Don't expect to control any perennial weed with a single treatment. No herbicide can do that.

Pruning stimulates the plant to put out new growth, so keep an eye on your roses' water needs. Even though the weather will get cooler as the year comes to an end, we all know that there will be periods of intense heat and drying winds that can be unkind to tender new growth. In this area of Southern California we can expect Santa Ana winds from October to December.

Your roses still need feeding, too. From now until late November, use fertilizers that are slightly higher in Potassium (the "K" in the NPK printed on the bag or box). The potassium will work with the phosphate applied earlier in the year to make the root systems more vigorous so they can withstand whatever heat or cold come their way. Remember, never feed a dry or water-stressed plant: Thoroughly water the plant 24 hours before applying fertilizer. Enough water should be applied in this case as in routine watering to get water to depth of at least 8" to 12" inches. But keep in mind that while roses like water, they can't stand having WET FEET, so don't over do it.

Autumn and early Winter are traditionally considered planting season in Southern California because nature can be expected to cooperate. This coming planting season could be a tricky one. National Weather Service predictions for a La Niña are becoming more ominous; this unstable La Niña might produce a wet year, but the odds are 80% to 90% probability of a dry winter.

In Southern California we may have to postpone Autumn planting to accommodate out traditional Santa Anas. If we plant and Santa Anas do come, we will irrigate to replace rainfall. That could kill a lot of the native plants. If Fall and early Winter are too hot, we can even postpone into the spring months. The thing to avoid is watering when the soil is hot

October is also a great time to evaluate your rose garden. Decide which plants are non-performers for you and find them a new home. Plan for removal and prepare the site for the incoming bushes in late December or early January. Seek rose catalogs and make your selections now to be certain to get your choices. Many new roses are available, and some will be exhibition winners.

For ideas visit TVRS' Rose Haven garden at 30500 Jedediah Smith Road , as well as our web site at www.TemeculaValleyRosesociety.org/index.shtml .