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Temecula Valley Rose SocietyAn Affiliate of the American Rose Society
February 2011
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President's Messageby May Olson N
ow that the Holidays are behind us it's time to start thinking and getting your committees working for our fundraiser in May, our garden show in November and the continuing beautification of Rose Haven.
We achieve our goals to promote Rose Haven in so many ways like: public pruning, fundraiser at Rose Haven, youth gardening, the outreach program, rose show, sunset celebrations, publicity, word of mouth and any and all other garden activities.To encourage and attract new members to join TVRS all of the above serve that purpose; however, I believe that it would also help tremendously having the addition of a table set-up with advertising and all the necessary tools for joining every time we have a gathering at RH. Also having a very colorful large laminated sign placed above the existing box that holds the membership forms will attract people to read what's in there. The more complex goal of acquiring grants does need more preparation, and we just have to keep trying. We welcome your participation in the various committees and we are always open to your suggestions. New and existing members should have all filled out a membership form with their correct address, phone number, e-mail address and how they would like to participate or join a committee. Dues not paid before the end of February means that you will not be included in the new roster. I do not want to sound like a broken record, however, I would like to remind each and every member who does not belong to the ARS to please consider the 4-month trial membership that is now available for only $10.00. Just the two issues of the American Rose magazine that you would receive is a $16.00 value, so it is well worth it. Although we did not get as many people as we would have liked at Saturday's pruning event, the people who did go participated hands-on with the pruning encouraged by Rebecca Weersing, who gave a very informative presentation. No matter how long you've been a member you always learn something new. Our deepest condolences to Kathy Scheufler on the passing of her youngest brother. Our thoughts and prayers are with her at this difficult time. We've just learned that Wayne Blizzard's father passed away Sunday. Our most sincere and deepest condolences to Wayne and Frank for their sudden loss. Our thoughts and prayers will also be with you both. Till next time Happy Pruning. Rose Haven Twitter PostsTo read the Twitter posts about Rose Haven Garden click here. You don't need a Twitter account to read these posts. Once there, just bookmark the page for future accesses. If you're using Internet Explorer (look for this symbol in the upper left-hand corner of your screen: ) you can bookmark the page by right-clicking on the page then selecting Add to favorites. The bookmark will show up as "Rambling Rose (TemRoseHaven) on Twitter". You only need a Twitter account if you want to "Follow" our posts within Twitter. If you do then you can post replies (Tweets, they're called) to our Twitter page for others to follow.
Membership Renewal Now DueThe Temecula Valley Rose Society Board and committee members are planning a great new year for you filled with special events, informative meeting speakers and exciting day trips in 2011. Your support is needed at this time by paying your membership dues as soon as possible.
A Single Membership is $25.00, Family Membership is $30.00, and a lifetime membership is $250.00. A membership renewal form is available here. Please bring your dues to the next meeting or mail your membership dues to: We also need to recruit new members to our society, so remember to invite your friends and neighbors to our February 17th Meeting. Rose Haven Garden Docent TrainingMembers interested in training to become a Rose Haven Docent are invited to attend the session presented by Consulting Rosarians Frank Brines and Rebecca Weersing following refreshments at our February 17 Member Meeting. Please RSVP to Rebecca (temroses@gmail.com) so that we will have sufficient materials for everyone. In addition to the classroom discussion on the 17th, there will be a hands-on learning workshop at Rose Haven on Saturday, February 19th. |
Member Meeting ProgramDate: Thursday, February 17Time: 10:15 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Place: Temecula Library, Community Room (30600 Pauba Road) Speaker: Karen Cooper Greenwald Topic: Heirloom Tomatoes Karen will be giving a demonstration on "Heirloom Tomatoes." The presentation will be a brief history of the tomato and how to start, plant, water and fertilize tomatoes. Greenwald will also bring along some of her 4" heirloom tomato plants to sell. She is currently a Master Gardener, a member of the Point Loma Garden Club, an avid recycler, composter and organic gardener. For the last 4 years she has started seeds and provided between 450 and 1000 4" heirloom tomato plants, in 55 to 85 different varieties, for the annual Point Loma Garden Club Plant Sale. A light buffet luncheon will be served around noon. Guests are welcome. February Birthdays & New Members
Day Trip to the Pechanga Great Oak – March 18, 2011Submitted by Xochitl RumboldI have made a reservation for the Rose Society members and friends to visit the Great Oak on the Pechanga reservation. This oak tree is estimated to be up to 1,500 years old, making it one of the oldest oak trees in the world. The great oak area, Wi'aasha, is home to numerous culturally sensitive, historical and archaeological sites, including tribal interment sites from time immemorial. To the Pechanga people, the land and the Great Oak is of enormous historical and cultural value. The Great Oak is an environmental wonder that continues to branch out, its roots continue to expand to keep it standing. The massive trunk is 20 feet around, and rises up 96 feet. It has been a number of years since some of the Rose Society members visited this site. We were all enthralled by the way that this magnificent tree's heavy spreading beams lay on the ground and rose up again in a circle of growth. Visiting this magnificent Great Oak made it a great day trip for us all. It is a visual experience that you won't soon forget. A sign up sheet and more information will be available at the February 17 member meeting. A tribal member will meet us with a Pechanga bus in order to escort us onto the reservation. The bus can only carry up to 20 people, so it is important that we sign up early. Rose Haven Updateby Bonnie BellWaiting for spring. As you can see from the photo, rose pruning is in full swing. Hard to believe the "sticks" of Double Delight, Graham Thomas, and Ingrid Bergman will be covered in beautiful roses come April in our Hall of Fame garden. Jim and Lorie Moss have been working diligently pruning the entire area, plus all the butterfly bushes, and we thank them profoundly.  Hall of Fame Planter Other areas have also been pruned by our volunteers, but there is still a large amount to be completed. Wednesday and Saturday mornings are our regular work days. An hour of your time will be greatly appreciated. We are so lucky the high school students working on the vegetable garden have taken time to carry our clippings to the dumpster. We have had a welcome increase of visitors recently. The pruning workshops have attracted many new rose lovers, and the third Saturday events for children and parents have proven that our community is becoming more interested in the garden. It would be very helpful if a few volunteers could be at the garden Saturday mornings to meet and greet visitors. No pruning required. Our next Garden Committee meeting is Wednesday, February 23rd at 9 a.m. New projects will be reviewed and scheduled as time and donations permit. Address to the garden is 30592 Jedediah Smith Road, Temecula. Those interested are encouraged to attend. 
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♦ Featured article: 
Member Profile: Don Nordikeby Kathy Katz O
ur member Don Nordike considers himself lucky to have lived a "cornball, Walton's like" childhood. When asked how he learned to exhibit such gorgeous roses and make the beautiful arrangements we all admire, he explained he was raised on a family farm, 65 miles north of St. Louis, Mo. Don and his younger brother learned to care for almost every kind of farm animal, vegetable, flower, and fruit that did well in their part of Illinois. The family would pore over seed catalogs all winter, until the pages had thinned and it was March or April. They sent in their orders for Dahlia's and Chrysanthemums and tons of other wonderful seeds and plants after the long winter. The boys entered their animals, flowers and produce in several local fairs, where they often earned hundreds of dollars in prize money. That was serious work, as most prizes were under five dollars. Their efforts were especially important after their dad passed away when Don was just 11. He lost his mom at 23. The farm is still in their family and Don's brother still lives there.
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Don learned even more about arranging and caring for flowers when he got a job with the local florists when he was just thirteen, a couple who taught him to make corsages and arrangements. Don's working life included four years in the Navy, from 1969 to 1972, then a long career as a ticket agent for TWA from 1974 until he retired in 2002. He loved traveling and saw 89 countries before he left, but a stroke in 2002, the pressure of his job (big changes after 9/11), and American Airlines purchase of TWA combined to make him listen to friends who had left the industry and found early retirement in the Inland Valley. He moved to Sun City in 2004. Don feels this is the happiest time of his life. He had never owned a home before, always renting. It was shocking and difficult for a "farm boy" to adjust to the pace and differences of all the people in the service and his job. When he bought his home there were 5 rose bushes in the front yard. Now he is looking after 175. People come from all over to see his garden. His neighbors stop to smell the roses. He was President of the Sun City Garden Club. He loves our group for the diversity, so many kinds of generous people and he loves to share knowledge and plants. Despite a recent bout of prostate cancer, Don he remains one of our staunchest members, a good friend, and much admired for his kindness and knowledge. |
Rose Care FUNdamentalsby Frank Brines, Consulting Rosarian H
ere it is: It's pruning time again in the Temecula Valley. And we don't have to follow the San Diego area schedule, since here we can get a later frost. We actually have until the end of February. The main reason we prune is to reset the plants' biological clock. A wake up call to begin a new life cycle–like restarting a factory.
First, let's get your tools ready. To do the job right, one usually needs to have a range of pruner sizes handy. Each size has a limit to the diameter thickness which it is most efficiently used; also, using too small a pruner on too large a cane can damage both. At minimum, have a pair of loppers and a standard-sized pair of hand pruners. All pruners should be kept clean, sharp, and in good repair. Rubbing alcohol is ideal for cleaning pruners, before and during the job. It also helps prevent transmitting diseases from plant to plant, and you can use it as first aid for punctures and scratches to your skin. Before starting the job, lubricate the moving parts with a little light oil (such as 3-in-1 or even WD-40), and make sure they operate without resistance. Sharpen each blade with a small diamond file (available at garden centers), trying as much as possible to match the original bevel of the blade. Every 100 cuts or so, swipe the file over the blade a few times to keep it sharp. If you notice that the pruners are crushing the stems and/or leaving a tail, it's past time to sharpen! Now, decide what style of pruning you feel comfortable with (Figure 1). I'm a moderate style pruner. I find this works well with the way buds are distributed along the cane. Buds are found in the "axel" where a leaf meets the cane; leaves spiral around the cane at about 1.5" intervals. This places outward-facing buds about 4" apart. If I prune moderately, and if frost damages the tender young growth, then I know I can still re-prune to the next bud down. 
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In Southern California our rose bushes can grow quite large, so I start with some gross pruning to bring the project down to size. I use loppers to cut every bush down to about 3 feet high. This lets me examine the structure of the bush, and to use my hand pruners to more easily remove canes that are twiggy, dead, crossing other canes, or passing through the center of the plant. I also remove old leaves as I go along so I can see what I'm aiming at. After removing all that stuff from the interior of the bush you can do the final pruning. Attempt to leave a domed top to the degree possible so the plant will bush out in a pleasing, balanced manner. There are two kinds of cuts you will make. Some cuts remove the entire branch; these cuts are made flush with the surface of the parent cane. Other cuts simply shorten a cane. It is important to position your pruners so you minimize damage to the plant. Take a look at your pruners and notice that they have a sharp cutting blade (which slices through the cane), and a dull curved non-cutting blade (which holds the cane in place during the cut). Position your pruners so the non-cutting blade is in contact with the portion of the cane that will be removed, and the cutting blade is on the side of the cut that will remain on the plant. (See Figure 2.) This will make more sense when you are actually holding the pruners and getting ready to cut! Also, always prune above an outward facing bud with an angled cut. (See Figure 3). A word of caution when pruning: Look for the small nests of hummingbirds, as this is the nesting period for two varieties in our area. Also, if you discover praying mantis egg cases on any branches you remove, find a place to put them where they will be undisturbed and hatch out so you can benefit from the offspring! Be sure to dispose of all cut off material into your green waste bin and put it on the street. Clean the ground thoroughly of all rose debris. Apply a dormant spray to the plants and the soil surface to ward off diseases. I will be giving a free pruning demonstration at Rose haven Heritage Garden on February 19, 2011. Rose Haven is located at 30592 Jedediah Smith Road (the cross street is Cabrillo Avenue) in Temecula. Spread the word and spread the joy of roses! 
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