Temecula Valley Rose Society

President's Message

On Sunday May 29th Don Nordike took me to the Da-Le Ranch in Lake Elsinore aka the Worm Farm owned by Dave Haefner. Roberta Costa followed us with a friend. This is a 22 acre farm in the boonies with a 15 minute drive on a dirt road. We, along with other people, got a tour of the place which included chickens, rabbits, turkeys, roosters, and pigs. One big mama weighing 750 lbs. rolled over and accidentaly killed eight babies in her liter. Dave's latest endeavor is raising farm animals 100% natural. Slaughtering is done at a USDA facility in Paso Robles and the packaging is done mostly in L. A. What we really went for was the "Cadillac of Worms" known as the red worm. Worm castings or worm poop contain high levels of nitrogen, phosphorous, pottasium, carbon and other nutrients that enrich and stimulate our soil rewarding us with beautiful roses, healthy plants and trees. I did notice a few small rocks in the castings and was told that it takes three men 3 man hours to put out one cubic yard; so to cut down on the labor he only screens once instead of three times like previously done. In the end, despite the "not so nice aromas" and the terrain, we learned a lot and look forward to having roses as beautiful as Don's. And members...please remember the 4 R's: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Restore.

Rose Haven Update

The First Bloom Celebration commemorating Rose Haven's 20th anniversary was a grand success. It was a beautiful spring day and the garden looked splendid. Ann Coakes and her volunteers had everything set-up just in the nick of time when a huge bus and several cars arrived early. Visitors came out in droves walking, talking, taking photos and asking all kinds of questions. Many local people did not know the garden existed. Sales and donations were much appreciated and all proceeds will go to the maintenance of the garden. Thank you to all our volunteers on this project for their time and energy. Without you this event would not have been a triumph.

A week before the celebration Cub Scout Troop 301 cleaned up weeds in the courtyard and special events area. Thanks go to Amy Bentley for organizing the activity. We certainly appreciate all the work the Scouts and their families provided.

A bit of relaxation is in store for June. Please come out and enjoy the garden at your leisure. We've worked hard to provide a wonderful venue for the community to enjoy. One immediate task is to have stabilized decomposed granite spread in the courtyard to enhance its appearance. Other projects are on the horizon which will be discussed at our monthly garden committee meeting, June 22nd at 9 a.m. All interested are invited to attend. Address is 30592 Jedediah Smith Road, Temecula. Keep up-to-date with our garden activities and photos on www.twitter.com/TemRoseHaven.

A page of photographs can be viewed here.

Member Garden Tour

Our annual member garden tour was quite exciting. Starting the morning the first garden was May Olson's beautiful courtyard and patio setting with outstanding roses, and then a jaunt up the road to Stanley Szymczyk's in Lake Elsinore to see his new driveway rose border — plus banana, olive trees and other fruits. Next was Don Nordike's front and backyards, filled to the brim with roses everywhere. Driving back to Temecula we visited Yolanda Hepburn's lovely tree-filled back yard with the tallest roses of all. We so appreciated resting in the sun and enjoying cookies and lemonade. Lastly was Ann Coakes romantic garden with many climbing roses and her patio perfectly set up for our luncheon. Thank you to all our members who volunteered their garden for the tour. We appreciate the immense effort each of you put into making your gardens picture perfect for the tour, and a special thanks to Ann Coakes for opening her home for our special luncheon and relaxing with our rose friends. You can view the photos here.

Member Meeting Program

Tom spent over 20 years in management for large nurseries while still developing his own business on the side. About seven years ago he streamlined his efforts, leaving the security of "management for others" to concentrate on making his own dreams come true. Tom and Jackie created and developed "Daylily Hill," which is the fruition of drawings that Tom did when he was 11 years old. In addition to the great agri-tourism location of Daylily Hill, their company produces design and project-management for innovative, and artistic landscapes on projects ranging from residential, to hotels and commercial projects, and cities.

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

June Birthdays & New Members

Fall ARS Convention to be in LA

A weekend event filled with lectures by expert Guest Speakers and Authors, Garden Tours, and the National Rose Show

The American Rose Society is an American institution, celebrating 119 years as an educational and community service organization, and has over 350 affiliated and chapter societies spread across the United States. The ARS 2011 Fall National Convention and Rose Show will be held at the Hilton Universal, in Universal City, Thursday through Sunday, October 13-16, 2011. The convention schedule includes a full day of entertaining and informative lectures by rose experts, Garden Tours and sightseeing tours around Los Angeles, two sumptuous buffet Awards Banquets at the Hilton Universal, as well as the ARS National Rose Show, which will feature exquisite rose blooms and arrangements exhibited in an evening competition to rival any glamorous Hollywood event.

The local host society is the Los Angeles Tinseltown Rose Society, which has been a community organization since 1964. Convention attendees are expected from across the United States, as well as a large international contingent, who are looking forward to this rare opportunity to attend an ARS convention in such an ideal location as Los Angeles. This convention has been years in the planning, and the members of the Los Angeles Tinseltown Rose Society wish to welcome one and all, rose expert and novice, to attend this very special event.

"So many roses have been named for celebrities through the years, that it was a natural tie in for our theme of 'Rose Stars,'" notes Marcia Sanchez-Walsh, the Convention Chair and President of the Los Angeles Tinseltown Rose Society. Not only will there be horticultural exhibits of roses, but a popular part of any rose show is the Rose Arrangements division of the competition, which will use movie titles as inspiration in each category. The third division in the Rose Show is Rose Photography, which is a developing area for the ARS, and with this National show in Los Angeles, they are certain there will be many great entries in this area.

The Program of Events for the entire four-day Convention is listed on their website at www.RoseStars.com. Convention Day Passes may be purchased separately for the Lecture Day, or the Garden Tour Day, or an All Convention Pass is most economical. Entry to view the National Rose Show on Friday, October 14th from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm is free to the general public. It is a great, once-in-a-lifetime event for Los Angeles, and the programs will be of interest to a wide range of rose and gardening enthusiasts. Convention tickets are on sale now.

CONTACT INFORMATION: Marcia Sanchez-Walsh, Convention Chair and President, Los Angeles Tinseltown Rose Society, (818) 395-0840, E-Mail: LosAngelesTinseltownRS@gmail.com  Website: RoseStars.com

Rose Care FUNdamentals

During June and July, resist deadheading. Instead, enjoy your blooms on the plant and, as they fade, remove only the petals but leave the hips. This will tell the plants to take a summer rest and gather their energies. It will also relieve them of some of the stress that our typical summer heat puts on them. Continue doing this even if you get another cycle of blooms between now and September.

If you like, you can either continue feeding every other week but cut the volume or concentration in half, or you can feed the same amount just once a month. Also, switch to a fertilizer that has lower Nitrogen and higher Phosphate. Remember that Nitrogen encourages foliage and Phosphate encourages roots: We want to strengthen the root systems for the summer, which will then support a burst of blooms in the fall. An example of a good NPK balance is 4-8-8, but the important thing is that the first number (Nitrogen) be lower than the other two.

Summer is usually pretty intense in our valley, so continue a good watering program. This is not the time to scrimp on that! If you've laid down a 3" layer of mulch every drop of water will be used efficiently. (If you haven't laid down that mulch yet, do it as soon as possible–it'll keep down those nasty grass weeds too, and you know you don't want to be out there in the summer heat digging those up!) Keep in mind that slow, deep irrigation is more effective than frequent, shallow irrigation. And remember: Water the day before you fertilize!

For a little inspiration, a relaxing picnic, or just a break from the daily grind, take some time this month to visit the Temecula Valley Rose Society's Rose Haven Heritage Garden located at 30500 Jedediah Smith Road (the cross street is Cabrillo Avenue) in Temecula. Spread the word and spread the joy of roses!

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