Temecula Valley Rose Society

President's Message

Stay tuned – go to the website (http://temeculavalleyrosesociety.org/tvrs-calendar.shtml). Check out the calendar there and mark the dates on your personal calendar for upcoming events you want to attend. Check often because the calendar is updated as needed. Your board of directors work hard to provide an interesting and beneficial organization for each and every member, visitors and friends.

The Rose Haven Garden Planning Committee has lined up some interesting projects to be fulfilled in coming months to better serve a growing number of society and community members who visit the garden. While the committee is actively researching and applying for small grants, nothing is for sure that we will be awarded any – and even if a grant is awarded the funds may not be sufficient to complete the project(s). Listed below are a few of these; you may specify your donation to any specific project.

1. Another set of stairs to make access easier up the hillside; a rough estimate for material and installation is $2500.
 2. Hand rail fabrication and installation for the steeper set of stairs leading to the gazebo; rough estimate is $500.
 3. The purchase and installation with needed elevation changes – 4 concrete tables with benches for multiple functions of Oak Shadows Center. When complete 24-30 persons can be accommodated for classes, speakers presentations in the garden – Rough estimate $3000.

Old Garden Roses

Next in our walk through the Old Garden Rose section of Rose Haven Heritage Garden will feature a Hybrid Perpetual named BARRONE PREVOST. These roses are located just northwest of the memorial bench, nearest the curving pathway.

BARONNE PREVOST comes to us from France, having been bred in 1842 by the French grower Desprez. She is of moderate size producing dark pink blooms of up to 4" in diameter with a powerful fragrance. This year she was the first OGR to show buds and blooms. The blooms we see are numerous and ruffled similar to Easy Does It, but a bit smaller. She has thorny stems and coarse foliage and will withstand poor soils but prefers rich soil and has a mild susceptibility to Black Spot. This very tough plant requires only minimal care and it is advised to prune her only lightly. Being a Hybrid Perpetual she will produce flowers all during the growing season. AARS rates BARONNE PREVOST at 8.5. The parentage is unknown.

Hybrid Perpetual roses are the result of years of hybridization in Europe by the breeders there who wanted to perfect a true "repeat flowering" rose, rather than the once blooming varieties which prevailed during the early to mid middle ages. By the mid 19th century Hybrid Perpetuals were the dominant classification used in formal gardens of Europe. They are derived in part from Bourbon roses which were also repeat flowering.

Please stop by the OGR section and visit the BARONNE. Next month I will talk about CELINE FORESTIER, a climber of the "Noisette" classification, the only OGR originating in the United States.

May Families in the Garden

What is better than a bouquet in May? Our 'Families in the Garden' group put together flowers, herbs, and greens from our garden to make the Tussie Mussie. This bouquet dates back to the 14th century and was the texting messenger of the day to convey romantic thoughts. The meaning of flowers and herbs was taken into consideration and all were arranged into a beautiful handheld creation. Our brides of today have special ornate Tussie Mussie holders for their bouquets. Fay Devore lead our group with instruction about this art. The families fanned out into the garden to find just the right color of rose and greenery to make their Tussie Mussie.

Fay Devore	.

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Our May program marks the end of our season. We will begin with a new set of adventures in the garden in September. We've had a great turn out of parents and children this year and a wonderful dedicated group of volunteers to make this program a successful community outreach.

Daisy Scouts at Rose Haven

Just in case you ever wonder if it is fun to volunteer for the Youth Gardening Committee: Kathy Katz- On Friday, May 30th, ten wonderful Cub Scouts and their leader pulled weeds in the Tree of Life. They hauled to the dumpster almost as many wheelbarrow loads as there were boys. In little over an hour they cleared a bed. It was their contribution to the earth and ecology. What a willing and fun group it was my great pleasure to meet and work with.

Jo Ann Summers: Just a note to let you know that the visit by the Daisy Scouts on Thursday the 29th was WONDERFUL. Four girls, two brothers, and four moms showed up. They planted a beautiful rose, Cinco De Mayo in the garden by the pond. Next they picked up a little trash and then we went to the table under the pines to make Tussie Mussie bouquets. I used cut plastic bottles and aqua foam as the base. After they gathered flowers and greenery we slipped a doily around the stems. They were beautiful, both the boys and girls created masterpieces. This is always a never fail project and so much fun to see the kids gather roses and think about how they want them to look. It was a little breezy, but not too warm.

Macy's Shop-For-A-Cause Project

Don't miss the Temecula Valley Rose Society Meeting this month for a chance to be part of a unique way to raise funds for Rose Haven Heritage Garden.

Pierre Turgeon, TVRS member, will be giving a presentation regarding this simple and easy fundraiser that everyone can participate in. It has a proven record that has worked for many non-profits for nine years. And the best part is that there is no up-front cost for the project. This is too good of an opportunity to miss!

Grocery Cards Benefit TVRS

Member Meeting Program

Laura Simpson has been a Master Gardener since 2002, and her husband, Jim, has been a Master Gardener since 2006. Together, they maintain an edible landscape in French Valley on an 8,500 square foot lot. They grow over 120 varieties of edible plants, including many fruit trees, an herb garden, and a large vegetable garden.

Laura has a bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology and worked in the biotech industry for a number of years before having children. Her husband is a Locomotive Engineer with Union Pacific Railroad. Together they have 5 children.

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

June Birthdays & New Members

Rose Haven Update

As we welcome summer this month, the garden is still lovely with blooms. However, the roses could use a little dead-heading so if you have an extra hour (or two) grab your clippers and join us any Wednesday or Saturday morning — early before it gets hot. There have been many visitors this spring and they express how much they enjoy the garden which we appreciate so much.

Unfortunately we had to replace the watering controller last month at quite an unexpected expense, but our good friends Virginia & Roy made a donation to cover the cost. Thank you both so much.

The Temecula City Summer Solstice event is at Rose Haven Garden June 21st from 7 to 10 PM in the evening. The garden will be decorated with luminaires — music, and light refreshments will be served. This event is listed in the recent "City of Temecula – Community Services Dept." magazine on page 4. There will be no parking at the garden so perhaps one may want to use the shuttle located at the corner of Ynez and Santiago.

Our Next garden committee meeting has been moved to Thursday, June 19th after the member meeting. We will discuss applying for grants for major maintenance, and safety improvements along the stairs.

Hall of Fame Gazebo	Red Legends Rose

Youth Gardening in June, Tree of Life

It was time for harvest in May, and as you can see by the pictures we had plenty of garlic, onions and Swiss chard. We will continue to harvest in June. We had the largest onions (in size) this year than we have ever had. Our biggest was 1 3/4 pounds. Our tomatoes are starting to produce fruit and we should be able to start harvesting them in June. We have many varieties, so come by and taste and let us know which is your favorite.

Most of the students in Green Thumbs are seniors this year and will be graduating in June. It is always hard to see them go, but we wish them well and they have done a good job this year. Our lead student, Alexis, will be staying in Temecula next year and has already volunteered to help in the garden next year. She knows many of the students who will help next year and has great leadership skills.

Colorful Swiss Chard	Alexis harvesting onions

Youth Gardening, Saving a Life

Each Saturday in the vegetable garden with the high school students is unique as we always have a different mix of students and we are working on whatever needs to be done that week. I like the variety and so do they. They have learned a lot from working in the garden and we face many challenges together.

While working in the garden one Saturday in May, one of the students found a snake wrapped around one of our trellises and since it wasn't moving, we assumed it was dead. On closer inspection we found that it was alive but hopelessly tangled in the bird net that we use to protect our vegetables. One of the students, Matt, decided that he would like to try and free the snake. He went to work using scissors to cut the snake free from the net. The most difficult part was that the net was wound around its head. With the skill of a surgeon and no fear, Matt was able to cut it loose, saving the snake's life.

As you know, Rose Haven is a wildlife preserve and for as much as I complain about the critters in the garden, this is their home. They all play a part in the natural world. So next time you see a snake in the garden, don't be afraid of it. It may just be Matt's friend.

Matt's careful rescue	Matt's Snake

Rose Care FUNdamentals

Also, ease up on feeding as summer starts to take off. This will reduce the demands on the plant by not encouraging it to expend too many resources during the hottest months. You may not feel entirely comfortable with this approach if you are accustomed to applying inorganic chemical fertilizers according to the package directions. The fact is, inorganic fertilizers work best when the soil is cold and the microbes are feeling lazy-but they are a brute force approach to feeding and often reduce the complexity and stability of the soil ecosystem.

Organic fertilizers, on the other hand, work best when the soil is warm, because they are usually delivered in a more complex form which requires a microbial action to release, and they build up a reserve in the soil. This is also one reason their effect is gentler and longer lasting. My point is: The soil is warm right now – in fact, this winter was so mild it never got a winter chill – so your organics are doing their job even without adding any during the summer.

However, do not slack off on your watering program: You need the soil and the plants well hydrated but not soggy. As you know, mulch over the entire surface of the garden bed (not just immediately around the plants) will help ensure consistent hydration. Also, carefully check the operation of all your emitters, tubes, etc. to make sure your system is in good shape.

For more ideas, visit TVRS' Rose Haven garden at 30592 Jedediah Smith Rd.,
Temecula, as well as our web site at TemeculaValleyRoseSociety.org/index.shtml. You might also want to visit our section at Meetup.com to find events of interest to you. Spread the joy of roses!