TVRS Newsletter For November 2020
Co-President's Message
by Linda Freeman
Hopefully everyone has had a chance to visit Rose Haven now that the weather has cooled down. The Fall bloom is looking great as are all the renovations of the Pond, Hall of Fame and the Tree of Life.
If you have not yet ordered your Help Our Garden Grow brick – now is the time – the campaign will be ending soon as we get ready to prepare the walkway with the bricks this winter. Also a thank-you to member Kathy Barr for getting the Society signed up with Amazon Smile. Amazon has a multimillion dollar charitable program that allows members of non-profits to purchase items online through Amazon and designate the Temecula Valley Rose Society as a recipient of a portion of the purchase amount.
It was great to see our members at the October meeting at Rose Haven. With Covid‑19 gathering protocols changing, we will hold as many meetings at Rose Haven as we can, (the Library meeting rooms are still closed) and as a backup, the Society has purchased a GoToMeeting license for 2021 so that we can do on-line programs and also use local and American Rose Society resources for rose care and education.
Donation Opportunity for TVRS
by Kathy Barr and Virginia Boos
We are pleased to announce that members are now able to donate $$$$ to our rose society through our personal Amazon accounts. This company will pay us a small percentage of each eligible purchase, based on shopping dollars. Also, anyone with an Amazon account can designate us as their charity. It's simple.
First, go to Smile.Amazon.com. (always use that address.)
Second, click menu top left and scroll to "Your Amazon Smile".
Third, click link for "Search all charitable organizations" and type in Temecula Valley Rose Society.
Then shop as normal and earn money for us. Any questions? Phone Virginia at 695-1689.
What is Amazon Smile?
"AmazonSmile is a way for customers to support their favorite charitable organization every time they shop with Amazon. Shoppers who start at smile.amazon.com will find the same Amazon they know and love, with the added bonus that Amazon will donate a portion of the price of eligible purchases to the charity of your choice." Tap/click here for a complete description by Amazon.
A 'Thank You' to Don Nordike
by Linda Freeman
Recently I received a call from longtime member Don Nordike whose garden has been on our annual member tour many times. Don had decided to downsize his extensive Iris collection and offered it to the Rose Society as a donation.
Linda Freeman and Judy Sundermann visited Don and dug up approximately 100 Iris and divided and trimmed them (Judy gave a great Iris tutorial to Linda and Don while doing this), and from those 100 Iris we should be able get 150 Iris which can be used for a 2021 plant sale or raffle.
Needless to say, we are looking for "foster" homes for the Iris, so let Judy know if you can take some to pot and foster until 2021. Pictures of some of the Iris are from a past member tour to Don's Rose garden (Don has close to 200 roses!). Iris make wonderful companion plants for roses. The soil in Don's garden is amazing, so these are very happy Iris.
Don's Dahlias were in full bloom, and Don may be downsizing his Alstroemeria early in the new year, which would be another great plant sale project. Thank you Don!
How Does Your Garden Grow?
by Rebecca Weersing
A number of us spent Halloween Saturday at Rose Haven. Nearly a year ago the Rose Haven Committee authorized a signage project. The Committee discussed what signs we needed, where to locate them, and the wording on the signs.
Nancy Fitness took the lead in finding a company that could design and fabricate the signs. Nancy worked closely with the graphic designer for Gopher Signs regarding the shapes and colors of the signs.
So, Halloween Saturday was declared Install Day. An auger was rented – we all know how rock hard the dirt is. There was no way to hand dig the holes for the mounting posts. There was plenty of measuring and leveling before gravel and quickset concrete went into the mounting holes.
By mid‑day the "History and Garden Map" sign was mounted next to the new "Donate" sign, mounted atop the donation pedestal. The two "Garden Rules" signs were planted, one near the main entry arch, and the other next to the white entry arch along Cabrillo. The "Welcome" sign will be installed when the Courtyard project is started.
AWESOME JOB kudos go to Roger Fitness, Peter Gagliardi, and Byron Webb for their installation work.
Supporting roles were played by Nancy Fitness, Carol Gagliardi, Judy Sundermann, Kathy Trudeau and Rebecca Weersing. The five of us freely gave our opinions to the guys doing the work and reviewed recent Rose Haven Committee agenda items, while Judy planted iris donated by Don Nordike from his fabulous Sun City garden. All and all a very productive day.
Monthly Program
Date: Thursday, November 19, 2020
Time: 10:00 a.m.
Place: GoToMeeting online. Members will receive an email invitation the first week of November.
Topic: Virtual Holiday Succulent Wreath Making class.
Presenter: Linda Powell. Linda Powell is a Gold Badge Riverside County Master Gardener.
Learn how to create a unique wreath of succulents just in time for the holidays. Linda Powell will give instructions on making a pre-formed living wreath and the grape vine wreath. Roses from your garden from the fall flush would be a great addition to your wreath. Plan to make your wreath during the meeting so that you can have questions answered as you go along.
Members will be sent a separate GoToMeeting invitation the first week in November with an attached supply list so you can make your wreath at home along with Linda. GoToMeeing is an online meeting program very similar to ZOOM. If you have used ZOOM recently you will be very comfortable using GoToMeeting. Also, visit us on Facebook for roses from around the world as well as Rose Haven pictures and videos.
Pictures From The Oct Meeting
by Linda Freeman
Thank you to Ann Schryer for doing a fall floral arranging presentation at our October meeting.
Ann sourced Rose Haven and her personal garden for flowers and greenery to show how we can use seasonal flora from our gardens for our casual arrangements.
Rose Haven Flora
by Bonnie Bell
In the Roses and Campions area an attractive group of roses is "Carefree Beauty". With medium pink flowers and bright-green leaves, a lovely combination is achieved. The fresh, light apple fragrance adds to its charm.
"Carefree Beauty" was hybridized in 1979, and has a medium growth habit. It is quite winter hardy, and for pruning, long loppers will do the job. It has an ARS rating of 8.7 and is one of the best Shrub roses grown in our area and is naturally disease resistant.
Rose Care FUNdamentals
by Frank Brines, Master Consulting Rosarian
Experiencing a summer of high temperatures, and fires, smoke and ash, and Santa Ana winds, we all look forward to having some relief. The weather has moderated slightly, and along with the change comes cooler nights with more moisture collecting on leaves.
This moisture, with the daily accumulation of ash and small dust particles, provides a great environment for mildew, rust, and black spot on roses. Black spot is the most common and important disease of roses found everywhere roses are grown. The disease does not kill the plant outright but, over time, the loss of leaves can weaken the plant making it more susceptible to other stresses and to winter damage. It first develops on upper leaf surfaces, later adjacent areas turn yellow and leaves drop prematurely, usually beginning at the bottom of the plant progressing upward.
A potential "lookalike" disease is spot anthracnose (shot-hole disease); it is not a major problem unless temperatures are very hot (too hot for black spot). Spots caused by black spot are fuzzy around the edges, then turn yellow and brown. Spots, caused by anthracnose, are smooth edged, and the centers turn grey, and drop out. Treatment is the same – a fungicide – but it must be labeled for black spot or anthracnose, whichever disease you are treating.
Fall brings warm days, cool nights, moisture, and air dust particles. These conditions will ensure large colorful blossoms and possibility of powdery mildew. One of the earliest signs will be slight purple splotches on the underside of leaves and white powdery spots on top and white powder on the peduncle (neck) of the rose blossom. A good fungicide will be needed and applied at the first sight of white appearing substance on the leaves.
Fall is a good time to check the pH of the soil. It should be between 6.0 and 6.5. Any reading below or above these levels will inhibit roses ability to use the nutrients you are giving them. Treating the pH problem now will give ample time for adjustments prior to spring pruning. The most likely result will be a low pH due to the acidifying effect of fertilizers.
Roses benefit from a good rinsing to remove accumulated dust: Be sure to keep moisture off the blossoms to prevent yet another fungal disease, Botrytis, which will appear as rot of blossoms, and will usually prevent them from opening. Another sign is red blotches on blooms. Last month I included an article about Chilli Thrips and pictures for identifying the problem they cause.
Continue to investigate for these pests and treat if found. They attack new growth, buds and blooms. Left untreated, plants are stressed greatly, often shriveling the end buds or preventing bud formation. The life cycle of Chilli Thrips includes falling to ground and becoming a grub and reappearing when temperatures warm up next year.
If you completed the light mid‑season pruning in September/October as suggested in an earlier article, you pruned out dead, crossing canes, and thinned the middle of the plant. This will improve air circulation through the bush and reduce possible fungal diseases. This mid‑season pruning and fertilizing encourages a new blooming cycle. Feel free to cut some of early blooms now and take them inside for bouquets.
Unless you plan to exhibit, I do not recommend fertilizing after mid‑October, but you may make a final application of fertilizer for the year before mid – November. If you do this, use a fertilizer lower in Nitrogen (N) and higher in Phosphate (P) and Potassium (K); that is, if your fertilizer has an N‑P‑K number on it, the first digit will be lower than the other two. If it lacks an N‑P‑K, read the ingredients and/or ask your professional nursery person for guidance.
To explain: Nitrogen encourages foliage growth – something we want to discourage as the plants go into their winter dormancy; Phosphate helps build root structure and resistance to stressful conditions (e.g., cold at this time of year). Potassium is a helper of Phosphate and aids in bloom quality. If you use an organic fertilizer it will be readily available when the soil warms, adding to the nutrients needed for that spring growth spurt. A liquid fertilizer as the last application will be readily available.
Remember to check your garden daily for any changes. Be sure to keep them hydrated for best results. The weather forecast for the next week is around the mid‑80s.The cooler temperatures can be misleading. Roses still need to be watered, perhaps not as often.
Some people think Southern California lacks distinct seasons, but we do have seasons: They are only discerned by those with a more sophisticated palette. So, get out of the house and enjoy the subtle delights of the air, sun, and the rich aroma of our magically misty fall.
When you have a moment to spare, or feel the need to get away, or when the day cools down, take your favorite healthy beverage and a picnic basket, and visit Rose Haven Heritage Garden, at 30592 Jedediah Smith Road, Temecula (the cross street is Cabrillo Avenue). The early morning and late afternoon sunlight across the pass are magical this time of year – it even makes the freeway seem a little bit romantic!
Oh, one last thing – something to do when it gets just a bit too nippy out there: Start perusing rose catalogs (printed and online) for that next "gotta have" rose variety. (Come on: You deserve it! You work hard to have lovely roses, so let yourself go!)
Also, this time of year, many nurseries and garden stores are liquidating their remaining inventory of potted roses – and you're in luck because November is an ideal time to purchase and plant! Make your list of new roses and go shopping. If you plan to replace an old, tired plant prepare the area now for easier planting later. And assess your stock of fertilizers and be sure to order next month from the San Diego Rose Society.
Until next month, Happy Roses to you!