November
Meeting
Location/Time
DATE: Thursday, November 19, 2009 LOCATION: Taltree Arboretum & Gardens 71
North, 500 West PROGRAM: Annual Potluck Dinner TIME: 6:30 PM Banquet, Meeting & Program |
|
President Adolph Ferber 219-322-5848 1st Vice PresidentPatricia Stimmel 2nd Vice
President Sam DiMaio Show
Chairman Karl Bapst 219-956-3936 |
TreasurerKathleen Vargas SecretaryLisa Mella Editor
Yvonne Peterson 708-895-4811 or |
February
22 Presentation
by Dale Fadley – “Where We Find Roses”
March 26 Pruning
Seminar – Karl Bapst hopes to have roses for everyone to practice on. Bring your own pruners
April 30 “Color
through the Seasons” by Jean Starr
May
28 “How to Show Roses” by
Adolph, Dale, Karl
June 14 Duneland
Rose Show,
July 30 “Caring for and Growing Better Roses” by Stan Sims
August 16 Garden
Walk and Picnic at Karl Bapst’s, Wheatfield
September 24 DRS members’ “Small Rose Show”
October 29 Vicki Jostes –
“Maintenance Through the Seasons”
November 19 Annual Potluck Dinner
Have questions
about growing roses? Consult an expert.
|
219-956-3936 |
Adolph
Ferber, MCR 219-836-1476 |
|
Clarence Albers, Emeritus Consulting Rosarian |
Norm Backus, Emeritus Consulting Rosarian |
|
Agnes Medvecz, Emeritus Consulting Rosarian |
|
by Adolph Ferber
Baby, It’s Cold
Outside
Part 2
The temperatures
are quickly falling and the wind is harsh. It’s November and our roses are
almost ready to be winterized. I say
almost because we still need Mother Nature’s help. After a couple days of hard frost (temperatures
below 30 degrees), our roses will be asleep and it’s safe to start our
winterization program.
This is also the
time to shorten the rose canes and remove all leaves, both on the bush and
surrounding beds. Diseases, like black spot, winter-over and we certainly don’t
want to start the new season with a whole bunch of problems. So do a thorough
job cleaning up. Regardless of the height of my hybrid teas and floribundas (whether
in beds or pots), I cut all of them back to approximately 1 to 1-1/2 feet. Some
varieties like Folklore have grown to 7 feet tall by season-end, so there might
be a lot of cane to remove. Sorry, but that’s the way it goes. Regarding miniatures,
cut back to about 1 to 1-1/2 inches.
There are several
reasons for cutting back. (1) The rose
bush must be small enough to fit under the rose cone if you use cones, (2) to prevent
canes from whipping around by strong winds loosening up soil and exposing those
precious feeder roots to the elements, and (3) if you use pots it’s easier to
handle and store in unheated garage or shed.
There are many
methods of winterization. Each of us has our pet favorites and I’m no
exception. Each yard has its own microclimate, so what works for me may not
work for you and vice versa. Also the size of one’s garden may dictate which
method(s) are feasible and most appropriate.
I used to grow
about 75 roses. This is perhaps an average garden in comparison to some of the
more avid rose growers. If I grew, let’s say, around 20 roses, I might be
tempted to use rose cones, especially if I had adequate space in my garage/shed
(to store them when not in use). Cones are costly and one has to buy bricks or
stones to hold them down from blowing away. However, cones are easy to work
with if one goes this route. Don’t forget to punch holes in the sides or cut
off the tops to increase air circulation and minimize mold. Also, at springtime
when the days are warm, temporarily remove cones during daylight hours so the
roses don’t cook inside.
If my garden was
huge (over 300) I would consider Styrofoam boxes as the primary source of
winter protection. Again storage space and costs are considerations but these
boxes do an excellent job protecting roses and are fairly easy to assemble and
disassemble. There are directions on the internet or contact fellow rosarians
Terry Richards or
Now to the
nitty-gritty. I’m a soil-and-paper-collar man, myself. I have found this
combination to work extremely well for the size of my garden. Collars are easy
to construct and take a whole 30 seconds to make. Utilizing 4 full size sheets of newspaper and
staple gun, overlay 2 half sides of the sheets and crease 3 times to form a
paper collar about 8 inches high and 36 inches long and staple together (to
form a circle). I then position the collar around each bush and fill with soil
gathered from another section of the yard. Don’t disturb the feeder roots by
using near-by soil. The paper collars are very sturdy and last throughout the
winter season. Thus the soil remains intact and doesn’t blow away.
Oh yes, for the
miniatures, shovel a little soil over each plant, enough to cover the canes. They
are very winter hardy but still require some protection.
Since I don’t grow
OGR, climbers, shrubs, etc. you can check the ARS website or library regarding
winterization.
I have found soil
and paper collars work best for me and I am not going to change a good
practice. I hope my last two messages prove helpful in your winterization
endeavors. Call me if you have any questions.
Caio.
by Karl Bapst
Potluck Dinner
Don’t forget the
early date of Duneland Rose Society’s potluck dinner, November 19. Our regular
meeting date is moved forward a week due to Thanksgiving falling on the regular
last Thursday meeting time. The time is 6:30
instead of 7:00 so we don’t eat too late. Each member is asked to bring a
covered dish, dessert, or both.
I especially like
these potlucks as each member brings their favorite special dish and desert
which results in an array of tasty delights.
As usual, meat, gravy and mashed potatoes will be provided. I’ll bring salad
and salad dressing, bread and butter, and iced tea. If you don’t want to eat
off of paper/Styrofoam plates and use plastic utensils, you’ll want to bring
your own plates and silverware.
Calendars
The calendars were
received last week and will be available at the meeting.
The poll taken
regarding the calendars resulted in commitments for 59 of them. I’ve committed
to 25. Nancy and I will go through our list, bring any we feel we don’t need,
and have them available on a first come basis. Cost will be $8.50 each with any
checks made out to me as I ordered and paid for them. The $8.50 includes the
$7.99 cost plus shipping. Shipping on one would be $1.50 so by ordering a case
instead of each ordering our own, we saved quite a bit.
Winterizing protection
With cooler temps
arriving, our gardening chores are winding down for the year. One major chore
remaining is winter protection. While it’s recommended to wait until the soil
freezes, I confess I’m done placing all my leaves in the beds.
Each year brings it’s
own hard-freeze date. I’ve seen some years where the ground has not frozen
until after the New Year. Leaving the leaves on my lawn until then would result
in areas of dead grass. Piling them up for later use is not an option for me. I can barely move in cold weather and moving
all those leaves would be a difficult job. It’s much easier to shred them
directly into the rose beds which I do. If I covered the roses with cones or
rose collars, I’d wait until a hard freeze.
Waiting allows
mice, voles and other destructive plant eaters to find their winter homes in
other places. I take chances every year that voles won’t take up residency in
tunnels dug in the roots of my bushes. Each spring as I remove the winter
cover, I find vole tunnels and partially eaten roots on a few bushes. So far I
haven’t lost any bushes. It’s a chance I take and am willing to do. Fortunately,
most of my roses are hardy shrubs and require no winter protection.
Keep in mind the
many mark downs at garden centers as they clear out their summer stock. Most
clearance-priced plants are in sorry condition but supplies that can be stored
such as fertilizer and garden tools can be purchased at considerable savings.
Most plants, if purchased and planted now, won’t survive the winter. They need
to be planted early enough to establish a root system into the surrounding
soil. The soil around new plantings is loose and subject to a deep freeze
faster than the surrounding soil. This freezing and subsequent thawing
throughout the winter results in damaged roots and plant death. I never plant after September 1.
Piling loose leaves
over fall plantings will often protect them from winter’s wrath. If you’ve
potted any volunteers for the plant sale next spring, they can be grouped
together and protected under a pile of leaves. In most cases they’ll be fine
come spring and look really great for the plant sale. I have quite a number of
potted plants under leaves for next spring. Early spring potting can also
produce a healthy plant so keep that in mind for next spring’s cleanup.
Because this will
be our last meeting of 2009, and our first of 2010 won’t be until February 25,
I want to wish everyone a joyous
Remember;
Real Men Grow Roses,
Never enough Roses,
Take time to STOP and smell the Roses,
and Don't sweat the small stuff.
After seven years
and almost 70 issues, I’ve decided to move on (retire?) from Duneland Rose
Society and the associated editorship of the Rambling Rose. Adolph and Karl will be seeking volunteers
for officer(s) as well as a new editor.
It’s a relatively simple job, although you need to have access to a
computer, printer/copier (Kinko’s?) and have an email account. I currently mail out around 20 hard copies,
the rest are emailed. I’ll be available
to assist if you need help and bring you up to speed, so don’t be shy about
volunteering!
Yvonne Peterson
Happy
Thanksgiving!
