Did you ever think folding newspapers could be fun? We proved it can be at our “Fun Day” on Feb 4th. Fifteen of us managed to come and learn some new skills and enjoy time together. A little work, food and fellowship, a nice way to enjoy a Saturday. If you missed this one, perhaps you can make the next “Fun Day”.
February is a good time to think about and even starting our Spring pruning. This will help you have some nice blooms for our April show. We continue to be very dry with hardly any rain, so watering is critical. Neglect is sometimes our worst enemy when it comes to caring for roses.
I have gotten our Rose Show schedule updated and will be ready for any ad information we can obtain. If you sold an ad in the past, please let me know if you feel you will be able to get one this year. Remember the ads help pay for our show expenses. Our new show location could bring us more visitors. It will be fun seeing how it will all work for the first time in this part of town.
Missy, Jean Giesel, Ralph and I all enjoyed our time at the Mid-Winter Meeting in Birmingham. The weather was pretty rough but mostly at night and on the way home. The leaders in Birmingham had a great lineup of speakers. Pat Shanley, President, ARS had firsthand knowledge about the rose gardens at ARS and their current situation. We talked about this at our “Fun Day” but will talk a little more at our meeting.
Other speakers were Dave Clemons, amateur hybridizer who has many “Thoroughbred Roses” including Tammy Clemons’ and Bold Ruler. It was fun hearing about his research on thoroughbred horses and choosing names for his new varieties.
Gaye Hammond, Past President of the Houston Rose Society was so fired up about Membership and she shared some great tips on recruiting for local societies.
The last speaker was Allen Owings, Professor of Hort. LSU, and District Director, ARS Gulf Dist. Allen is working at LSU Ag Center on disease observations in commercial ornamental horticulture.
The Botanical Gardens were beautiful even in winter, lots of spectacular trees and plants. Roses were dormant with a few leaves remaining. The Birmingham team appreciated our support with our raffle baskets and contribution. See pictures below. Photo contest winners were Willie Mae & Jean Giesel! Mary Maud Sharpe won the Anita Smith Award. Great job! Congratulations!
| Mid-Winter Meeting | |
| Propagation and Rose Genetics |
You won’t want to miss the Feb program when Wayne and Lyndy will share their exciting trip to China. Oriental snacks??
February reminds us that life is for loving with Valentine’s Day. It is also the month for pruning so let’s love our plants enough to prune them properly and give them a great start for the new growing season. Ask your questions about pruning at our meeting on the 12th.
See you at 2:00 pm.
- Jean Stream, President
