May 2010 Garden Faces

GARDEN FACES

BIRMINGHAM ROSE SOCIETY MAY

AMERICAN ROSE SOCIETY AFFILIATE

Editor: Glenda Boudreaux ambghbmsn.com (205) 337­7100

2010

OUR NEXT MEETING Monday, May 31 , 2010 at 5:00 p.m. at the garden of Laura Pointer 4818 Old Leeds Road, Birmingham, AL 35213 st

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Dear Rose Society Members: What a wonderful Rose Show we had this year. Everyone said the roses were the best in years and I agree one hundred percent.

This seems so trite, but I find no words to say except a big THANKS to all of you who participated in the show, not only showing your beautiful roses, but also all the hard work that you did to make the show successful. There is no way I can thank every individual but you know what you did and the entire society expresses appreciation to you for your special efforts.

A list of the winners is included in this issue of Garden Faces. Please look over the list and feel free to contact me if there is an error. As you know, the tabulation is happening under great pressure and time constraints so there is room for errors. I can always make a correction if needed.

Please let me know about any corrections before I send this information to the ARS and Deep South District.

See you at the May meeting on Monday, May 31st at 5:00 p.m. in the garden of Laura Pointer.

Happy Gardening, Gloria Purnell, President, Birmingham Rose Society

MAY MEETING DIRECTIONS AND PARKING INSTRUCTIONS There will be seating at Laura’s house for about 30 people so please bring extra chairs if you have them. As for parking, there is room for about 10 cars on the parking pad that is up the driveway. Please get together in groups of 3 or 4 and park at Highland School which is almost across the street from the house and then one person bring 3 or 4 people up the driveway and park at the top of the hill by the house.

Directions are easy: 4818 Old Leeds Rd. From HWY 280, take Cherokee Road until it dead-ends into Old Leeds Rd, then turn right and it is just about exactly 2 miles to our house on the left. From I 459, take the Grant's Mill Rd exit, and go north until you get to the light at Old Leeds Rd. Turn left and it is about 2.4 miles to our driveway which will be on the right. Highland School is on the left before you get to our driveway.

DEADHEADING ROSES AT THE BOTANICAL GARDENS

By Gloria Purnell

Time to deadhead our section of the Rose Garden. Some of the roses have not been deadheaded since the Rose Show and could use some attention. Thanks for your volunteer hours.

PETALS FROM THE PAST

By Jason Powell, owner of Petals from the Past

16034 County Road 29

Jemison, Alabama 35085

205-646-0069

info@petalsfromthepast.com

Petals from the Past will be at Pepper Place Market each Saturday from 7:00 a.m. until noon. We will have roses, perennials, herbs, fruit plants, and our jams and jellies. Are you ready for fresh blackberries and blueberries? Please refer to our website for an updated Fruit Harvest Schedule. If you are looking for something special, send us an e-mail, and we can bring it to Pepper Place for you.

AMERICA’S BEST ROSE GARDEN CONTEST

By Chris VanCleave

Winning Garden To Receive $2,500 Plus National Recognition All-American Rose Selections’ (AARS) “America’s Best Rose Garden” competition is a national competition to find the best public rose gardens in America. The voting officially starts on April 1st, 2010 and closes July 1st, 2010. Communities across America can vote for their favorite local garden. (ours is the Dunn Formal Rose Garden) Since 1938, the non-profit All-America Rose Selections (AARS) has been dedicated to the introduction and promotion of exceptional roses. Each of the 130 AARS-plus accredited public rose gardens across America bloom with hundreds, and sometimes thousands, of roses each year.

The top ten gardens with the most individual votes will become finalists. Then, a panel of experts from AARS will travel to the five finalist cities, evaluate the gardens, and select one winner based on beauty, creativity and the garden’s overall contribution to its community. The winning garden will receive a $2,500 cash donation and will be featured in a national PR campaign highlighting the best gardens in America.

Vote today at: http://www.rose.org/voteform/ The VanCleave Family Helena, Alabama

CALLING ALL AMATUER PHOTOGRAPHERS

By Chris VanCleave

It’s time to begin collecting your entries for our annual digital photo contest. We hope as many of you as possible will participate in this fun activity. Photography is one of the best ways we have to share the beauty of our national flower. Last year’s results were published in the winter issue of the Bulletin and are on the DSD Website. I hope everyone got to see and enjoy them.

You will want to take advantage of the many photo opportunities available during the first and second flushes of roses this spring. So start collecting your photos as early as possible. There also is a high correlation between the number of photos entered and awards won. The more photos you enter the better chance you have of winning. Now is a good time to organize your computer’s photo files so that entries are ready for submission prior to the July 31, 2010 deadline.

We hope those of you who participated last year enjoyed the contest and the results. We would love to have more of you join the fun this year. Please email your questions and entries to me at a.whitcomb@earthlink.net.

Thank you in advance for your participation.

MINUTES OF THE APRIL 26TH MEETING Submitted by George Ann Hamilton, Recording Secretary

Gloria Purnell, President called the meeting to order. Twenty-nine members were present. The host and hostess Frank and Shirley Bollen, were thanked for our refreshments.

The minutes from the March 29th meeting were approved as printed in Garden Faces.

Frank Baier, Treasurer gave his report. As of April 26th, 2010 the checking account balance is $6,914.34 and the Certificate of Deposit balance is $4,783,44.

The Spring Plant Sale was very successful. All volunteers were thanked. Miniature roses for sale are $8.00 and if interested see Ann Jones after the meeting. Approximately $263, 000 was cleared from the plant sale for the Birmingham Botanical Gardens. The plant sale is the No. 2 money raiser for the gardens and Antiques in the Garden is No. 1.

The judge’s luncheon will cost $12.00.The Whistle Stop Café will cater the luncheon on May 8th. Please get your reservation and money to Frank Baier.

Members are needed to meet people coming to see the Rose Show and be available to answer questions they may have.

Our Rose Garden is on the Garden Tour. We need docents and rose people to answer questions for visitors too.

Carl Brunner made the following announcement regarding ads for the Rose Show Program.

In 2005 ads sold totaled $2,430, 2006 - $3,335, 2007 - $3,030, 2008 - $1,688 and in 2009 - $1,710. The entire membership is going to have to sell ads in 2010.

Friday May 7th is set up night. The truck will be here by 3:00 P.M. Plan to arrive at 4:00 P.M. to start setting up. Our food will be pizza. Contribute what you can to the cost. Bring your own drink, cookies, etc.

It was announced that Azilee Adams would be coming to the rose show. Her daughter Dana will try t bring her. Azilee has not been able to attend our meetings since she broke her ankle.

We will have a People’s Choice Award this year for the public. Roses will be placed so the pubic can vote for their favorite rose at the Rose Show.

Chris VanCleave introduced Bob Eskew and Dr. Settle to tell us how to prepare our roses for showing. First you need the Rose Show Program. This should be studied before show day so that you know the Division, Section and Class for your roses to be shown. Every rose has a place in the show. Read the rules, read the schedule and survey what you have in your garden. The program was very educational and fun.

The meeting was adjourned.

CLIFF’S NOTES ON ROSES Natural Approach to Controlling Aphids

By Cliff Orent, Owner, EuroDesert Roses, from the May 2010 Issue of ARS and You

With spring approaching (albeit faster in some parts of the country than in others!), my thoughts turn to the beauty of the first spring flush of blooms. But with those blooms -- and even before the blooms emerge -- come those nasty little aphids that suck the life out of tender new foliage and buds and that are responsible for the "honeydew" and black/brown residue they leave behind. For those of us who want to control aphids yet don't wish to spray, there's a natural alternative, and one that I've used for the past few years with a good deal of success -- lady beetles, commonly known as ladybugs. The variety most common in North America is Hippodamia convergens and its primary target pests are aphids, whitefly, fruitworm and certain types of mites. Ladybugs are the most popular and best known of the beneficial insects in the garden, and it's likely that they'll emerge at some point. But often they arrive after aphids have already been on the prowl for a while.

One solution is to purchase ladybugs from a commercial source. The trick, however, is to time the arrival of your purchased ladybugs to coincide with the arrival of the aphids. If the ladybugs arrive before the aphids appear in sufficient number and therefore have little to eat, they're not likely to stick around to wait for their dinner. There are a number of sources of ladybugs listed on the Internet. A few of these are: http://www.buglogical.com/ http://www.thebeneficialinsectco.com http://www.planetnatural.com http://www.marchbiol ogical.com There are a number of things that are said to be helpful in keeping your ladybugs in your garden, as opposed to having them fly off to a neighbor's yard. These include releasing them in the evening, before they settle down for the night, mixing certain types of carbonated beverages or sugar with water and more. What I've found works for me is to release the ladybugs when it's relatively cool -- in early morning or in the evening, and lightly hosing down the foliage of the roses before releasing the ladybugs. And after a few years of purchasing ladybugs in early spring, I've been pleased to see ladybugs appearing on their own -- earlier each year. And while you're visiting these sites, have a look at some of the other beneficial insects that are available against other rose pests.

(Editor’s note: Feel free to copy this article in your newsletter. EuroDesert Roses offers ARS members a 10% discount on their roses. They carry many hard to get European varieties. http://eurodesertroses.com/ )

TRIAL ARS MEMBERSHIP Don’t miss this great opportunity to introduce interested rose growers to the benefits of ARS membership. There are 3 ways people can get a Trial Membership: General public goes to the web site - $10 Someone is a member of the local society but not ARS - $5 Someone joins a local society and they get signed up immediately for a Trial Membership – free!!

You must send in the new member information to ARS headquarters, laura@ars-hq.org . To sign up and for more information, please visit http://www.ars.org or call 1-800-637-6534.

NATIONAL MINIATURE CONFERENCE REMINDER The 2010 ARS National Miniature Rose Show and Conference will be held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, from August 20-22, 2010. Contact Diane Sommers, 262-781-7989 dianesommers@wi.rr.com for information.

FALL NATIONAL CONVENTION AND ROSE SHOW When: Oct. 7-11: Where: Marietta, GA What: GRITS, Fall National Convention & Rose Show Contact: Bobbie Reed, 770-979-4237, berdks@mindspring.com 2010 Official List of Exhibition Names for Exhibitors and Judges is available now! It is the same price as previous editions: $20 print, $15 download. To order your copy today please visit: http://stores.lulu.com/americanrosesociety. This

Stay connected to us online: Visit us on the web at www.BirminghamRose.org Become a fan of Birmingham Rose Society on Facebook!

Follow us on Twitter @BhamRoseSociety While the advice and information in this newsletter is believed to be true and accurate at the time of publication, neither the authors nor the editor accept any legal responsibility for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The Birmingham Rose Society makes no warranty, expressed or implied with respect to the material contained herein.

Glenda Boudreaux 4493 Preserve Drive Birmingham, Al 35226