Our January meeting is a program summarizing a year's rose care and the climate in our region. Some of the topics include how roses grow, pruning, fertilizing, pest control, living with diseases, harvesting roses, dormant season care, climate challenges, and climate modification. Speakers include our own Consulting Rosarians certified by the American Rose Society: Richard Harris, Ann Marie Harris, and Rebecca Shaw.
New location: Rail City Garden Center, 1720 Brierley Way, Sparks, Nevada
11 AM to 1 PM Call Rail City Garden Center 355-1551 to reserve seating. If morning session is full, there will be a repeat program at 2 PM.

Weather Tracker and Bloom Report:

February 15, 2010: broke old record 60 degrees Fahrenheit

Oct 1-Dec 31, 2010 Precipitation to date of 8.36" exceeds annual yearly average.

April 1-15, 2011 Forsythia in bloom.

April 16, 2011 Elberta peach in bloom.

April 23, 2011 First asparagus cutting. Serviceberry and Siberian almond in bloom.

May 1, 2011 Rosa primula in bloom!!!! This beautiful species rose is the earliest to bloom in our area. This rose also began blooming on May 1, 2010, so moving the show date to a week later this year may have been a very good call by our Show Chair Rebecca Shaw. The hybrid musk roses Trier and Yellow Light have started to bud out. Tulips in bloom.

May 7, 2011 Old Blush in bloom. This tea rose is another of the early-blooming old garden roses. Crabapple in bloom.

June 1, 2011 Morning low of 28 degrees may affect number of rose blooms for show. Only one early-blooming peony, the tree-fern peony, has opened.

June 4-5, 2011 Continuing cold nights and rainy days slow down rosebloom development. Peonies have stalled out on opening.

June 9, 2011 Euphrates (hybrid Hulthemia persica shrub), Rosa pendulina (species), Rosa acicularis (species), Agnes (rugosa), and Dart's Dash (shrub) blooming. Herbaceous peony Walter Mains in bloom. Tree peonies begin to bloom. Columbines, saponaria, and Johnny jump-ups in bloom.

June 12 Herbaceous peonies Festiva Maxima, Pink Hawaiian Coral, and a Garden Shop pink thing in bloom. Beauty bush in bloom. High over 80 degrees.

June 15 Roses in bloom: America (large-flowered climber), Alika, (hybrid gallica), Baby Darling (mini), My Sunshine (mini), Persian Flame (shrub), Doorenbos Selection (hybrid spinosissima), Rose de Meaux (centifolia), Petite de Hollande (centifolia), and Nevada (shrub). Beginning to unfurl Alba Maxima (alba-species cross) and Amadis . Rhododendrons in bloom. High of 88 degrees. Rose curculio damage found on Rosa acicularis and Agnes blooms and buds. Caught then killed the bastards with a rock.

June 20, 2011 First 90 degree day of the year. Roses in bloom include Gold Medal (grandiflora), Hurdy Gurdy (mini), Don Marshall ( mini), Magic Carrousel (mini), Jeanne Lajoie (mini), Ispahan (damask), Mme Hardy (damask), Flutterbye (shrub), and Copper Crown (shrub).

Rose of the Month:

Mrs. R.M.Finch