GARDEN CLIPPINGS

Fortuna Garden Club Officers:

Co -Presidents.: Co-Vice-Presidents: Secretary: Treasurer: Parliamentarian: Newsletter Editor: Mary Lou Lange Bev Ward Denise Lea Debra Strahan Linda Gardner Corinne Stanfield Judy Sloma Claudia Rogers 725-3446 725-6757 725-5947 768-3320 601-4284 682-6092 726-9029 725-5827

February/March 2014
mll567jdl@gmail.com bevward49@sbcglobal.net deniselea@sbcglobal.net debra.strahan@gmail.com KLMK80@verizon.net rinjim@hotmail.com rjsloma@sbcglobal.net claudiar46@suddenlink.net

Calendar: Calendar: Feb. 12 Feb. 21 Feb. 26 Mar. 12 Mar. 22-23 Mar. 26

Presidents Day Potluck Humboldt District Meeting FGC Board meeting General meeting 39th Annual Daffodil Show Board meeting

Monday Club 12 Noon First Covenant Church 2526 J Street Eureka 9:30 am City Hall 10 am Monday Club 1 am Fortuna River Lodge City Hall 10 am

Co-Presidents Message: Mary Lou Lange and Bev Ward

In the Monday Club kitchen, I could hear the happy chatter of nearly 50 members prior to the January meeting and program on Leaves. Smiling to myself, I thought, This is what our club is all about: happy members socializing and working toward worthy goals. I had this same thought and feeling at the Christmas Home Tour and Tea when our members, despite the busyness of the Christmas season, took the time to bake cookies, make candy, make decorations and decorate the hall, man the kitchen, serve our customers, volunteer in the homes, gather raffle prizes, sell tickets, post posters, and 1

on and on. The monetary result was excellent: nearly $4000 in our coffers, but the human result comes from working together in the most positive of ways. Without each and every member doing his or her part, we could not pull off this offering to the community. The smiles and compliments that came our way were the true reward (and now I know I am definitely sounding clichd). We definitely have a club to be proud of. Now, with enthusiasm, onto the new year.

Christmas Home Tour and Tea

I would like to thank all our garden club members for their help in making this years Christmas Home Tour and Tea so successful. Great job everyone! I have heard from many people how much they enjoyed our Christmas in Candyland

theme. Seeing adults walk into the Monday Club and smile at the dcor, was a joy. Also, much enthusiasm with the home tour, as usual. Many people really enjoyed the opportunity to tour the Scotia Inn, the Walsh home, as well as the Daneri and Hazelton homes. This event would not be successful without the involvement of our many garden club members, so again thank you all. Thank you, from Bev Ward

I apologize for the changes in the speakers this spring. Sometimes these things just happen and we have to roll with it. A big thank you to Bruce Palmer for stepping up for our January meeting and giving us a wonderful presentation on Leaves. Februarys speaker was to be Duncan McNeil from Kellogg Garden Products but he made a mistake in his calendar and had to bow out. We scrambled for a new program for our Pot Luck Meeting on Wednesday February 12. Our speakers will be Alan and Theresa Chesmore from Butterfly Way. They will be speaking on how they got started in the butterfly propagating business, and the benefits of butterflies in the garden. I have invited them to come for lunch with us at 12, and then start their program when we are finished eating. We are excited to hear all about these pollinators and their role in our gardens. Dont forget we meet at 12 Noon at the Monday Club. A L hot dish and M Z please bring a salad. March 22 and 23rd, of course, is our glorious Daffodil Show. If you havent already signed up for a shift or a task to help out, this is the time we need you to call or email Janean Guest at janean@shovelcreek.com. The Daffodil Show is one of our biggest public events and it is so important that we all do our part to ensure it goes smoothly and successfully. The Humboldt Rose Society will grace our March meeting. They will thrill us with all of

Vice-Presidents Message: Denise Lea and Debra Strahan

January is here and I have gotten my fruit trees pruned and sprayed. I am deep soaking them, as I am most of my garden and praying for rain. Dont forget to water your garden as we head into what may be the driest year on record. I just got home from a day trip to Shelter Cove and was saddened and a little frightened at the levels of the Van Duzen and our Eel Rivers. 2

the best roses for our area and how to take care of them. April brings showers and the rain we hope to grow the blueberries Terry Kramer will talk to us about. She has graciously taken time out of her busy schedule at the Humboldt Botanical Garden to teach us all about her favorite food plant. The last change is for May. Doug Rose from the North Coast Water Garden Club will be presenting a very informative program entitled Getting Your Feet Wet: How to Have a Water Garden the Easy Way. Happy Gardening

she planned she works hard to get things looking like she envisioned. Encouraged to join the club by her neighbors who are members, Tie has already benefited from our presentations and feels she is learning something new. She is looking forward to learning more about what the club has to offer, and getting more involved in club projects.

Janean Guest, Daffodil Show

In 1975 Fortuna Garden Club hosted its first annual Daffodil Show at the Fortuna Monday Club. Betty Allison was the chairman of the show. The daffodil show is a National Garden Club approved standard flower show, featuring the two divisions which are floral design and horticulture. Of course the daffodils are the horticulture division. In 1999 the Daffodil Show was moved to its current location at the beautiful Fortuna River Lodge, which is a wonderful venue with plenty of room for all of the approximately 800 stems that are entered in the show every year in addition to the creative floral designs. The Fortuna High Schools flower arranging class students have been entering at least 25 arrangements for the past few years which is a great addition to the show. In addition to the American Daffodil Society awards, the Fortuna Garden Club has 16 awards that the judges decide on also. They are mainly perpetual trophies sponsored by local businesses and service groups. Most of the ADS accredited judges and the accredited

Meet our Newest Members! By Debra Strahan

.TIE GENG Tie has lived in Fortuna for about a year, and prior to that was living in Providence, Utah. It was our mild, temperate climate that brings her here. Her main hobbies are mostly outdoor activities, such as hiking, bird watching, gardening, and traveling. Tie is married and has two grown children that are both in college. Tie has such a wonderful outlook about gardening and landscaping! She believes that flowers and beautiful landscaping bring cheer and uplift the spirit. This is her main interest in gardening- to bring beauty that then makes people more cheerful. She always tries her best with her gardening ventures and has been pleased with her successes. Tie is also proud of being a hard worker who can make things happen in her garden; if something doesnt come out as 3

Garden Club judges come from out of the area to judge this show.

out yellow and rapidly ages to coral pink, which intensifies in the center to a deeper shade. The flowers can be very large on a well grown specimen. Have seen it take the largest daffodil award; A Wister Award winner. Pink Charm: A large cup with a ruffled edge of lovely pink, against white petals. This one we have not had recently, but have had in the past. It has a very true pink color, one of the best, so we will offer it again Bravoure: White petals back a long yellow stovepipe cup, a classic trumpet with strong stems and large flowers; A new one for us. Wave: A new and different variety in doubles, it has wide white petals that that back a yellow trumpet stuffed with ruffled mixed white and yellow petaloids, unique and eye catching. Tahiti: Multiple rows of tropical yellow petals, with bright red orange segments in the middle make this double flower luscious looking. It too has sturdy stems and perennializes well, and sometimes has a scent; A Wister Award winner. Flower Parade: A descendant of Tahiti and Flower Drift, it has creamy white petals with rich orange segments interspersed, with a hint of greenish yellow radiating throughout the double blooms. 4

How Does Your Garden Grow By Donna Farris

Here we are in the middle of winter, yet I, and the birds, feel the intimation of spring in the air. A few brave shoots of daffodils are popping up, and soon the daffodil show will begin in earnest. In preparation for that, I will list here the daffodils we will have for sale to support our show at the end of March, so that our members can get some information about which varieties will be available, and decide what they want for their gardens. Also, I will talk about miniature daffodils, what that term means, and try to clear up some confusion about that division. This years potted daffodils are as follows: Fortissimo: A large cup daffodil of robust growth, with a very large flower of bright yellow petals and a bright orange slightly flared trumpet cup. It naturalizes readily. Have seen it take largest daffodil award. Modern Art: Medium soft yellow petals surround an extremely ruffled tangerine cup that appears almost doubled; A medium large flower. Chromacolor: White petals contrast with a large slightly flared trumpet cup that starts

Solar Wind: Bright white petals with many bright yellow petaloids seemingly filling every available crevice throughout the flower; a large double and strong stemmed; a new variety this year. Double Smiles: A golden yellow double, with Jonquilla heritage, that may have more than one flower per stem, and a cinnamon spice fragrance; Bought back from prior years. Pipit: This Jonquilla has 2 to 3 dainty flowers per stem, with petals and cup that open luminous yellow. Then the cup matures to a bright white. The petals show a halo of white adjacent to the cup. The fragrance is sublime, as are most daffodils in the Jonquilla division. La Belle: 2 to 3 small flowers per stem, with pale yellow petals, have vivid orange edged, flattened, ribbed cups that have a faint green eye. It is a dainty, but bright, intermediate flower, with Jonquilla scent. It is a new variety for us this year. Golden Echo: A Jonquilla hybrid that has a long, narrow, trumpet-like golden cup, backed by very shapely white petals. The golden yellow of the trumpet bleeds a yellow halo onto the petal bases surrounding the trumpet. It is very fragrant and unusual, one of my favorites.

Yazz: A Jonquilla type with 2 or 3 small flowers per stem that open creamy white with apricot/pink cups that blend hints of their color into the creamy petals; Fragrant and a new daffodil for us. Geranium: One of the few late blooming Tazetta types, most are blooming now, with clusters of small flowers, 3 to 20 to a stout stem. This Tazetta has larger than usual flowers, creamy white petals, with small orange cup, and a sweet, musky fragrance, typical of the Tazetta division. It is an heirloom from the 1930s, and a great perennializer. Falconet: Another exciting Tazetta type, with multiple blooms of rich gold, with petite bright orange cups, and the sweet musky Tazetta fragrance; New to us this year, and very cheerful. Sovereign: a very large white petaled flower with a large golden orange split cup that is ruffled at the edges and held flat against the petals. It is a very showy flower. Trepolo: A white petaled split cup of medium size, of the Papillion, or butterfly type of daffodil, with a bright orange and yellow striped sunburst pinwheel in the center. This one is an eye catcher! Hawera: A miniature heirloom daffodil from New Zealand, that performs well in light shade or in sun. Clusters of pendant flowers with pale yellow petals sweep back from a tiny demitasse yellow cup 5

typical for Triandrus division. Hawera is a very reliable miniature in the pot or in the garden, with the light, sweet, fruity scent, typical for this division. New to our sales daffodil list, I grow this one at home. They look like fairies might hover around their dainty flowers. Now, about miniature daffodils, when I first started to learn about the divisions of daffodils, I thought division 14, Miniatures, was an entirely separate grouping from the other divisions. But the reality is it is a grouping dictated by the relative size of the flower, and determined by the American Daffodil Society, which keeps a list of approved miniatures. That list can often be revised as new cultivars are introduced and the size grading tightens. Many different divisions are represented in the miniatures. For example: Last years miniature daffodil we had for sale was Kokopelli a Jonquilla, from division 7. This years miniature is Hawera, a division 5, which is Triandrus. Also represented are the Trumpets, Bulbocodium, Tazettas, Cyclamineus, Doubles, and some species. The deciding factor is size. Size in daffodils, is listed as following; Standard, which can be quite large to average; Plants usually 16 to 12 in height. Intermediate; which is a smaller plant than a standard, with a height about 6 to 10, and a somewhat smaller flower, but too large a flower to fit in the miniature category. The other confusion that seems to be common, is in regards to the height of the plant in miniatures. Many people seem to think that the plant itself is always dwarfed. Some miniature flowers grow on 12 plants, some on 3 to 4 plants. Growing conditions 6

and the individual cultivars genetics affect the height. For instance, Hawera is about a 6 plant theoretically. But mine seems to vary from 6 to 10 depending on conditions. The flower is consistent though, and always dainty and graceful. The miniature daffodils that have very short growth, such as Willkommii, tend to be more demanding in care, as the bulbs are tiny, more prone to drying out, and have very specific growing demands, in short, require expertise to grow. The world of miniatures is fascinating. When exploring your bulb catalogs, check out the height, if you are looking for short daffodils. The miniatures we will offer for sale at the Show will be the ones easiest for the public to grow successfully, and ones that will be in or close to bloom for our show. That is a limiting factor in our choice of what daffodils we can offer at the show for sale, they need to bloom about the time of the show, which is midseason, so early or late blooming daffodils will not be selected. The growers from the Daffodil Society have ways of timing the blooming of their flowers, tricks of the trade, so that you can see the wide spectrum of blooms you get to see at our show. Also, many of their flowers are grown in a bit different climate than ours, being from either further South or North, or possibly different elevations. A new thing I would like to mention is, dont forget your daffodils need water when they are growing their roots, even before the leaves appear. Normally this is no problem for us, as nature does the watering for us. This year is different, so dont forget that your daffodils may need to be watered, more so if in pots, about once a week or thereabouts.

I hope all you daffodil growers will enter your cut daffodil stems or containers of growing daffodils in the show this year. Anyone can enter. Even if you do not know the name of your daffodil, there is a category for unknown daffs, if we cant help you f igure out what the name of it is. Remember to pick your stems to be entered the morning of day before the show, immediately plunge the cut end of the stem in WARM water, in a clean container. Keep in a cool place out of the sun. You may enter your daffodils late Friday afternoon or Saturday morning up until 9:30 am. The judges will start judging by 10:00 am, and there are tags to fill out so if you have more than one stem to enter, please bring on Friday late afternoon/early evening, or EARLY Saturday (8:00). Also, cut as long a stem as possible on your daffodil. You can always cut it shorter later when you putting it into the vials. Too short a stem can be a flaw to the judges. Do not remove the papery tan sheath that sometimes hangs around the hip of the daffodil, the judges do not like that. Also you may bring in potted daffodils that you have grown, in a clean container, to enter in the container grown category. We will try to help you with the entries, and have some guide sheets to help you figure it out. It is fun, and you may learn a lot about the daffodils you are growing. Anyone who would like to enter a flower arrangement in the design section is welcome to do so. There are beginner classes, so dont feel like you have to compete with pros. Janean Guest has schedules she can show you that tell you what the arrangement requirements are. It would be best to get arrangements in 7

by Friday night, though very early Saturday is acceptable if the design is not too big. See you at the Show! Yours in gardening, Donna Farris

Happy Birthday to:

February 9 12 13 19 Donna Pace Connie Gardner Ann Morris Kristine Chadwick Fawn Pratt 20 Dee Daneri Janean Guest 27 Tiffany Tennyson 1 Cathie Bryant 16 Susan OHara Francene Rizza 17 Helen Peck Bill Shapeero 18 Rita Chism 20 Lee McDowell 21 Betsy Stanfield 25 Mike Norberry 26 Dottie Riffenberg 28 Natalya Drew

March

FORTUNA GARDEN CLUB P.O. Box 212 Fortuna, Ca 9554

Member of Humboldt District California Garden Clubs, Inc. Pacific Region, National Garden Clubs, Inc.