June 2004

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Next Meeting Tuesday 22nd June at St John Fisher Hall, Thanet Road, Bexley

This month we are going to experience something a little different at our monthly meeting. Jeff and Sylvia Wagner are presenting their film show entitled "Phantasmagoria". It is a magic lantern show on a horticultural theme. This month will be the first of our rose table shows so if you have anything left over after the show do enter. The classes are 1 HT bloom, 1cluster stem, 3 miniature blooms. One section for novices and one for experienced exhibitors. We will also have our Floral Art table show in aid of Prickles Hedgehog Haven, the theme this month will be "Wimbledon", please try and enter, it is for a good cause. There will be our usual break for tea, coffee and a chat and don't forget we still have a sale going on at the trading table. There may still be a few plants if we did not sell them at the show. There will be back numbers of The Rose and The Garden on the Secretarys table, 50p each in aid of our charity, also Society badges and book marks at £1 each. Some new members have expressed surprise when they have arrived at the hall just before 8pm and found the place full to bursting and had difficulty finding a seat. The hall is open at 7-15pm and you are welcome to come along anytime after that but don't moan if we rope you in to do a job such as putting out chairs.

Obituaries
We were sorry to hear of the death of Mrs. B. Baker, our sympathies go to her husband who is also a member and to her family.

New Members
Mrs. G Sadler
Mrs. J. Forrest
Mrs. J. Hetherington
Mrs. G. Conrad

Congratulations
Congratulations to Alf and Sheila Hawes who celebrate their 60th Wedding anniversary this month. We don't know how you have put up with him for so long Sheila, well done !!!

Garden openings Greenwich and Bexley Hospice.
Sunday 27th June 112 North Cray Rd Bexley.
Sunday 4th July 32, Carlton Rd Sidcup.
Sunday 18th July 12, 14, & 17 Lydd Rd, (0ff Chiddingstone Ave) Bexleyheath
Sunday 25th July 25, Summerhouse Drive Joydens Wood.

Ellenor Hospice
Sunday 27th June 1, Bankside Hartley, Frensham, Gresham Ave, Hartley, Neshicott, Gresham Ave, Hartley.
Sunday 4th July Lullingstone Park Farm House, Eynsford.
Sunday 18th July 37 & 39 Devonshire Ave, Dartford.
All gardens open from 2 - 5pm. !7 Lydd belongs to member Thelma Finch and is really worth seeing

Dates for your diary
19th June Bexrose Summer Show.
20th June Gillian Smith's garden, 47, Winn Rd, Lee, 2-5pm £1-50
24th June Cheese and Wine Evening at Puddefoots Nursery 7pm.
26th - 27th June The Southern Rose Show, Squires, Shepperton.
3rd - 4th July RNRS Northern Show Daisy Nook Garden Centre, Oldham.
6th - 11th July Hampton Court Flower Show.
10th - 11th July Lakeland Rose Show, Crooklands, Kendal, Cumbria.
13th -14th July Great Yorkshire Rose Show Harrogate.
17th - 18th July National Show for Miniature Roses, Capel Manor.
21st -25th July Tatton Park Country Show.
6th -7th September City of London Flower Show, Guildhall, Gresham Street.
17th -19th September RNRS Great Autumn Rose Show, Harrogate.
25th -26th September Marlvern Autumn Show.

Rose Growers Calendar for June by kind permission of Don Charlton.
1. Continue with weeding, disbudding, watch for insect and disease attacks and take appropriate action.
2. If weather is dry water the ground thoroughly. A light liquid feed can be included with the watering if you wish, you will notice the difference.
3. If you are growing rootstocks then budding of these can commence this month. Check that the sap is flowing in the stocks first, if not then water well and check a day or two later before budding.
4. Cut rose stems for the house (1/4 open) and rose shows (1/2 to 3/4 open), and don't forget to condition the stems by allowing them a long drink in a deep bucket of cold water for 3 hours or more. When cutting stems remember to avoid leaving snags on the bush by using a conventional pruning cut just above a leaf node.

Gardening jobs for June.
Your Tomatoes should be growing fast now, don't forget to take out the little side shoots. Water and feed well especially if they are grown in pots or grow bags.
Keep an eye on tall plants such as Delphiniums and Dahlias, ensure that they are well supported and grow straight.
Several members are growing sun flowers this year these also need to be staked while the stems are thin. Soft wood cuttings taken earlier in the year can be put out in a cold frame to harden off before planting out in the garden.
Many house plants will benefit from being stood out of doors in the summer months. Choose a sheltered partially shaded position and water regularly.
Mow your lawns regularly and water when there is a dry spell. You can give another feed this month to keep them green and encourage root growth, this will keep out the dreaded moss.

Summer Show
Would members please note that the 4th prize on the Advance Entry Draw Tickets should read Wilkinson Sword Fork and Spade Set and not Spear and Jackson.
We still need Tombola items, plants and home made cakes for the stalls.
Don't forget that we also need help in getting the hall ready on Friday night and running the stalls on Saturday afternoon.
Don't forget we are running a rose table show where members who have not entered in the main show can stage an HT rose and write their own card. Entries will be accepted up to 3pm on show afternoon. Please have a go , there is money to be won. I don't want to hear people saying "I've got better roses than that ", if you've got any roses please enter them, we want to have a really good show this year.
Please try and sell as many draw tickets as possible, Alan Neale has more if you need them.

4 day trip to Malvern.
We started off at our usual ungodly hour with Bob driving us this time, Gerry was on Holiday. We made good time and reached Ross on Wye for lunch. The weather had not been good on the way down and we had not seen the beautiful countryside in this area as the mist was low but it cheered up a bit and we were able to have a wander around the town. Many of us found our way to the church where they were doing wonderful flower arrangements for a wedding the next day. In the market place we came across a lady stall holder with two owls, one of which was happily perched on her shoulder. She said they came out with her every day. We were off to Hereford in the afternoon and all made a beeline for the Cathedral. We joined the guided tour given by an old chap who kept getting his dates wrong and even had Simon De Montford killed in the wrong battle, still he meant well. We then made our way to the new visitors centre which now houses the Mappa Mundi and the Chain Library and were quite peeved at the exorbitant price they wanted to view the relics. Last time I was here they were all in situ in the church and were free. We had a walk around the town and went into the old house in the town centre. Many of us spent an interesting hour or so looking at the trappings of every day life in the 14th and 15th Century and better still it was free so we didn't mind giving a donation. It was then back onto the coach and off to find the Abbey Hotel in Great Malvern, a beautiful town perched on the side of the Malvern Hills and with so many wonderful old Georgian and Victorian houses. The Hotel was attached to the Abbey and most of us had very large well appointed rooms. I think the rooms in the new part suffered a bit and weren't quite so good. The evening meal was very good but breakfast the next morning proved disastrous as the staff had nothing prepared for us when we ventured down. We were all finally fed and watered and managed to leave on time for the Malvern Show which luckily was only about 15 minutes drive away. With Mary despatched on an electric buggy we decided to do the outside stands first as the weather looked a bit iffy. Then it was into the halls were we found the Floral Art Exhibition and spent quite some time picking up pointers for our show. Alan Titchmarsh was well into his stride when we found his lecture stand and stopped to listen for a while. There was so much to see we had to keep going, we devoured baguettes in record time and made for the main display halls where we couldn't help ourselves but we had to buy plants. We were very surprised to find a Rose show with entries from Gareth Davis and Tony Bracegirdle. We had mentioned the fact that the Lilac and Wisteria seemed to be quite a bit later in this part of the country than ours but their roses were fine. Frank Chapman told us that he had heard that the winning rose had been removed in the night and a choclate bar put in its place!! I don't know if he was pulling my leg or not. We all staggered back to the coach laden down with plants and other gardening contraptions to find Bob very amicable about it all. We had enough time to have a wander around the town before our evening meal and some went into the Abbey. Sunday saw us off to Hidcote in much better weather. What a beautiful garden, the Tulips were still out and were glorious. There were masses of Bluebells and a stream running through, under little bridges and down steps. We could see the masses of roses in bud and it must be a wonderful experience in the summer. Needless to say more plants were bought. We set off for Hanbury Hall in the afternoon, quite a different experience. This National Trust House was very dark with massive murals covering the walls in the hall and staircase. The rooms were better and there was a large collection of china and one case full of flat backs. The place was like a rabbit warren with lots of corridors and rooms leading off. We availed ourselves of a cream tea before doing the garden which had been restored by the National Trust. The sunken Parterre was attractive with is box hedging and very unusual planting incorporating lots of lavender. We wandered through the orchard and the wilderness and came upon a young man dressed up as a soldier from the Jacobite era with his tent and all his equipment laid out. He told us all about his uniform and equipment and how he would have fought in battle, what he had to eat and how he had to prepare it. It was very interesting and a good way to get historical fact across. On returning to the Hotel many of us decided we would go to Evensong in the Abbey and they made us very welcome. The choir was quite large and sang beautifully. Unfortunately we had to leave before the end of the service as it was our meal time. The next morning we were all well organised getting the cases stowed in the coach and Bob made room for all the plants so we didn't have to sit with them on our laps. We made Cheltenham in good time and had a walk around the town looking at the various gardens and parks. We were disappointed that the Holst Museum wasn't open but we found the town Museum and Art Gallery which was and better still it was free. They had a wonderful collection of furniture, paintings, jewellery, clothes, and artefacts going right back to the bronze age, all very well presented. The small cafe on the top floor did very unusual sandwiches so we had our lunch there. After a smooch round the shops and amazingly not buying anything we boarded the coach for our journey home. We hit trouble when we arrived back at Bexleyheath as the A2 had been closed due to a fire and gas explosion and we spent the next two hours trying to drop people off. Bob was anxious as he had to get back to Bristol. However we all eventually made it home safe and sound after another successful trip. Vanessa and Janet thank everyone for being such a good crowd, being on time at all our stops and also helping with luggage etc. Thanks also to Bob who was a very good driver and always laughing. It was a pleasure to have you all along, so we'll let you come on our next trip to France!!!

Holidays 2004 information from Vanessa Rochester.
Day trip to France 29th June 2004. Would all those who have only made a deposit of £25 please let us have the balance of £7 by 17th June. MAY WE ALSO REMIND YOU ALL NOT TO FORGET YOUR PASSPORTS AND E111 FORMS.

Dorset 16th -21st July- (6 days- 5 nights). We have 8 twin rooms available at a cost of £243 per person. If there is any member who would like to join us on this trip and bring a friend please ring Vanessa on 0208-303- 1498 or Janet on 01322 445010. Your final payment for this trip is due on 30th June. The amount is £218 per person having taken into account the £25 deposit.

Norfolk 17th -20th September (4 days- 3 nights). We have 1 single room and 9 twin rooms available. The cost is £192 for the single and £147 per person sharing. If any members wish to join us and bring a friend please ring Vanessa or Janet.

Valkenburg, Holland 29th November-2nd December, (4 days- 3 nights). We have 4 single and 2 twin rooms available. The cost is £225 for the single room and £185 per person sharing. If any member of the Society wishes to join this trip please give Vanessa or Janet a call. If the room allocation is not take up be 31st August we will of course accept your friends.

Finally may we ask all those members who have reserved seats on the Norfolk and Valkenburg trips but have not paid their £25 deposit please let us have your cheque at the earliest possible moment.

Rose Products.
We are all familiar with rose scented soap, Avon quite often come up with one, the nicest of which was in the shape of a half open bloom. Culpeper have created a triple milled Rose soap with a true rose aroma and Rose & Co Apothecary's Extra Fancy Tea Rose Soap has a faint but unmistakable scent. Rose & Co also make good use of the plant's healing powers and have come up with Rose Petal Lip Salve for those cold winter days. The rose's reparative properties are used by Aromatherapy Associates for their Rose and Sandalwood Facial Oil with extracts from Moroccan blooms and is said to be the best night time rose facial oil for mature skin on the market but is does cost £25. If you want to pamper yourself even more try Sylvie Chantecaille's Retinol Hand Cream with Rose and Vitamin C at £52 and then pop on a pair of Crabtree & Evelyn Rose Moisture Gloves over night, only £4-50 to maximise the softening effect. Just what's needed after a hard day in the garden.

The Blue Rose
It seems that scientists in Nashville, whilst researching into drugs for cancer and Alzheimer's have stumbled on a live liver enzyme that turned bacterium blue. This could be used to breed a natural blue rose, something that breeders have been trying to do for years with grafts and cross breeding. If it takes off it could win 5% of the £700 million international market for cut roses. The British Association of Rose Breeders describe the findings as exciting but Peter Beales, President of RNRS feels it will be a short lived novelty. It is doubtful it will have a place on the show bench.

Due to the editor of Bexrose Bulletin being on annual holiday the Secretary's report on the May meeting will appear in the next issue.