Macarthur Rose Macarthur Regional Rose Society Newsletter Vol 21 March 2019 ‘Hilton Edward’ bred by founding member Robert Stibbard. Signature Rose of Macarthur Chairperson’s Report Rose Society. Highly fragrant. Dear Rose Friends, Some of you would have heard the news that an icon of the Rose World, David Austin, passed away in December 2018. Many members have enjoyed David’s unique brand of English Roses with their superb perfumes. Read more about David later in this newsletter. Our wonderful secretary, Stephanie Gregoriou Judges, has been very busy this summer. Not only has she kept her roses in good order, but she has also so generously given of her time to help fight bushfires together with the other volunteers at the Hawkesbury Rural Bushfire Brigade. Check out what they’ve been up to on page 3. On Saturday 30 March we join forces with Ingleburn Horticultural Society and Garden Club to hold the Autumn Rose and Flower Show. I encourage everyone to participate in one way or another. We certainly want you to have a go and exhibit your roses, other flowers, pot plants and veggies. Bring your friends along to see the beautiful dis- plays; spend an hour or two volunteering to help. Your time and talents will help to make this a very successful show. Thank you to those who have already volunteered. The Rosters are published in this newsletter to help you remember the times you chose to help out. With very best wishes, Rosalie Looking for more Roses? I have been contacted by the executor of Janice Johnson’s estate who advises that her property has been sold. The new owners don’t wish to keep her roses, because they have very young chil- dren and are worried about the thorns. However they wondered if any member would like to have the roses. If you are interested, let me know on 0423 050 532 or 4625 6067 and I will pass on the new owner’s contact details. Rosalie Neutrog Products Remember, as a member you are able to purchase Neu- trog products at special member prices. Products availa- In this issue: Chairperson’s Report 1 ble include: Sudden Impact for Roses, Kahoona, GoGo Cultural Notes 2 Juice, Seamungus, Gyganic, Blood and Bone, WhoFlung- Profile of a Rose Growing Firie 3 Dung and more. Vale David Austin 4–6 Simply give Graham a call on 9606 5888 to order and to Rosters Rose & Flower Show 7-8 arrange a time for pick up. Dates for Your Diary 8 Birthdays 8 Cultural Notes for March Autumn is a wonderful season, day temperatures are dropping and the nights are cool, ideal conditions for perfect roses. These conditions allow for the buds to develop and produce the best flowers of the whole year. So this is a good time to visit gardens and take a note of the roses which appeal to you. Select the plants which not only pro- duce fine blooms but are also strong, healthy and robust. Order plants early from your favourite rose nursery to avoid disappointment as supplies do run out. New rose plants appear in the chain stores too early in the season. It is wise to purchase from a rose nursery as their plants have been lifted in cooler weather and have not suffered a stressful time caused by early digging. Rose plants are usually posted to your door if you have pre-ordered from a nursery. They are wrapped and sealed in plastic so there is little or no hydration. When unwrapping your parcel, check that there are no damaged roots as these can be cut away. Top growth should be shortened to a sound growing eye. Then set about planting or heeling them into the ground. Roses are so easy to plant, but follow these steps: • Dig a hole 300mm square. • Mound up the base of the hole to form a pinnacle in the centre. • Place the new plant in the hole spreading the roots evenly around the mound. Care should b taken to en- sure that the bud union is level with the surface of the rose bed. When rose bushes are planted too high they are easily blown about after they begin to grow and develop. • Half fill the hole with soil and press it down firmly. • Half fill the hole with water. • When the water has subsided, fill the hole with soil and firm down. • No fertilizer should be applied when planting, although a soil conditioner such as the recommended Neu- trog Seamungus can be mixed with the planting soil. • Remember to label your roses. Climbing roses are planted in the same way. Standard roses are planted in a similar way but tied to a wooden stake for support. • The hole should be dug and the hole sloped from one side of the hole. The stake (25mm x25mm)should be driven in on the high side so that the top of the stake is just below the top of the bud union of the plant when in the ground. • The roots should be spread away from the stake and then follow the same procedure as for bush roses. One tie in a figure of eight is used to hold the plant to the stake. This should be just below the bud union. Bare root roses can be planted until the end of July or early August. Those later planted roses will have to be care- fully tended as the feeding roots will not have fully developed before the soil dries out. If you miss out on the win- ter planting, roses can be planted from containers but it is wise to wait until the new roots have grown enough to hold the soil in the pot, which may not be until October or November. So the moral is…..get in early to avoid disappointment. Happy gardening! Rosalie Source: Walter Duncan Rose Growing Profile : Stephanie — A Firie on the Job A number of fires burned through northern NSW through February at Jennings, Tabulam, Tingha and Tamworth. Firefighters from across NSW, including from other agencies, responded to assist local communities under some challenging conditions. Among these wonderful volunteers was our very own Stephanie Grigoriou Judges pic- tured here taking a break. Stephanie shared some thoughts about her experiences: Linton Fires—Hawkesbury Strike Team 2. “On the 15th February our team of 16 people headed up north to Tamworth on a 5 day deployment to relieve the first Strike Team in containing the southern line of the Linton fires of a very large property called Warrabah Station. I have been an active member of the Hawkesbury Headquarters Brigade for 1 & 1/2 years attending weekly training. I have been to 3 fire calls and 2 hazard reductions. Every fire is different and you always have to be prepared for anything and everything. My duties were to assist my crew leader with the hose and fire fighting equipment. Our main task was “mop up” and put out hot spots and flare ups. Each day we made sure our truck was stocked with ration packs and bottled water. I also had a personal camelback and hydrolyte to keep hydrated. It was a daily drive of 1 hour 45 mins to the fireground, then back again after three days of 12 hour shifts. During those days, I was climbing small ladders over barb wire fences, to get to smouldering trees and logs. I also assisted in ”dry firefighting” which meant breaking up small logs and hot embers and smothering them with a rake hoe. This was to preserve water as we had to draft from dams and other trucks. We also had the aid of bull- dozers and air support of helicopter water carriers, which proved crucial to our task and safety. I certainly learnt a lot from this experience, and was glad to come home to smell my fragrant roses as apposed to smoke and ash. When I see the devastation of homes, farms, and live stock from fires, I can’t help but feel the need to assist and would do it all again in a heartbeat“.— Stephanie Renowned rose breeder David C. H. Austin dies at 92 It was with great sadness that the Austin family announced the passing of David C. H. Austin Snr OBE VMH, rosari- an and founder of David Austin Roses. David Snr died peacefully at his home in Shropshire on Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2018, surrounded by his family. He was 92. From school boy to rose breeder David Austin, whose English Roses have captured the imagination of gardeners and rose lovers worldwide, was born on Feb. 16, 1926. Growing up in the Shropshire countryside, Austin developed a passion for plants from a very young age. Howev- er, his interest in flowers was truly ignited when he first discovered a magazine called Gardens Illustrated, tucked away in the school library. After being encouraged by his teacher, he decided to pursue his newfound passion. James Baker, a friend of David’s father, ran a nursery down the road from their family farm. David would visit with his father and was dazzled by the new varieties of lupins that James was breeding. It was at this time that the idea of developing new varieties of plants himself really started to take hold. Coming from a farming back- ground, David had an innate knowledge of plants but taking this knowledge and applying it to the less practical world of flowers did not meet his father’s approval. It wasn’t until his sister gave him A.E. Bunyard’s book, Old Garden Roses, for his 21st birthday, that he fell in love with roses.