Dahlia Society of California
May, 2005

NEXT MEETING:  May 10, @ 9th & Lincoln @ 8 PM.  Program: Phil Rossi, Integrated Pest Management Coordinator for the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department, will be speaking on pest management. Pests include all those from invisibles to fuzzies. He will also teach us on how to make a compost tea to keep bad things away.

Please bring your extra tubers or plants to share with your fellow gardeners. Deborah will bring calcium nitrate for $1 a bag.

SLIDING INTO SPRING:  Deborah clicked through Erik G’s wonderful slides on growing dahlias from ground to show to digout.  There were many great questions so the session became an interactive discussion. Dana asked whether you HAD to have a dedicated site for dahlias.  Growing all your dahlias together can make watering, spraying, and protecting easier.  However, mixing dahlias into a bevy of other plants can be gorgeous.  Some gardeners use the tall dahlias like Kenora Clyde, Taratahi Ruby, or Fern Irene as backdrops the way they use hollyhocks or delphiniums.  Mignon Singles like Rembrandt or Mathew Juul  make darling borders. 

Cuttings have the advantage of already having 3-6 weeks growth invested in them.  Tubers will take more time to get to the same level of green.  Because cuttings do not have the reserves of nutrients stored in a tuber, they need more care initially; they can crump much faster with a little distraction.  Tubers are slower growing, but can recover from neglect better.  John, professional etymologist for the Forest Service, brought in a magnifying glass & test tube with stages of leaf miner: bug, nymph and pupa.  Most of us had never seen the actual culprit before.

TUBER SALE BLOW OUT:  Wow! Erik, Gerda & Lou spent hours trucking in almost 1000 beautiful cuttings including a forest of 3’ tall tree dahlias: “the most green for the $green$.” Even veteran foragers appreciated the photos which accompanied the new varieties. Like soldiers lined up behind their pictures, Lou L’s luscious crop of cuttings was picked off in a twinkling.  Seasoned volunteers arranged the tubers: Tinnee, Deborah, Serge, Barbara, Jamie, Jim, Sarah, Roger, the Dingwalls, the Cornishes, Warren, & Joe. (If I forgot someone, please let me know.)   Jytte oversaw placement of enticing pix promising what the stumpy potatoes could become.  Rich’s son, Anthony, recently 11, moved all the flats to the welcome table.

Accomplishing set up so well so fast, eager volunteers earned extra time to shop amongst the bounty.  DJ set up a welcome table complete with his award-winning blow-ups (on his hand-made easel), handouts, & signups for next year’s sale.  Beautiful idea! 

Marilyn bravely expedited public purchasers into cash or check lines even though she thought Hank, being larger, might have exercised more authority.  The Dingwalls, Sarah & Rose graciously enjoined memberships & sold books.  Thanks to so many of you for helping perplexed buyers find viable tubers.  Your personalized guidance made a huge difference in their confidence levels. 

Coming down all the way from Healdsburg, Paul allowed that he’s giving dahlias a major effort this season.  Franck, draped in major photography paraphernalia, documented our fund raising endeavor.  Diana made 3 trips to the bank to safeguard our revenues.

By noon, we were down from 30 tables to just one with a few plants, a few cuttings, & drabs of tubers.  Potluck featured Paula’s family recipe tamale casserole, a luscious berry tart, & Barbara’s incomparable chocolate pieces.  Special thanks to Lou P for bringing water & sodas.  Please regret how few tubers we had this year, and vow to bring some of yours for our sale next year.

BABY BLOOMERS:  Just a reminder that most of the shows in the Bay Area have Junior sections for anyone under 18.  The young person must plant, care for & stage his/her own flowers but guidance from an adult is encouraged.  So now is the time to designate which plants your budding dahliaphile would like to tend and show.  Check the June newsletter link to the show schedule for categories.

DAHLIA DELL IRREGULARS:  Deborah plants her section most Saturday mornings from 9-11 AM as specimens mature in her greenhouse.  Special thanks to VZ for pounding in all the stakes, to John for fertilizing, to Roger & Bob for all the holes, and to Tinnee for treating the planting of Deborah’s babies like putting neonates down for a nap. "Master Engineer", Ted with the help of VZ, Rose and John re-installed the reusable irrigation system each year.
 

Upcoming Exhibits:
San Leandro
DSC (San Francisco)
Monterey
JS (San Jose )

Date and Location:
Aug. 6-7      SL Library
Aug. 20-21  9th & Lincoln
Sept. 3-4     Capitola Mall
Sept. 10-11 Valco Mall

Flower of the Year:
Kenora Lisa
Formby Alpine
Suncatcher
Kenora Jubilee & Sean C

YOUR CONTRIBUTION IS NEEDED: Does anyone have a "heartwarming" story about dahlias. Just a couple of sentences will do; or as long as you would like to write about it. Please send your contribution to Ted.

MANDATORY MAY:  Remember to fertilize, stake & label at the time of planting.  Surround delicate plants with individual milk carton sheaths to protect from sun & wind exposure.  I use upside down wire baskets over emerging sprouts to ward off investigative kitties.  Ply liberally with slug, snail & earwig bait; succulent new leaves lure voracious bugs from everywhere.  I plant with a combination fertilizer & systemic insecticide for Roses (Bayer 2-in-1 (@ $15 @ Costco). Saucers of beer please my tipsy raccoons, but deter not my greedy slugs and snails.