Convention Information

Transcription

1 Convention Information M A N I T O B A H O R T I C U L T U R A L A S S O C I AT I O N Greeting from the MHA President... Connected & Growing November 2017 Greetings fellow gardeners, The MHA board of directors met this past week and started putting the convention together. As you may have heard, Beautiful Plains in Neepawa has graciously offered their time and space for all of us to come together to discuss gardening in many forms. The convention will be the of January. The board is working on speakers and everything else is being put into place as you read this. We seem to have had a cold start to winter, so hopefully by convention time temperatures will be favorable. It s Manitoba, so anything is possible, right? For now, stay warm, stay tuned and hopefully see many of you for the convention. Connie MHA 120th Annual General Meeting and Convention January 25, 26 & 27th, 2018 Neepawa United Church, Christian Education Centre, Neepawa MB The Beautiful Plains Horticultural Society wishes to invite you to attend the 2018 convention being held on January 25, 26 & 27th at the Neepawa United Church in Neepawa, MB. Be sure to invite your gardening friends and colleagues, they will enjoy listening and learning about a wide range of gardening topics presented by many excellent speakers. The 2018 MHA Convention Program is being prepared by the Board of Directors and here is a list of confirmed speakers. The complete program will be available soon. Bob Bors, Keynote speaker Small Fruit (Friday afternoon), Coleus (Saturday afternoon) Duayne Friesen What s New in the Vegetable World Jefferies Nurseries Trees & Shrubs for Northern Landscapes Shea Doherty Succulents in the Garden Tom Nagy Gardening with Mushrooms Colleen Zacharias Growing Hydrangeas David Hanson Topic TBD Hugh Skinner Propagating Perennials MHA Directors House Plants Q & A Session Panel of Gardening Experts MHA Conventions provide an opportunity to learn and improve your gardening knowledge, shop at the MHA Company Store, participate in the Great Gardeners Auction, Sweet Pea Auction, 50/50 Draws, view the entries in the Print Competitions and enjoy entertainment after the Friday night banquet. Don t miss out on this great opportunity, book your spot now! MHA conventions are open to everyone

2 Flower Showcase Hardy Pincushion Cacti (Escobaria missouriensis & Escobaria vivipara) Photos and Written by Ernie Brown Hardy Pincushion Cacti are adorable slow growing compact plants with beautiful silky flowers that adorn the plant in late spring and early summer. Their shimmering multi-petal blossoms come in a wide range of colors and shades, creating an impressive floral diversity within a hardy cactus garden. As promised this article will help showcase some of the wondrous opportunities this group of hardy cacti offer the grower through a variety of photos taken when these cacti were flowering earlier this year within my hardy cactus beds. Hope you enjoy! Pincushion cacti don t take up much space in the garden, allowing the grower to easily cultivate a number of different forms of these plants. Two different species of pincushion cacti have proven reliably hardy in Manitoba (Zone 3): Escobaria missouriensis (Missouri Pincushion) and Escobaria vivipara (Ball Cactus). In form they present as typical cacti with their squat rounded stems encased within a loose network of intertwining spines. While all the pincushion cacti possess some general commonalities in their overall appearance there remains considerable variation both between the different species, and within the species themselves. Escobaria vivipara is native to south-western Manitoba, and has a huge geographical range spanning across the Canadian southern prairie and most of short-grass ecosystems within the U.S. Escobaria vivipara is an extremely variable plant with about nine different recognized varieties. Some forms of this hardy cactus readily develop into larger clumps, while other populations remain solitary. Although they tend to be fairly spiny plants, there can be considerable variation between different forms with regards to spine density and overall coloration. However Escobaria vivipara tends to have central spines which are paler near the base of the spine and darken near the tip and these tips tend to be in various shades of dark red, brown or black. The showy flowers of Escobaria vivipara typically come in glimmering shades of pink to purple, most commonly a vibrant purplish-pink. It forms juicy greenish-purple edible seed pods in late summer. Page 2

3 Escobaria missouriensis is native to the drier regions of the eastern prairies. Its most northerly population was once found in Manitoba according to historic First Nation and Métis literature, but this population was completely exterminated by the European settler s agricultural practises and this species is now considered extinct in the wild within Canada. The Missouri Pincushion tends to remain solitary, but older specimens sometimes develop into small clumps. Generally speaking this hardy little cactus is a little less spiny than Escobaria vivipara, and its spines are usually light-coloured giving this cactus a whiter appearance. Its variable flowers range from almost white to a deep orange, but the yellow shades are the most prevalent. Some populations have unusual tan petals with a pinkish centre-line. This species forms bright red berries in the spring from the last year s flowers. Pincushion cacti require a well-draining sandy soil mix and a sunny location within the garden. Remember these are slow-growing smaller plants which can t compete against more vigorous neighbours, but they are good companion plants with other hardy cacti and smaller succulents such Hens & Chicks. When cultivated correctly the hardy pincushion cacti are long-term perennials which will reward you each year with a colourful floral display! Ernie Brown AKA Dr. Cacti is a passionate gardener with many years of experience growing indoor and outdoor cacti, succulents and many other drought tolerant perennials. He is available to do engaging, interesting presentations on such topics as: Cactus in the Garden; Hardy Succulents; Successfully Growing Indoor Cacti & Succulents; among other topics. Please contact Ernie by phone at (204) or by at ernie.brown30@yahoo.ca Visit Dr. Cacti - Ernie Brown on Facebook! Page 3

4 Please give Convention information to your members Convention Information Society/Club Donations for Convention Sweet Pea Auction As many of you are aware we have a Sweet Pea Auction at the convention and the host committee has asked if societies and clubs could help by donating a basket of items. This could be brought to the convention by your voting delegates along with your donation for the Great Gardeners Auction. Great Gardener s Auction Donations of horticultural related items for the Great Gardeners Auction will be appreciated. Please donate new items only and mark the approximate value and name of your society/club on the item. Society/Club Annual Reports The MHA will be compiling the annual reports for distribution to voting delegates at the 2018 Annual Meeting. Society/club secretaries please submit your report to the MHA office: preferably by to m.h.a@shaw.ca no later than December 1, The report should be a brief account of society/club activities held during MHA Committee Chairs are also reminded to submit their reports: preferably by m.h.a@shaw.ca no later than December 1, Seed Table Please bring the seeds you have saved for the MHA Seed Table. Seeds should be packaged and labelled with the seed variety name and description of the plant or unusual features. Charleswood Garden Club January 10, 2018, at 7:30 pm 5006 Roblin Blvd. Featuring a presentation by Audrey Logan, Land Steward of Klinic Community Garden on west Broadway, a self-sustaining permaculture site which honours indigenous practices to support the long term health of people and the land. Anyone is Welcome to attend Neepawa Convention Accommodations Westway Inn Motel 153 Main St. West, Highway Toll Free Number westwayinnneepawa.com westway@mts.net Neepawa Motel 71 Main St. West, Hwy info@neepawamotel.com Bay Hill Inns & Suites 160 Main St. West, Highway Toll Free Number bayhillinn@gmail.com Page 4

5 MHA Annual General Meeting and Convention Registration The Manitoba Horticultural Association has served Manitoba gardeners and communities since It has provided support, direction and educational programs and materials to garden clubs. Our annual convention is a truly excellent forum for gardeners to get together for learning. We encourage societies and clubs to send delegates to the convention as well as inviting your members to participate. Delegates do not have to be on the board of directors of your society or club. We encourage you to also send new members to attend the convention to experience the learning and get together with likeminded people. Everyone and anyone can benefit from the convention as a whole. Convention Early Bird Registration Deadline December 31, 2017 A small study was done on the pricing of conventions, and we discovered that 95% of conventions we looked at, offered an early bird price, then a regular price, which would also be the same price you would pay at the door. In lieu of raising all our convention prices, we are offering an early bird price, and then a regular/on-site price which shows a small increase. Early Bird pricing is available for registrations with payment that are received or postmarked by December 31, We are encouraging three day early registration by offering the same rate as last year. Having too many late registrations means having to estimate costs and attendance which can create more expense than required. We view this as a cost saving measure. Another change is, a Three-Day Registration now comes with 2 lunches, or the banquet and 2 lunches. Purchases of One- Day Registrations includes lunch. No more calculating. The only meal that can be purchased as an extra, are the banquet tickets, in case someone wishes to bring a guest and purchase an EXTRA banquet ticket. A copy of the registration form is on the last page of the newsletter. Thank you and we hope to see you in Neepawa! MHA Board of Directors St. James Flower Arrangers from St. James Horticultural Society Have a flair for design for flowers and arrangements and would like to learn more? Come to the Flower Arranging group on the first Wednesday of Dec., Feb., March, April, May and June at the Linwood School and we will do a demonstration of a new technique, provide you with a binder of information and photos as well as give you time to do the workshop from the month previous. Call or Pat Roberts at (204) pat.roberts8@gmail.com CONVENTION REGISTRATION VOTING DELEGATE PACKAGES Voting Delegate packages will be available for pick up upon arrival at the Convention. Each package (one per society/club) will contain a copy of the 2017 MHA Annual Reports book, voting cards, name badges, and two copies of the program. GENERAL REGISTRATION PACKAGES Pre registered Convention participants will be able to collect their registration packages upon arrival at the Convention venue. Each package will contain your name badge, and a program. Page 5

6 West Kildonan Horticultural Society Plants Vimy Ridge Oak Tree in Public Arboretum By Roswitha Nowak As part of the celebrations for Canada s Birthday, and recognition of the Battle at Vimy Ridge, the West Kildonan Horticultural Society, in partnership with the Legion Branch #30 (Hartford Ave. and Main St.) planted an Oak tree at the Arboretum on Partridge and Andrews. MaryAnn Mihychuk, M.P. obtained this rare tree for the dedication which was held on September 14, After a colour guard, military band, the dignitaries spoke about Vimy Ridge, Canadian participation in war and peace, as well as setting a living tribute for the future. M.P. MaryAnn Mihychuk, M.L.A. Nic Curry, and city councillor Ross Eadie spoke, before the official planting and laying of the wreath. The event was covered by CTV, with interviews and history shared multiple times. The Vimy Ridge Oak tree is a grafted oak sapling obtained from Ontario. After the battle at Vimy, a Canadian soldier, Leslie Miller gathered a handful of acorns. The trees had all been destroyed with the battle, so all that remained was the acorns found on the ground. He sent them back to his farm in Ontario, and grew these oaks. Efforts to propagate and return the oaks to Vimy were unsuccessful. Instead efforts were made to graft onto Canadian oak trees, which was successful. The oak trees were offered to mark the anniversary of the battle of Vimy Ridge, and made available to special groups. The tree for the public Arboretum took the efforts of our M.P. MaryAnn Mihychuk to complete the paperwork, pay for the tree and its transportation, and it arrived special delivery, in time for our dedication on Sept. 14. It completes the need for our seventh oak at the West Kildonan site, recognizing the Seven Oaks historic importance of the area. The foliage of this tree is very unique, and leaves are in clusters. A granite marker will be placed to memorialise this event. Page 6

7 The West Kildonan Horticultural Society tends this public space, having planted a perennial bed, butterfly garden, rose bed and members regularly tend to the upkeep. Our Society holds its annual plant sale in this area every spring. It is situated close to a personal care home, many apartment buildings and residential houses. It has benches, tables and is a welcome refuge for many individuals. This tree is carefully tended to by a committee of volunteers, and whenever our members drive by, everyone checks to see how it is doing. The arboretum on Partridge and Andrews is a wonderful nook of interesting plants and an asset to our community and history. Please drop in and check out the tree and plants. Our society takes great pride in this park and welcomes visitors. For further information please visit our website Page 7

8 The 2018 Prairie Garden featuring SHADE $17.95 each or DISCOUNT PRICES ON VOLUME ORDERS ANY COMBINATION OF EDITIONS Total # of books: less 20%, less 30%, 50 or more less 40% discount Contact Tammy: or sales@prairiegarden.ca for additional information or to get an estimate on large volume shipments. Transcona Garden Club More good news. Louise Page Park seems to be complete. All that remains is for the many new trees to spread out their roots over the winter and leaf out for us in the Spring. The two benches look pretty cozy, perfect for a relaxing moment with a cup of coffee in hand just waiting for the birds to discover the new trees. The location is on Dowling West just a few houses from Day Street.

9 Convention Issue We re on the Web! See us at: M A N I T O B A H O R T I C U L T U R A L A S S O C I A T I O N 135 Thom Ave East Winnipeg, MB R2C 1A2 Phone: Fax: m.h.a@shaw.ca Editors Roger Brown Carol Clegg Issue Contributors Ernie Brown Roswitha Nowak Pat Osmond Newsletter Subscriptions Now is the time for our readers to renew their MHA newsletter subscription. If you wish to continue receiving a printed copy of the newsletter by mail, please complete a subscription form and return it to the MHA office together with the subscription fee of $5.00. You will receive four newsletters in 2018 commencing with the February issue. Society/club presidents and secretaries will continue to receive complimentary copies of the newsletters. MHA newsletters are also on the website: /2017 MHA Board of Directors President Connie Lagerquist Vice President Hugh Skinner Directors Brent Hunter Linda Wall Lorene Schipper Tena Kilmury Ex-Officio Directors Reg Curle Roger Brown Dorcas Brown Deadline for articles and information for the February newsletter is January 15, 2018 The MHA Board of Directors wish you a safe and peaceful holiday season Manitoba Arborists On-Line Course offered by the School of Agriculture Registration for the on-line course closes December 15 so please visit Are you interested in caring for trees and shrubs on your property? Or are you considering becoming a professional arborist? The Manitoba Arborists course covers tree biology, plant classification and identification, soil science and tree worker safety. Participants learn about proper tree pruning techniques as well as the issues that affect urban tree health, including environmental stresses and forest pests and diseases. This course would be suitable for those interested in tree care as a hobby or as a small business. Upon completion of this program you are eligible to apply for a Manitoba Arborists Licence with the Province of Manitoba. To register for the online course, please visit The next on-line course starts Monday, January 8, Registration is currently open until December 15, Page 9

10 MHA ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING & CONVENTION REGISTRATION 2018 Please read all selections carefully and CIRCLE your Selection(s). Please complete a separate form for each attendee Mail completed form and payment to: Manitoba Horticultural Association 135 Thom Ave East Winnipeg, MB R2C 1A2 Three Days (includes Thursday evening, Friday and Saturday) Early Bird Postmarked Through December 31, 2017 Regular\On Site Postmarked After December 31, 2017 Member Convention, Lunches and Banquet Convention and Lunches Non-Member Convention, Lunches and Banquet Convention and Lunches One Day (includes lunch) Friday Saturday Member Non-Member Extra Banquet Tickets Member 30 Non-Member 30 Name Address City/Town Postal Code Province Phone Name of Horticultural Society/Club Are you a Voting Delegate? YES NO Please circle one Special Dietary Needs Total Amount Paid: $ (please make cheque payable to Manitoba Horticultural Association or MHA, multiple attendee payments may be combined on one cheque)