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See how to prune a rose in three minutes or less


Master rosarian Baldo Villegas leads a free rose
care workshop including his speed pruning method.
(Photo: Courtesy Sierra Foothills Rose Society)
Baldo Villegas leads winter rose care workshop indoors

Don’t have time to prune? It only takes a few minutes to finish a rose bush.

Baldo Villegas will show you how. This master rosarian can prune a full-size bush in three minutes – or less.

Villegas leads a free winter rose care workshop Saturday, Jan. 12, at Maidu Community Center, 1550 Maidu Drive, Roseville. Presented by the Sierra Foothills Rose Society, the indoor workshop starts at 8:30 a.m. and wraps up at 1:30 p.m. following a chili cookoff. The public is welcome.

Villegas perfected his speed-pruning method out of necessity. He maintains more than 3,000 rose bushes at his Orangevale home.

Sacramento’s beloved Bug Man, Villegas is a retired state entomologist and knows every rose pest and problem seen in California. He’ll share his advice on how to grow healthier, happier roses.

In addition, longtime rosarians will offer their pruning expertise. There will be plenty of hands-on opportunities for newcomers, too. Bring gloves, bypass pruners and loppers. Free sharpening will be available. (Donations welcome.)

The day’s schedule covers a broad range. Following morning refreshments, the program gets underway with a 9 a.m. discussion of pruning tools and care. At 9:15, Villegas and others share their pruning tips by type of rose; not all bushes are pruned alike. That’s also when he’ll demonstrate his three-minute method.

At 10 a.m., the workshop will break down into smaller groups to tackle potted roses, ranging from miniatures and hybrid teas to floribundas and polyanthas. At this rose workshop, all the pruning is done indoors, usually on tables; there’s no stooping in cold, wet rose beds. After pruning, most of those roses will be awarded to attendees in a raffle.

At 10:45, “Roses in the Landscape” shows the many ways roses can be incorporated into Sacramento area gardens. Then, Villegas will lead a question and answer session on controlling disease and pests in the garden. Chili is served at 12:30 p.m.

For more details:
www.sactorose.org or owendyk@gmail.com .

- Debbie Arrington





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Garden Checklist for week of April 27

Once the clouds clear, get to work. Spring growth is in high gear.

* Set out tomato, pepper and eggplant transplants.

* From seed, plant beans, beets, cantaloupes, carrots, corn, cucumbers, melons, pumpkins, radishes and squash. Plant onion sets.

* In the flower garden, plant seeds for asters, cosmos, celosia, marigolds, salvia, sunflowers and zinnias. Transplant petunias, zinnias, geraniums and other summer bloomers.

* Plant perennials and dahlia tubers for summer bloom. Late April is about the last chance to plant summer bulbs, such as gladiolus and tuberous begonias.

* Transplant lettuce and cabbage seedlings.

* Weed, weed, weed! Don’t let unwanted plants go to seed.

* April is the last chance to plant citrus trees such as dwarf orange, lemon and kumquat. These trees also look good in landscaping and provide fresh fruit in winter.

* Feed citrus trees with a low dose of balanced fertilizer (such as 10-10-10) during bloom to help set fruit. Keep an eye out for ants.

* Apply slow-release fertilizer to the lawn.

* Thoroughly clean debris from the bottom of outdoor ponds or fountains.

* Start thinning fruit that's formed on apple and stone fruit trees -- you'll get larger fruit at harvest (and avoid limb breakage) if some is thinned now. The UC recommendation is to thin fruit when it is about 3/4 of an inch in diameter. Peaches and nectarines should be thinned to about 6 inches apart; smaller fruit such as plums and pluots can be about 4 inches apart. Apricots can be left at 3 inches apart. Apples and pears should be thinned to one fruit per cluster of flowers, 6 to 8 inches apart.

* Azaleas and camellias looking a little yellow? If leaves are turning yellow between the veins, give them a boost with chelated iron.

* Trim dead flowers but not leaves from spring-flowering bulbs such as daffodils and tulips. Those leaves gather energy to create next year's flowers. Also, give the bulbs a fertilizer boost after bloom.

* Pinch chrysanthemums back to 12 inches for fall flowers. Cut old stems to the ground.

* Mulch around plants to conserve moisture and control weeds.

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