By any other name.

Today was my first day volunteering at the San Francisco Botanic Garden! It was wonderful. I have dirt under my nails, grubby knees, a new climbing rose and a To Do list for next week.

After orientation around the nursery, Diane asked the four of us if anything caught our fancy. There was a lady with previous gardener-ing experience, a young girl fresh out of school who would rather have been at the Conservatory of Flowers, a chap who was happy to work on anything and had a vine growing on his deck, and me - a veggie gardener, who's pruned fruit trees, roses, hydrangeas etc. Diane thought she might ask Tess the ROSE LADY if she needed a helping hand. (Yeah! I thought I'd have to wait 20 years to work on roses!)

So, Tess asked me to re-pot 8 plants, taught me how to plant some cuttings (I never knew you could strike roses like that), showed me what Black Spot and Powdery Mildew looked like, had me sweep up her area, asked me to start an inventory of the rose garden. (The nursery cultivates plants for sale at the Garden's monthly plant sales.)

So, over the next week or two, I have to:
  1. List - Inventory of Roses
  2. Feed with "Romeo" (1-2 tsp) + Mulch (in tent)
  3. Remove Black Spot

I mentioned to Diane that Tess had me doing paperwork. "You're in," she said. (Apparently, even a whiff of being able to work autonomously is valuable.)

Oh, and if you're in the San Francisco area, now is the time to visit the Rose Garden (near the Japanese Tea Garden). Best roses in years, apparently.