EVERGREEN CHRYSANTHEMUM ASSOCIATION
Seattle, Washington
ECAMumClub.org
Email us at: steve at ecamumclub dot org
MEETING OF THE ECA – THURSDAY September 13, 2018 at 7 PM at the Seattle Police Athletic Association Office (SPAA) site, small classroom at 11030 East Marginal Way South, Tukwila.
SEPTEMBER MEETING – Please, please, please, come to the meetings in September and October! These are very important meetings as we begin to prepare for our annual show at Volunteer Park Conservatory which will take place on November 2,3, & 4, More details at the meeting. This will be our second show at VPC. Many hands make light work – please try to help out if you are able.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Mark your calendars for the following events:
National Chrysanthemum Society Show in Reston, VA October 25-28
For more details, see: http://www.mums.org/2018-national-convention-and-show/
Awards Banquet at Angelo’s in Burien November 15th, 2018.
PLANT CULTURE and SUPPLIES: – The September meeting will devote time to the care and feeding of the blooms as they develop. Place supply orders for specific items with Ronnie by Monday September 10th. With possible rain or showers consider your sheltering options for September as we move to the latter part of the growing season.
Draft Minutes from August 9th ECA Meeting:
Aug 9th, 2018 ECA meeting minutes
Present: Mark Ross, Steve & Sue Joyner, Erika Harris, Sydney Ogilvie, Alva Nishimura, Satoshi Nakayama
Cultural presentation: Reviewed the following topics.
Staking:
Stake up the individual laterals you wish to save so that they won’t accidentally break off in wind and rain. You will need stakes between 3 and 5 feet. Fasten the laterals to the stakes with 4-6 inch twist-ems. Take care to place the stakes vertically straight in the pot. The main lateral joint is a weak spot on the plant. Placing stakes at an angle will pull at this joint and possibly split the plant apart. Vertical staking better supports the weak joint.
Taking the bud:
From late July to late August the terminal buds will start to appear on your laterals followed by a ring of smaller laterals just below the main bud. Once the terminal bud is the size of a small pea the ring of laterals must be removed. This process is called “taking the bud”. Allow the ring of buds develop to about 1/4 inch before removing them so you don’t damage the terminal bud. To remove these ring of laterals simply push them sideways with your thumb and they will easily break off. Do not pinch them off
Top Dressing:
Top dress pots in late July or early August and again when the buds show color (usually Sept 1 to 15). Spread 1 to 2 handfuls of your final potting mix on each pot. This gives the upper roots a better growing environment. This will also promote new growth from the root ball for next years’ plants.
When buds start to show color they should be brought under cover. At this point any moisture or dew will discolor or mildew the bloom
Lateral Control:
Continue to carry 1-2 more laterals than you want at bloom stage. Surplus laterals are removed later in the summer using the following guide: For #1  cultivars – carry 2 0r 3 laterals initially and cull to 1 or 2 in Aug.
For #3 cultivars – carry 5 laterals and cull in Sept or Oct For #4 & #5 cultivars – carry 4 to 5 laterals and cull in Sept. For earlies (13-15 and 23-25) carry 4 to 5 laterals and cull to 2 or 3 in Sept. For quills, spiders, spoons and singles follow the guide for #4 and #5 cultivars.
Fertilizing regimen:
Continue with mid-season fertilizing regimen (1 to 2 teaspoons of 20-10-20 fertilizer per gallon of water) until you start to see color on the bud. Watch leaves to gauge fertilizing. If leaves become hard or curled then you are overfeeding. If leaves are weak and light green then more fertilizer would help. If leaves are yellow try drying them out. If drying the plant doesn’t help then try feeding 1/2 teaspoon Epsom salts per plant or leaf feed with liquid iron. Do not over feed with liquid iron.
Pest Management:
Continue to review your pest management program every one to two weeks. You need to keep the plants free from black aphids, other bugs and fungal diseases especially before the blooms open. Use a systemic such as Marathon to control aphids. Monitor for other bugs such as leaf hoppers, earwigs, capsid bugs and leaf rollers. These bugs should be picked off the plants or they will invariably ruin the bud. A product called Seven when sprinkled around the roots can be effective in controlling earwigs.
Disease control:
Continue fungal control program through the summer and fall. Spray plants regularly with fungicide. Recommend Ortho Funginex or Diaconal.
Business Meeting minutes:
July Meeting minutes were approved by Mark Ross and Erika Harris
Treasure’s report presented by Sydney Ogilvie
Checking: $2864.94
Savings: $4063.51
Cash $283.74
Total: 7212.19
Sydney led a discussion of the use of the square to take credit card purchases at the plant sale. Due to the expense of setting one up for one day she recommends finding one to borrow for the plant sale.
Multiple bloom vases for late decorative, early English and vases of 3 show entries
Club would like to order 4 dozen green vases with approx. 5 inch rim. Need to contact Floral supply in Georgetown. I was unable to locate anything regarding the use of oasis in the show vases
Steve Joyner picked up late-season fertilizer at Stueber’s and brought it to the meeting.
Steve Joyner brought shingle stakes to the meeting
Steve Joyner to pick up mid-season fertilizer and bring it to next meeting
Dates to remember:
Show location Volunteer Park Conservatory
Show dates: Nov 2nd noon to 4 pm; Sat and Sunday Nov 3rd and 4th 10 am to 4 pm
Plant deliveries to back green house: Wednesday, October 31st and Thursday Nov 1st between
10 am and 3 pm
Show set up: Thursday Nov 1st between 4 pm and 6 pm
Judging: Friday, Nov 2nd between 9 am and noon
Show breakdown: Sunday, Nov 4th 4pm to 6 pm
Banquet date: Thursday Nov 15th at Angelo’s in Burien
6:30 no host bar, 7 pm dinner
Meeting adjourned at 8:30 pm
Additional information- please note
President, Kris Stephens, has resigned her position as Evergreen Chrysanthemum association president. Best wishes to Kris!
According to the ECA by-laws, Steve Joyner, ECA vice president will lead the meetings for the remainder of the year.
