Kalangadoo, 1st November 2023
It must be the spring vibe and the need of something new... But we'd like to update and change a few things here at Wagner's, and our Newsletter is one of them. Not just in its look - do you like our new header? - but also in the contents, trying to be more practical, add more curiosities, suggestions and ideas... And we'll also try to be in touch a little bit more often - but not too much, I promise! We know you are already receiving many emails every day.
We hope you'll keep enjoying our emails, and we'll wait to know from you if there's anything you'd like us to write about.
(pictures below: our potted roses are blooming and looking great)
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Flemington roses ready for the Big Day
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In just a few days, Melbourne will be buzzing with one of the most anticipated, fashionable and well known horse races in Australia, indeed the race that stops a nation - the Melbourne Cup.
Flemington Racecourse, where the Melbourne Cup is held, is surrounded by a huge garden perfectly designed and maintained - with 16,500 rose plants – a dream for any rose lover! We are Flemington’s main supplier, and many of their rose plants come from our nursery in Kalangadoo.
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Mick Ryan (pictured below) is the Senior Manager Grounds and Gardens at Flemington, and he has been looking after these roses for many years.
“For our gardens we choose mainly modern roses, and every year we purchase around 2,000 new plants to replace old ones, or to enlarge some areas. This year we’ve added Subzero”, the horse who won Melbourne Cup in 1992, which now gives the name to a beautiful white rose variety that will be released in 2024.
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To ensure these plants are in flower and looking their best for the first Tuesday of November – Melbourne Cup Day – Mick’s team follows a specific pruning programme that lasts 18 weeks, pruning different varieties at different times, to have them all flowering together in spring.
“Our pruning starts in late April with Paris 2000 and Nahema climber, which are normally slower than other plants, and finishes in late August with Crepuscule - says Mick - Pruning is essential to have flowers on the day, but also fertilising is very important: we use Sudden Impact three times a week during the growing season, and Seamungus in winter, a handful per square metre”.
Deadheading spent flowers and deeply watering three times a week in summer, are also very important to keep Flemington gardens looking their best.
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Of course, Flemington Racecourse looks beautiful and extremely well maintained all year round, as Melbourne Cup is not the only event showcased. But what if the weather doesn’t help? What if we have a very cold spring and slow growing season like we did last year? Or if it’s too hot too early, as happened this year? This is when the many years’ experience comes in handy, and Mick Ryan and his team do the magic.
“This year we had to put some ice around the roses - to drop the soil temperature and slow down the growth of the plants. We also used artificial shades in key areas, to stop direct sun on the plants. But last year we had the opposite situation, and we had to help the roses to flower quicker, spraying Super K (a fertiliser very rich in Potassium) twice a week”.
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And out of curiosity – we asked Mick which roses are his favourites of all the many varieties growing at Flemington. “Coconut Ice and Pierre de Ronsard climber” was his prompt answer. And we can only agree with him.
(pictures : Coconut Ice on left, and Pierre de Ronsard clg on right)
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Dear rose lovers from Western Australia and Tasmania, we've missed you a lot in the last few years and we've decided to come back to your states.
You can now place your order with us for next winter (bare root roses only). We'll accept orders from WA and TAS until 31st July 2024, and we'll post them all in August - this will help us to minimize costs and charge you only $25 for the requested quarantine documents, which will be automatically added to the freight cost when you'll place your order online.
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- Pre-order rose plants available next winter - Delivery from July to early September 2024
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- Order potted roses available now, until late April - Delivery a few days after placing the order - Great idea for a gift with our optional Gift Wrapping
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Did you know that we regularly post photos and updates through our Facebook and Instagram pages? Hop on over and give us a like!
Our office hours: Monday to Thursday, from 9am to 3pm Friday, from 9am to 1pm Closed on public holidays and weekends, but exceptionally open on Sunday December 19 for your Christmas shopping, from 11am to 3pm.
Contact us: ph 08 87393321 [email protected]
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If you enjoyed reading this Newsletter, tell your friends, family and rose lovers to join our community!
If you have a question or a particular subject you want us to write about, please let us know.
Grazie e a presto! Benedetta and the Team at Wagner's
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