YANKEE DISTRICT CONVENTION 2008

            You may well know that the Yankee District Convention, held on the third weekend in March, rotates throughout the District.  This year the Connecticut Rose Society is the host society.  The committee has been hard at work and we are looking forward to the weekend of March 14, 15, 16, 2008.

There should something for everyone.  Friday night will feature a wine tasting.  Saturday there will be lectures and a lunch with a book signing.  We will also have vendors for your shopping pleasure, a raffle and door prizes.  Saturday evening will be a banquet.  Our keynote speaker is Ping Lim, head rose hybridizer for Bailey’s Nursery.  His specialty is a family of beautiful, low maintenance, hardy roses.  Yankee District awards and a rose auction follow. Sunday morning there will be a breakfast followed by a District meeting.

            The convention will be held in scenic, historic Mystic at the Hilton Mystic Hotel.  The Hilton is conveniently located next to outlet shops, across the street from the Mystic Aquarium and Olde Mystic Village (more shopping).  The historic Mystic Seaport, which is a replica of a whaling village, is less than two miles away.  Both Foxwoods and the Mohegan Sun Casinos are within a fifteen minute drive from the hotel.

            Although there are plenty of attractions in the area, the best and most fun part of the weekend is spending time with fellow rose growers who share your hobby.  It is a memorable and rewarding experience to share a weekend with people from all over the North East who all have a common bond – a love for roses.  Come to the convention to learn, exchange ideas, enjoy old friends and meet and make new ones.

            Friday, March 14, will be a wine tasting in the hospitality room.  Bring your favorite wine to share and say hello to old friends and meet new ones.

Saturday promises to be a busy day packed with rose knowledge, vendors and fun.  Registration will open at 8:00 am the vendors shortly thereafter.  The day will start with a welcome at 9:00.   Bob Linck PhD., a chemistry professor at Smith College, will enthrall us all with a lecture entitled “A Rose Fable: Beware of the Fox.”  Bob will be followed by a coffee break and Jim LaMondia PhD.  Jim is a Fungus expert form the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station in Windsor, CT.  He will lecture on diseases.

Our luncheon speaker will be Aurelia Scott.  Aurelia is no stranger to Yankee District conventions.  Although Aurelia enjoys growing roses, her true enjoyment is meeting rose people.  Aurelia is a gifted writer and has authored a book titled Otherwise Normal People, Inside the Obsessive and Thorny World of Competitive Rose Gardening.  You will either know or know of many of her characters – in the truest sense of the word.  There will be books available for purchase and she will be happy to sign them.

After lunch John Mattia will teach us about his secret weapon in rose growing. Compost!  John will explain how to make compost and the uses of it in soil conditioning and rose growing. Learn how to grow some of those famous “Mattia roses” yourself.  Mike Chute has agreed to chair a panel on sustainable roses.  This is a good precursor for the after dinner speaker.  Take good notes for yourself about easier care roses.  The drawings for the raffle will take place just before the break.

There will be a cash bar from 6:00 to 7:00 when our banquet begins.  At the conclusion of the banquet will be our after dinner speaker Ping Lim.  Ping is the head of the rose breeding program at Bailey Nurseries.  As such he has created a strain of roses that he calls Easy Elegance Roses.  These roses are not only beautiful but are both very disease resistant and very hardy, many to zone 4.  We are very excited about having Ping with us.  He is touted as an engaging speaker and has roses to tell us about that thrive in our climate.  After Ping are the District Awards and the famous rose auction.  The fun continues in the Hospitality Room until everyone is rosed out or asleep – whichever comes first.

Sunday, March 16, starts with an elaborate buffet breakfast and is immediately followed by the District Meeting.  If you are interested in how your District is run or have any questions or suggestions be sure to come to the meeting.   As stated earlier in this announcement there is much to do in the area.  On your way home why not take in one or more of the attractions.

Two reminders: To get the group convention rate you must make your reservations with the hotel by February 22, 2008 and you save $5.00 by registering by March 10, 2008.

See you there!