SRS April Meeting: Rose Auction & Tomato Lady

April 29, 2010

We had another fun time at our April meeting. On Wednesday, April 28 at 7 pm we had our (now) Annual Silent Rose Auction and enjoyed a presentation by Elizabeth Casteel, the Tomato Lady.

The Tomato Lady

Elizabeth told us how she got involved in growing and selling tomato plants. Her production has grown from just a few plants that she sold in her driveway to thousands of tomato plants that she sells from her home and at events such as the Garden Expo.

We got to see photos of her tomatoes as they grow from seedlings to  full grown plants. Some of the plants grow to over 6 feet and all produce beautiful tomatoes. Elizabeth also shared with us some of the very clever ways that she accommodates her many tomato plants as they grow.

Elizabeth grows approximately 138 different varieties of tomatoes. Those of us who attended the meeting had the opportunity to purchase some of her more interesting and unusual tomato plants. We discovered that tomatoes come in many different colors, from the traditional red to pink, purple, orange, yellow, green, just about any color except blue.

If you want to pick up tomato plants from Elizabeth visit her website for more information or try to catch her at the Garden Expo, but be aware that last year she sold out all of her plants by 9:30 am!

Silent Rose Auction

The April presentation was followed by our Silent Rose Auction. This was a great opportunity to pick up some lovely roses at exceptional prices.  Bidding was fierce for several of the roses.

Someone was lucky enough to win Carol’s donation of the brand new introduction: Michel Trudeau! Michel is sporting such beautiful blooms already, and what a delicious scent!

Michel Trudeau is a lovely Canadian rose with large, single to semi-double,  deep pink blooms with a silver reverse. It is a vigorous rose, hardy to Zone 2! It was named in memory of Michel Trudeau, the youngest son of the late Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau. Sadly, Michel was killed by an avalanche in British Columbia’s Kokanee Mountains on November 13, 1998 at the age of 23.  You can visit Northland Rosarium (or follow the link above) to purchase this lovely rose. A portion of the sales for this rose will go to the Canadian Avalanche Foundation.

See you at the next meeting: Wednesday, May 26th 7 pm at the Manito Meeting Room in Manito Park.

Posted in Gardening tips, SRS Events, SRS Meetings