September 2026 newsletter
The September 2026 issue of Seeders and Weeders starts the fall season with plant sale prep and a look back at a hard summer.
Guest speakers: dividing perennials for the sale
Heather and Glenn showed members how to divide and pot up perennials now for next May’s plant sale:
- Fall is the best time to divide, so roots can grow into the pot over winter
- Keep as much of the root as you can
- Put fir cones in the bottom of the pot for drainage
- Use soil from where the plant was growing, and top it with compost or leaves
- Divide irises about every three years
- In spring, move pots near a warm wall or into a greenhouse. Pot up about a month before the sale.
A one-gallon pot is a good size. Make tags from old venetian blinds with the plant’s name, color, height, width, and sun or shade needs. Sue Wiebe has extra pots, and members without room can overwinter their pots at Heather’s or Sue’s.
Club news
- The club donated $1,000 to the Armstrong Food Bank and $1,000 to the Kalamalka Starfish Society. The bursary and IPE sponsorship were already paid.
- The club will plant the Pleasant Valley Boulevard petunias for one more year, with Shirley Fowler as the go-between with the City.
- Meetings will stay at St. James Anglican Church Hall for now.
- The Enderby Garden Club offered to trade garden tours next spring, and members liked the idea.
Volunteers needed
Heather has less time to give this year. Elections are in November, and the club needs people for president, vice president, secretary, garden tours, speakers, the plant sale, and the petunias.
A tough summer
Heat, drought, smoke, earwigs, tomato hornworms, blossom end rot, and rats all made 2026 hard on gardens. Some tips from the issue:
- Mulch to keep roots cool and moist
- Rinse ash off leaves with a gentle spray from the hose
- Trap earwigs in rolled newspaper or short pieces of hose, and empty the traps each morning
- Pick tomato hornworms off by hand
- Water tomatoes evenly to prevent blossom end rot
The issue also has a photo from the summer social at Memorial Park on July 7. The next meeting is October 6, 2026.
