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| SUN LAKES LIFESTYLES | JANUARY 2025 | 51 "No Winter wind shall chill my gardening heart." Blake Schreck At the beginning of every new year, folks everywhere feel a sense of ref lection on the old routines and patterns, sorting out what worked and what didn't. Talking with Pat, our Garden of Eat-em guy while we were in his wonderful vegetable garden, I noticed a wheelbarrow full of 16 oz. plastic bottles that had been modified into a self-watering system. He said it was as much trouble to fill the containers as it was to just water the plants. In other words, it didn't work. Pat is a treasure trove of information on vegetable gardening because he is willing to experiment and try new ideas out. He knows what works and what doesn't. Members of the Garden Club benefit from all his experience and knowledge every month with his Garden of Eat-em — tips of the month segment of our meetings. Because it's time to plant them, this month his topic is onions. To paraphrase, he said: start them with nitrogen then change to potassium; start them with two inches of water and later change it to three. He promised to give us the details of the system at the meeting on Jan. 8. Also at our January meeting, we are fortunate to have Raphael from Cherry Valley Nursery back. He always has an entertaining way of explaining the how-tos, and this month's featured how-to is pruning roses. Almost everyone in Sun Lakes has at least one rose bush that needs pruning every year for the best spring roses and he'll show us how to do it. Obviously, the Garden Club's new year is off to a great start and January is membership renewal time. Membership dues are still only $15 a year — a bargain indeed. Guests are always welcome to attend one of our meetings which are on the second Wednesday of every month at 10 am in the Main Clubhouse Ballroom (unless otherwise announced). Our President Beverly Agner at (951) 306- 7379 is always ready to answer your questions, but if you have membership questions, call one of our membership Co-Chairs Sherry Case at (951) 533-3584 or Linda Powers at (951) 769-3101. Need your citrus tree harvested? Contact Joy Bailey at (951) 845- 5540. Pat Pennington at (951) 314-9229 is always willing to answer questions about your vegetable garden. Garden Club