We'd like to wish everyone a very happy Father's Day!

About Father's Day

The driving force behind the establishment of the celebration of Father's Day was Mrs. Sonora Smart Dodd. Her father, William Smart, was widowed when his wife died while giving birth to their sixth child. He was left to raise the newborn and his other five children by himself.

Mrs. Dodd was inspired by Anna Jarvis's efforts to establish Mother's Day. Although she initially suggested June 5, the anniversary of her father's death, she did not give the organizers enough time to make arrangements, and the first celebration was deferred to the third Sunday in June. Unofficial support for the holiday was immediate and widespread.

Calvin Coolidge recommended it as a national holiday in 1924. The observance of Father's Day was recognized by a Joint Resolution of Congress in 1956. Lyndon Johnson declared Father's Day an official holiday in 1966. In 1972, President Richard Nixon signed into law a permanent U.S. Father's Day to be observed on the third Sunday of June.

Like carnations to be worn on Mother's Day, roses are the Father's Day flower - red to be worn for a living father and white if the father has died.

We have more than 30 new introductions this year and will be featuring a couple of them in each week in our newsletter. As always, these new varieties tend to sell out quickly, so make sure and come in early for the greatest selection.

For more information, pictures, and a complete description of every variety we stock, visit our online Day Lily Catalog at www.almadenvalleynursery.com or pick up your free copy of our 2005 Day Lily Catalog.

Mother Knows Best: Deciduous, 35" high, with 5" blooms.

Creamy gold blooms with gold ruffled edges, beautiful pink highlights and a lime green throat. Repeat bloomer.

Prairie Night: Evergreen, 22" high, with 5-6" blooms.

Stunning blooms with an intriguing lavender-lilac color, flaring yellow-green throat and slightly ruffled edges. Excellent repeat bloomer.

Start with a hydrangea that was blue when you bought it. Some kinds never turn blue; white varieties always stay white. Some pinks turn purple instead of blue.

Plant and grow blue hydrangeas in acid soil mix. When planting in containers use a commercial soil mix designed for camellias and azaleas. We recommend Gardner & Bloome Acid Planting Mix. When planting in the ground, amend the native soil in the planting hole with the same acid planting mix, according to package directions, or use two-thirds premoistened peat moss. Mulch with leaf or redwood.

If planting in the ground, check the root run of established plants to make sure the soil is not too alkaline. Use a soil test kit to test the pH of the soil. A pH of 4.5 to 5.0 yields blue flowers, a pH of 5.5 to 6.5 yields mauve, and a pH of 7.0 to 7.5 yields pink.

Maintain the desired pH with aluminum sulfate. Use 1 tablespoon aluminum sulfate per foot of plant height, or 1/4 teaspoon per potted plant. Mix this in water and apply it as a drench several times in spring and fall, beginning in September.

Never use fertilizer that contains phosphorus. Phosphorus is alkaline, so the use of it will raise the pH of the soil and turn blue hydrangeas pink.