Missoula Iris Society

Members:

Here is the March Newsletter. We are striving to make all the meetings as interesting as possible for everyone and be fun and informative as well. Each month we will have a different program that will discuss items of interest to all of us. If you would like to volunteer your expertise in something that you know about, please contact Jim Sadler and we will arrange for you to host one of the meetings for your presentation.
Pete Addeo,
Webmaster & President Missoula Iris Society http://www.missoulairis.com

DATE & TIME: Saturday, March 4, 2006 at 6:30pm with potluck dinner
PLACE: Home of Gary Clark. Call 728-7633 for directions.
AGENDA: A Siberian slide show will be presented by Swede Gustafson after the meeting.
"FYI" NEWS:

From the President & Newsletter Editor – Please send me your birth date (year not necessary) by email or call me at 251-5833. We would like to keep our newsletter and membership lists updated each month. Please help keep us informed of any changes of your email address as well so we can send you important messages as they are needed.

New member packets are now available for everyone who joined last year. The packet will include great tips on growing iris, information on club activities, a membership list and guess what! A 20% coupon on a purchase at Marchie's Nursery. New membership lists are ready. We have 63 paid members for 2006. The packets and the membership lists will be given out at the next meeting. The rest will be mailed to those who are not at the meeting. Help is needed getting the new members packets to those who do not attend.

Card File workshop will be at Gary Clarks at 1:00 pm on Saturday, March 11th.

Calendars – The 2006 Iris calendars are almost gone and for sale at $6.00 each. Makes wonderful gifts and you should call Elinor Utech at 549-1054 to order one or you can get them at the meeting.

25th Anniversary Buffet Supper - Saturday, June 17, 2006 at 4:30 pm at Fort Gardens...Catered. Show awards, history presentation. Benefit donation: $25 per person for MIS members and their guests. Get your reservations to secretary Carol Addeo

Committee Chairperson needed for – annual Iris Sale in July. If you would like to volunteer, please call Pete Addeo.

Alverta talked about the AIS convention coming May 22-27 in Portland, Oregon. The Convention Headquarters is the Red Lion Hotel on the river, 909 N. Hayden Island Drive, Portland, OR 97217. Phone: (503) 283-4466. We encourage members to go to the convention, since it is so close. The garden tours will take place on Thursday thru Saturday. A siberian tour will be Sunday May 29th. Additional sightseeing tours including Mt. St. Helens are available on Monday thru Wednesday, May 22-24th. Classes are available at the convention and you meet a lot of great people. About 1,000 people attend. It's a lot of fun. Happy hours are happy. The first reservations deadline is March 1, 2006. For additional information go to www.ais2006.com or check your most recent AIS Bulletin

What is the purpose of the convention?
a) Enables hybridizers to send their newer irises to be seen by iris enthusiasts and AIS judges
b) Enables the convention attendees and/or AIS judges to see many newer varieties of irises that he/she may not have seen
or be growing, or have the space to grow.
c) Provides informative and interesting Section meetings and opportunity for Judges Training
d) Make new iris friends, renew old friendships.

Meals at the convention –
Included in your full registration is the Welcome Banquet Wednesday evening, the Awards Banquet Saturday evening and lunches for the three days of garden tours – Thursday, Friday, Saturday. Other dinners are on your own. There is an optional Geek Dinner Friday evening for $28.00. Breakfasts are on your own. The café may be open early for a full breakfast. There will also be a breakfast buffet, probably like a continental breakfast – coffee, juice, possibly yogurt, fruit, bread or muffin, at your expense, but quicker than full breakfast. There will be food and beverages at all of the gardens. If you sign up for any of the Optional tours Monday and Tuesday, lunch will be included in the tour price. The hotel has a full restaurant and café area; also room service. A list of restaurants close to the hotel will be included in your convention packet.

Arrival time. Since the garden tours start early Thursday morning (7:00 am), you are encouraged to arrive in time for the Welcome Banquet Wednesday evening. Often last minute changes, instructions for loading the buses for the garden tours, etc. are given at the Welcome Banquet. If necessary, come in a day earlier (Tuesday) and attend some of the informational Section meetings. If arriving by air, there is a free shuttle to the hotel which runs every half hour from 5:30 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. Pickup is just outside the baggage claim area.

Section Meetings are open to anyone attending the convention. They provide information and often a slide program on specific kinds of irises – Japanese, Siberians, Medians, etc. Judges' Training Programs are also open to anyone attending the convention. They are informative, and teach how to evaluate different kinds of irises, usually in the garden, or they teach about the awards and balloting system for AIS. Those in the AIS Judges' training program must sign up on the sign up sheets available. Those Judges also must take the test provided and turn it in at the end of the session. Others can take the test 'for fun', but need not turn it in.

Weather in the Portland area in late May could be cool to very pleasant – sunny, but rain would not be unusual. Key is to layer. T-shirts, sweatshirt, light jacket, rain jacket. Hat for sun and/or rain. Sunscreen. Comfortable walking shoes for the garden tours. Ground can be uneven, and muddy if rain occurs.

Banquet attire – From jackets and ties for the men and long dresses for the women, to more casual 'resort wear' – dress or pant suit for women, open collars, chinos, sweaters/blazers for men.

Garden Tours, Optional Tours – how do they differ?
With full registration you sign up for three days of garden tours by bus. Eight gardens are on the tour. Each has from 450-650 'guest' irises, in addition to the host garden's own iris plantings. These guest plantings include irises of recent iris introductions, or seedlings, sent by many different hybridizers for the enjoyment/evaluation of the convention attendees. The tours are planned for peak tall bearded bloom, but will include any other kinds of irises in bloom at the same time – late medians, Siberians; perhaps early Louisianas, etc. You will tour 2-4 different gardens each of the three days, spending 1-2 hours in a garden, with a break for lunch. Departure from the hotel will be about 7:30 a.m., with return about 5:00 p.m. (Buses will load at 7:00 a.m.)
Optional Tours are available Monday and Tuesday, on the days when the Board of Directors meeting and Section Board meetings occur. They are optional, and an additional charge for which you can sign up, or not, as you wish. These are bus tours of local 'areas of interest', and lunch is included in the tour price.
Better explanation of 2006 budget items:
          Public Activity Accounts               $2,900 which includes:
              Iris Show                             400
              Tour and celebration        $1,200
              Special Guest                     800
              Iris Sale                              500
              Fort Garden                            $1,900**
                  (Includes renovations, new plantings, at chairperson's discretion....See note below)
          Newsletter & Programs                   450
          Presidential Rhizomes                      250
          Judges Training                                  00* (See note below)
          Club Operation Accounts                472
             Total Budget                           $5,972
             * Expenses will be paid from Judges Training Special Fund above
             **$300 will be transferred to the building fund to repay the loan

It's Their Birthday!!....Let's Give 'Em a Cheer!!!
Happy day to Beth Wright – March 1st and Bob Brown - March 4^th. Have a happy birthday and all the good wishes and cheers that go along with it.

TREASURER'S REPORT - FEBRUARY 2006
                CHECKING ACCOUNT
                January 31, 2006 Balance                                    $253.69
                Deposit - transfer from savings                                   500.00
calendar Sales                                           6.00 Balance                            759.69 Expenses Paid
R.M. Hollingworth - Siberian slides rental 10.00
Flower Haus - 2 floral gifts 50.00
Carolyn Addeo - New Member packets 76.45
Carolyn Addeo - Jan-Feb-March Newsletter 75.00
Total Expenses Paid                                          211.45 Balance 2/28/06               $548.24 SAVINGS ACCOUNT - Regular Club Account Only January 31, 2006 Balance reported                          $5338.80 Correction - Feb 2006 meeting                                300.00 Balance                      $5638.80
Deposits - Memberships 80.00
Balance $5718.80
Transfer to Checking 500.00
Balance 2/28/06 $5218.80
MEETING LOCATIONS FOR 2006:
March 4 - Meeting at Gary Clark's - Program on Siberian Iris by Swede Gustafson
   March 11 - Card File workshop will be at Gary Clarks at 1:00 pm on Sat. March 11th
   April 1 - Meeting at Billie Gray 's- Program on card file by Elinor Utech
   May 6 - Meeting and small show at Charles Hiigel/Jeff White in Victor - Pizza, salad, dessert pot luck- followed by
                Median Show
   June 3 - Meeting at Alverta & Bob Symes - Program on preparation for show, designing
   June 10th - Southgate Mall - Iris Show
   June 17 - Fort Gardens - Tour 10:00 - 4:00 - 25th celebration dinner - $25 per person - Reservations required
   July 8 - Meeting at Jim Sadler's - Program on companion planting with iris in the garden
   July 29th - Iris sale 9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m., then after sale pizza and chicken party at Billie Gray's
   August - No meeting
   September 9th - Meeting Gary Clarks (hosts Ron Dunn and Tom Thompson)
   October 7 – Need a volunteer for this meeting
   November 4th - Meeting at Billie Gray's
   Sunday December 3 or Sat Dec 2- - Christmas party and gift exchange at Ken and Rose Mary Baier's

Minutes of the Missoula Iris Society Meeting, Saturday, February 4, 2006
The meeting was called to order by President Pete Addeo at 7:30   p.m. at the home of Honk Meyer.

OLD BUSINESS

Minutes - The minutes from the January   meeting were approved as they appeared in the February newsletter .

Treasurers Report as presented in the February newsletter

2006 Budget -The budget of $5,972 which appeared in the January newsletter was read to the members:

Checking balance as of 12/31/05        $166.69
   Deposit - calendar sales                   102.00
   Balance                                           268.69
   Expense - MT Corporation Fee            15.00
   Checking Balance as of 1/31/06       $253.69

Savings account balances as of 12/31/05    $1,257.56
   Additions: Double entry error                       300.00
   2005 Rhizome Sale Income                       3,795.00
   Savings balance                                      $5,352.56
   Deposit 2005 interest                                     16.24
   Deposit of membership dues paid                 270.00
   Balance as of 1/31/06                             $5,338.80

Special Savings Account Balances
Judges Discretioary Fund                $401.50 Memorial Fund                                 381.92 Building Fund                                  565.47 Special Savings Balance:         $1,348.79

Calendar Sales - Elinor still has nine 2006 AIS calendars for sale at $6.00 each

Rhizome Sale Chairperson - A chairperson for the rhizome sale in July is needed

25th Celebration - Carol reported that the dinner celebration in the evening of June 17th will have to be held under the trees where the rhizome sale is always held, because wedding set ups will be taking place in the vicinity of the gazebo that evening.

Median Show - Jim Sadler reported a median show is planned for the May meeting, a kind of "practice show", including a program on how to stage and groom your show iris. We can get AIS credit for the show if we have a minimum of 7 exhibitors.

Dues Due - Final call for dues for 2006. Those not paid will be dropped from the newsletter mailing list.

Budget Items - Honk requested clarification on what the budget items include. The budget items will be shown in the next newsletter lined up for better clarification. The budget for the Fort Gardens is to be used for any renovations needs, maintenance or new plantings at the discretion of the chairperson of the Fort Gardens. Future budgets for the Fort Gardens will probably be less now that we have finished a three year renovation.

NEW BUSINESS

New Members - Carol reported that we had nearly 20 new members join last year. "Where are they?", was the questions asked. Anyone having any ideas on how to get the new members to attend meeting and join the fun should contact Carol, who is the membership chairperson. New member packets are now ready to give to all new members. Help is needed getting the packets out to the new members who do not attend meeting.

2005 Audit - The audit of the MIS books was completed by a committe of Honk Meyer, Alverta and Bob Symes. The books are in fine shape, according to the committee. Swede has been the treasurer for the past 12 years. Thanks Swede.

Storage items - Honk announced that he will be taking some trips this summer and may not be available for the show and sale. Members who needs MIS stuff from the little blue house in his back yard are welcome to retrieve them while he is gone. We asked if we could go with him on the trips, but he just laughed.

Portland AIS Convention -  Alverta talked about the AIS convention coming May 22-27 in Portland, Oregon. We encourage members to go to the convention, since it is so close. The garden tours will take place on Thursday thru Saturday. A siberian tour will be Sunday May 29th. Additional sightseeing tours including Mt. St. Helens are available on Monday thru Wednesday, May 22-24th. Classes are available at the convention and you meet a lot of great people. About 1,000 people attend.    It's a lot of fun. Happy hours are happy. The first reservations deadline is March 1, 2006. For additional information go to www.ais2006.com or check your most recent AIS Bulletin.

MIS T Shirts -   Anyone interested in ordering a T Shirt with MIS logo on it contact Mary Ellen Davis or Ann Violette.

Dog days at Fort Gardens - Mary Ellen suggested signs be placed around the gardens to discourage loose dogs to prevent broken stems and unwelcome dog stuff.

Presidential Rhizomes - Elinor Utech won the Presidential Rhizome.

Meeting locations -   Meeting locations are all assigned except for October. Zona Lindemann volunteered to host the October 7th meeting at a location yet to be announced. Some discussion of the home meeting vs a public building. Some members feel we have outgrown the home meetings, others feel the home meetings are much more warm and sociable than the conference room type location.

One suggestion is that people who are unable to have a meeting at their home should offer to host a meeting at someone's home. Helping with preparation and clean up afterwards was also discussed.
The March 4th meeting will be held at Gary Clark's home.

The meeting adjourned at 8:10 p.m. followed by a program presentation by Jim Cook of Able Tree Service. Jim is a certified arborist with degrees in Forestry and spoke on tree trimming.

Respectfully submitted,

Carolyn Addeo
Secretary