wow sounds fantastic!

It looks wonderful! It reminds me of the old county fairs. Too bad I'm too far away.

It's a terrific event! This will be the fourth time we have participated, and I've loved it every time!

grrrrr...you guys have all the fun, lol. I wish there was something like this within driving distance of me. Hope you have a great turn out and an even better experience.

(envious) John

John, I wish it was near me, too. I WISH it could happen down here! The Ventura Co. Fairgrounds would be poifect for it.

I think it happens where it does because a lot of local heirloom businesses sponsor it, in this case Strauss Dairy, Baker Heirloom Seeds and the like. It would be a matter of organizing similar businesses in your local areas.

Very true. I think Baker Heirloom Seeds is a prime mover.

BTW -- Looking at long-range weather forecasts, I see indications that the weather will be far more moderate this year than last. I'm excited about being there.

Jeri, will you be bringing any rareties to sell such as Carolyn Supinger, Cymbeline, or Cressida?

I'm jelouse I wish we had something like this out my way! I'm interested in the Gebler custard squash! The name sounds promising and they look like upturned squash blossoms! Sorry that's a bit off topic ...

Not at all!

The same mindset that preserves antique roses knows why we preserve heirloom veggies. Did you know that one of those squashes was salvaged from seeds saved in a pot hidden thousands of years ago?

And what about OTHER heirloom flowers? I'm hoping to score some seeds when I'm there this year.

I had no idea veggie seeds could be viable for so long, what a find! Heirloom flowers? Any specific kind?

Flowers? Why, ANY kind! These old plants -- whether they are flowers or veggies, or or or . . . They put you in touch with the people who went before.

As to the squash -- I believe they found the pot, and spent a few years establishing its very great age before someone said . . .
"What if we planted them?"

I was wrong about the age, btw. That pot and seeds were "ONLY" 800 years old!
http://www.mnn.com/your-home/organic-farming-gardening/blogs/students-revive-extinct-squash-800-year-old-seeds

But of course, it's not the first. There have been other archaeological discoveries -- some dating back to Biblical times -- that have given us back ancient plants -- like an ancient variety of date palm:
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/051122-old-plant-seed-food/

If you bring SGMC, sign me up for one. I moved an old established one this Spring but it died. I'm still watering the black canes in their pot, with the hope it might sprout in the future, but you never know.

I read the article about the 800 squash, but it failed to mention the varietal name. It looks similar to Georgia Pink Banana (or Candy Roaster) squash. I also grow heirloom veggies & flowers and raise domesticated heirloom animals.

I don't know that they've named it. But it's probably SIMILAR to other heirloom squashes, I'd think.

One thing I've enjoyed seeing at the Expo the past couple of years is a small group of Churro Sheep brought by a Navajo family.

Wow what a exciting article!

The wool of Churro Sheep is too coarse for clothing, but is used to make beautiful Navajo rugs instead. I've been wanting a tiny herd of Valais Sheep but it's impossible due to the USDA's ruminant embargo:

I've also possibly considered Southdown Babydoll Sheep or Gotland Sheep instead. I dislike mowing the grass and sheep would be perfect, providing a tax break, as well as manure for the garden!

Jeri, sorry to have missed you guys. I'm leaving the Heirloom Expo right now but couldn't find your booth. I was stuck at work and didn't get to the fairgrounds until 7:30pm today.

If anyone is interested in breeds of sheep and the wool they produce, you might enjoy going to Lambtown in Dixon, CA on October 1 &2. The same mindset that is intrigued by vintages roses, flowers, fruits, and vegetables is likely to be intrigued with off-the-beaten-path wools for knitting and unusual sheep breeds. I myself am charmed by the ornamental chickens at county fairs.

http://festivalnet.com/12545/Dixon-California/Fiber-Arts-Festivals/Lambtown-USA-Festival

Romogen Sorry we missed you . . . The San Jose Heritage Rose Garden table was in the Hall of Flowers. There's a whole raft of photos on the Heritage Roses Group Facebook page at:
https://www.facebook.com/TheHeritageRosesGroup/photos/?tab=album&album_id=902369926535681

Wasn't it a GREAT event?!!

Love the photo of the dogs in front of a mountain of squashes..

..would like to have been there..

Paula, thanks for the tip. I went to Lambtown in Dixon to check it out. I was rather disappointed they only had about a handful of different breeds on show, but I was able to talk to some breeders about the ins-n-outs of shepherding. The wool stalls in two buildings were very cool, lots of interesting & unique hand spun skeins, and handicrafts. After some tasty BBQ, we headed off to some wine tasting in Suisun Valley. It was a fun day, but I wouldn't travel far for it again-- seeing all the Strumpf supporters there was disturbing. The wine was excellent and I picked up some knit gifts at the event. The heritage festival in Santa Rosa is much more impressive and definitely worth a second visit.

Did you know, back in the day, Dixon handled 95% of all domestic sheep butchering? That was news to me.

Sorry you got disturbed by seeing Trump supporters, but what did you expect in Dixon? My DH and I just traveled down Hwy 5 to LA, and ALL of the signs alongside the hwy, hundreds of miles of them, were pro-Trump. When we educated "elites" venture out of our blue suburbs into the drought stricken farm land & the Central Valley, we get a taste of other people's reality. They are not happy.

Jackie

They may not be happy, but I think they need a different solution.

Everything a Trump supporter embodies is completely un-American. They might not be happy, but ignorance is no excuse for willful stupidity. They excuse the behavior of a sexual predator that brags about assaulting married women by groping their vaginas, and ignore the fact that all Ku Klux Klansmen are Trump supporters. Voting for a traitorous crypto-nazi thief & pathological liar that hasn't paid income taxes in over twenty years, but tools around on his own private jet, with goldplated toilet fixtures, is the illogical hubris of imbeciles. If they truly believe his degenerate conman bull$h!te, and willingly turn a blind eye to this scumbag's lack of moral character, they deserve their miserable existence and can choke on it. Disgusting.

Friends, what ever our political thoughts, please remember this is a forum for sharing our love of heirloom roses. Back in Spike's day we would be removed from the forum for getting political. Spike is gone, but the purpose of the forum remains the same.

Many people are disheartened by current politics, whatever their opinions may be. I for one am happy to find places where we can discuss other things, such as gardens.

Everyone is entitled to their political opinion, but having the audacity to insult millions of people that you do not know, while assuming that there is no diversity among anyones supporters, or that you know the educational levels and economic status of supporters...speaks volumes....AND this is not the place... that is what "political" forums and so many other venues are for....I agree with Rosefolly.

Rubbish. I'm not the cocaine snorting idiot telling you how to mispronounce Nevada. Go lecture him.

The planet is better off without them. All of them. Let them colonize Proxima-B.

If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. HST

You are entitled to your "political opinion" based upon your perceptions and thus realities. This is an Antique Roses Forum. Please stop insulting those who may not, and possibly even those who might agree with your political opinions..

US politics is getting very heated at the moment, and most of us, whatever our viewpoint, are pretty much on tenterhooks over it - even here in Oz, since the whole world is likely to be affected by the outcome. But I agree that sometimes it's just good to have a place to come to get away from it all for a while and turn our minds and hearts to less fraught matters.

Perhaps those folks who'd like to continue with this political off-shoot of the discussion of Heritage rose expos and related matters might like to pop over to the Hot Topics forum, and start a new thread there as a continuation of this one. Just click on Garden Forums (no, don't ask me why a political discussion forum is listed there!) near the top of this page and look for Hot Topics in the alphabetical list.

I'm not trying to close down political argument - we're so incredibly lucky to live in countries where frank discussion of current and aspiring political leaders, their personalities, policies, support base etc is possible without automatically putting ours and our families' lives in serious jeopardy if our opinions happen to displease the powers that be. Let's celebrate that tremendous privilege, and take full advantage of it, in an appropriate place.