Vancouver Rose Society prepares Esther Short Park and Covington House for spring blooms

ESTHER SHORT — The Vancouver community gardens at Esther Short Park and Covington House were pruned and spring-cleaned on March 11. Members from the Fort Vancouver Rose Society and two additional volunteers from the community gathered to prune an estimated 150 roses total in both gardens. A group of 19 tended the Esther Short garden and three of those same volunteers spent an extra hour at the Covington House garden. It was a very good day to learn and practice pruning techniques on the wide variety of roses growing in these gardens. Most of the roses have been in these gardens for decades; however, some are new, having been planted last year, courtesy of both the city of Vancouver and the Fort Vancouver Rose Society.