LVRS Rose Fertilizer Now Available!!
I am so excited to write this blog post!
Back in April, when I was researching different chapters of the American Rose Society, I was specifically looking for ways they stay active, engaged, financially solvent, and, overall - successful. One of the things I came across in my research was Portland Rose Society's customized blend of fertilizer. They came up with their own blend (they have a third party do the blending and packaging) and sell it as an ongoing fundraiser. They sell it online, to their members (and the public) at various events and meetings, and through a couple of the retailers local to them.
Brilliant! This is something that their own members need on a regular basis (these members can shift their purchases from various other brands of rose fertilizer to a brand that specifically supports the organization to which they belong). It also is a great source of advertising for their organization. These bags are featured in various garden center locations in the Portland area with the Portland Rose Society logo prominently displayed. They are featured in the fertilizer section within other brands of rose food (being displayed to anyone that grows roses who would be looking for rose fertilizer). These people would see not just a product that benefits them while financially supporting the mission of said rose society, but it also serves as a way to potentially recruit a new member! "Oh I didn't know there was a local rose group, I'll have to look into joining!"
I knew it was something I'd want to pursue for our local chapter. I reached out to a couple different fertilizer manufacturers and had some great discussions, but unfortunately, found it to be out of our reach financially (many wanted an initial investment of $6,000 - $10,000 or more) for the packaging design and printing, registrations/licensing, and initial batch of the actual product. Not to be discouraged, I decided that I would do my own blending and packaging, and handle the registrations/licensing with the PA Dept of Agriculture myself.
After purchasing several different ingredients from several different local retailers, (and making about 15 different blends and trying them out on my own personal roses), I honed in on specific ingredients and a specific N-P-K rating that seemed to show the most promising results. I found a couple suppliers to purchase ingredients from at wholesale pricing, placed a bulk order of enough ingredients to do at least 100 bags (though because of the quantities the ingredients are sold in, there's enough of certain ingredients for anywhere from 150 - 250 bags, so for the next round of blending, I will only need to reorder one or two ingredients to do another 100 bags), designed and printed labels, and filed all of the paperwork with the PA Dept of Agriculture. My initial investment? Well it's known to LVRS members that read our financial reports, but suffice it to say much less than the $6,000 - $10,000!
Our fertilizer is a blend of all-natural and organic ingredients, with an N-P-K rating of 4-3-3. It also features a blend of 7 mycorrhizal fungi which help to promote root growth, creating a healthier plant that can better stand up to environmental extremes.
Each bag has enough fertilizer to do one feeding for up to 20 established roses or one feeding for up to 10 newly transplanted roses.
Click here to read more and make a purchase!