Congratulations to the Winners of the Pruned to Perfection Contest,
sponsored by Fiskars! 

These three lucky club members entered their best pruning projects and gardening inspiration and won! Each winner received a great Fiskars tool package and a bonus cash prize. Check out their prized pruning projects and accompanying essays.

Grand Prize Winner: Member Patricia Morelli won $500 and the Fiskars prize package 

My father once told me the best time to prune is when the knife is sharp….advice given to him by an Italian gardener whilst they shared a bottle of wine. I recalled those words when I decided to turn a rambling rose bush into something truly unique. After 15 years of picking and pruning, snipping and shaping, I changed ordinary into spectacular…..always remembering that the timing wasn’t important, only that the knife be sharp. Thanks, Papa!

1st Runner Up: Member Cindy Burch won $250 and the Fiskars prize package 

These are my favorite topiaries. They are escallonia trimmed into bears. The sunglasses are to embarrass my kids and also make people realize that they are supposed to “be something” besides just bushes. I have actually seen the UPS guy pat one on the head! To qualify as my favorite family members: they’re cute, don’t make noise and you always know where they are. They’re fun to trim and make yard work seem more worthwhile.

2nd Runner Up: Member Joe Ailts won $100 and the Fiskars prize package 

Some people prune hedges. Some people prune roses. I prune giant pumpkins. A little "outside of the box"? Yep, welcome to the world of the Giant Pumpkin Grower. There are no secrets to growing 1200lb pumpkins, just a lot of hard work, determination, and luck. The hard work component of that equation entails meticulous pruning techniques to direct the plant's energy away from the foliage into a developing pumpkin. It is not uncommon to spend 4+ hours/night pruning the patch during peak growing season. To avoid "salad overgrowth", our 500+ sq ft. plants are pruned at every leaf node.  All unnecessary tendrils, flowers, vines and leaves are removed by a hand pruner. Only one pumpkin is allowed per plant, setting the stage for growth that exceeds 50lbs/day. All of this for the glory of a “small car” on the scale come October, none of this is possible without proper pruning.

Joe Ailts along with his 2.5 year old gardening helper and son, Evan displaying the Fiskars Prize Pack. Also included is his 2008 State-Champion, 86-inch, Long Gourd (another competetive squash variety that requires intensive Fiskar-pruning techniques).

The Fiskars® prize packages include: 
Power Gear Bypass Pruner, Power Gear Hedge Shears, Telescoping Pruning Stick, Powergear Bypass Lopper 21 1/2", Gardening Multi Tool, Power-Pivot Grass Shears, Garden Knife, 10 Gal Kangaroo, 3 PC Scratch tool Set (total retail value: $289)

For more information about these products, contact Fiskars at 1-800-500-4849, www.fiskars.com.