Feed The Hunger

Can’t wait until the perfume is introduced. Atar of Bacon!

Join rosarians from all over at The Huntington this coming January 21-22 to honor this Great Rosarian and his family’s continued influence on modern roses. We are in for a treat sharing his experiences and knowledge on America’s Favorite Flower, the rose.

The Great Rosarians of the World Annual Lecture Series is an ongoing program of The Huntington Rose Garden. It was founded in 2001 to honor the women and men who have made significant contributions to our love and knowledge of the rose. M. Meilland joins a distinguished list of honorees that include the likes of:  Peter Beales, Ralph Moore, Roger Phillips and Martyn Rix, Miriam Wilkins, Wilhelm Kordes, and David Austin.

The GROW program is focused on our love of roses and is designed for a broad of interests from the dedicated rosarian to the casual gardener who just wants to learn a bit more about one of our favorite flowers. There is plenty of time in the schedule to connect with others who share our love of the rose to learn and share. Please join us and honor this Great Rosarian!

I have just heard from Katsuhiko Maebara, Chairman of the International Heritage Rose Conference to be held in Sakura, Japan, in May of this year that they are regretfully having to cancel the conference because of the “unprecedented natural calamities that hit this country on the 11th of March, devastating many cities and towns in the northern areas of the mainland, and claiming thousands of lives. Besides, they caused an accident in a nuclear power station, raising the fear of radioactive contamination in some regions.”

Our hearts go out to our rose friends and all the people of Japan in these difficult times. I know all of us who had been asked to present programs, and those attending the conference send our thoughts to the organizing committee with our best wishes for the quick recovery of their country.

Hard to believe but the centennial of The Huntington Rose Garden was three years ago and today Jane Tsong, the exhibit designer, sent me the link to the website of Olson Visual who produced the large wall murals in vinyl for the exhibit.  Check out their website section where after three years they are still using images from the exhibit to promote their work.

La Rose Impériale Still Lives Online

The San Joaquin Valley Rose Society is hosting a very special guest speaker for their February meeting. Dr. Dave Byrne from Texas A&M will be speaking about “Continuing Ralph Moore’s Rose Legacy.”  The meeting will be held on Thursday, February 17 at 6:30 PM at the First Congregational Church, 2131 North Van Ness Boulevard, Fresno.

Byrne took over the rose breeding program after Dr. Robert Basye passed away in 2000. After Basye retired from the faculty at Texas A&M he took up rose breeding with an eye to develop disease resistance in the genus Rose by including resistant species roses in his breeding program. After Ralph Moore’s passing at the age of 102 Byrne was handed the daunting task of preserving as many of the Moore roses as could be put together and continuing Moore’s breeding program.

Byrne has spoken at The Huntington several times and he brings his unique take on rose breeding and a wire sense of humor as a speaker. If you are in the general region on February 17th drop what you are doing and go hear Byrne speak, you won’t be sorry!

Peter Beales Roses announced the closing of their world famous rose gardens for redevelopment today. The garden was inducted into the Great Rosarians of the World™ Rose Garden Hall of Fame in 2010 in recognition of the importance of the collection to the preservation of the collection of Old Garden and Speices roses. The garden is located around the Peter Beales Roses nursery in Atteborough, Norfolk, UK.

Peter Beales receiving the GROW Rose Garden Hall of Fame Award, June 2010

Read the announcement from Peter Beales Roses

A Walk in the Rose Garden

Long term Huntington Rose Garden volunteers, Judy Pollinsky and Myriam Hu each year have produced a display of rose themed desserts for the GROW West Rosarians Banquet.  This year is was held on Saturday, January 23 in Banta Hall of The Huntington Botanical Center.  Judy an Myriam make their own rose waters from fresh roses collected from The Huntington Rose Garden and produce a table fitting for the Queen of Flowers!  Judy experiment with 18th century cake and cookie receipts and somehow has managed to get just the right balance of rose essence into her productions.

For their dedication to the GROW program over the past years it was my pleasure to present Myriam and Judy the  Friend of the Rose Award. They have been tireless in backing and putting on their display for the enjoyment of GROW West participants and for this and their dedication to GROW please join me in acknowledging them as Friends of the Rose.

Myriam and Judy receiving the Friend of the Rose Award

From Sherri Berglund:

I just wanted to congratulate you on yet again putting on a wonderful GROTW event! Thank you so much! Ruth Knopf was charming and engaging and it was the first opportunity I’ve had to meet her. What a lady! The other speakers were inspiring and informative as well. I’ve heard Gregg speak several times and each time I learn something. I think this was his best presentation yet; the “call to action” for rose preservation. We hear it frequently but somehow he made it sound fresh and compelling. This January event is a welcome relief to our cold winters and the Huntington BG is lovely even so early in the season. The venue is excellent, the food yummy and best of all are the people I met are fascinating. Thank you for working so hard in making it such a pleasant event.

#8 — Got the pruning done and read all the rose catalogs…So why not!