Part 4: Florist Roses for the Garden

Jacques Ferare wraps up his series on florist and garden rose similarities and differences.

By Jacques Ferare

While there is a trend for florist arrangements to look more natural, at the other end of the spectrum, a variety developed for the florist trade can make the jump over to the garden. These are rare occasions, as most new florist roses are poor garden performers. It happens usually because of the overwhelming popularity of that particular rose as a cut flower.

The most vivid example is probably Sonia, a fragrant, soft salmon pink Grandiflora from the House of Meilland that at one point in the 1970s was the most planted rose in the world. Sonia was a breakthrough in cut rose breeding because it was extremely productive year-round, even in northern climates under low light, when heat was provided in greenhouses. It can be said that Sonia revolutionized cut rose production by enabling it to become truly industrial. It was also a very elegant flower that opened fully in the vase and a breakthrough in color with a unique fragrance. Sonia was so highly recognizable that soon people began to ask it by name. It was not long after that people wanted that rose in the garden, where it performed extremely well. For more than 30 years, Sonia remained a very popular garden rose. In fact we carried it in the Star® Roses catalog for more than 20 years.

More recently the same thing happened with Leonidas™, the russet brown rose, and with Black Baccara™, the black red rose. It should come as no surprise that all of these were created by the House of Meilland, as they may be the most successful rose company to bridge garden and florist roses. There are other examples, but these are probably the most successful ones.

Does this mean that florist and garden roses are coming together again? Probably not, as the requirements of a flower grower in Ecuador will never be the same as for the home gardener in New York or Chicago, but there will always be instances where they once again cross paths. One of the latest examples is Francis Meilland®, our 2013 All America Rose Selection award winner, the first Hybrid Tea to win without any spraying, which is also a great florist rose under the name Prince Jardinier. Look for these unique roses to remind us about their common heritage.

Mom Always Said … Share Mom’s Best Advice for a Chance to Win Everyday Roses

In honor of Mothers Day, we’d like to know: What is the best advice your mom ever gave you?

Share her words of wisdom in a comment below. We will pick our favorites to win a copy of Everyday Roses, the new book by Paul Zimmerman that tells you everything you need to know about roses – with some spectacular photography of your favorite Knock Out®, Drift®, and Star® Roses.

The fine print: You must also like our Facebook page to be eligible to win. Comments must be posted by noon on Friday, May 10, at noon EST to be eligible to win. Winners will be notified no later than Friday, May 17, and will be contacted at the email address provided for blog comment. (Your email address will not appear on your comment, and we will only use email addresses to contact the winner.)

So let’s hear it! What is the best advice your mom ever gave you?

Knock Out® Roses make a “Brilliant” Appearance at Philadelphia Flower Show

The Philadelphia Flower Show is happening now through March 10. Visitors will see lots of Knock Out®Roses (of all varieties!). Here are a few photos from some of our favorite Knock Out® displays:

A Knock Out® Presidents Day

Did you know you can find Knock Out® Roses in one of the most famous gardens in the country? That’s right, the White House Rose Garden is home to a mass planting of Knock Out® Roses! In honor of Presidents Day, here’s a behind-the-scenes peek at them in bloom!

Knock Out® Roses at the White House

Spotlight On: The Pink Knock Out® Rose

Single petals just like the original Knock Out® but in a beautiful shade of bright pink. And like the other members of the family, The Pink Knock Out® Rose is black spot resistant, drought tolerant and self-cleaning. It’s a perfect companion to other shrubs, roses and perennials.

The Pink Knock Out® Rose

What looks good with pink?

The Pink Knock Out® Rose is a very versatile plant. Plant it with any of your favorite perennials to have a garden bursting with color. Consider some colors from this garden:

Lavender – The light lavender blooms from the Nepeta contrast well with the light pink petals of The Pink Knock Out® Rose.

Deep Purple – The deep purple flower spikes of Salvia ‘May night’ tie together with the deep maroon foliage of The Pink Knock Out® Rose.

Pale Pink – Although the color is similar to that of The Pink Knock Out® Rose, a paler pink of any garden rose will soften the palette of your garden.

White – White looks good with everything! The pure white of a groundcover rose creates a bright, pop of color.

Plant Watch® Protects Consumers From Buying Inferior Roses

You’ve heard of counterfeit designer goods, movies and music, but did you know plants can also be faked? It may sound outrageous, but counterfeit brand roses and other plants have been discovered in nurseries across the country.

Plant patents and plant breeders’ rights are based on having permission to propagate. Most branded plants are protected by strong trademark, patent and commerce laws. Plants that are grown without proper permission are also not subject to the strict growing guidelines that brands set out for breeders – meaning that the counterfeit plant will not display the same bloom, disease resistance or other characteristics of the “authentic” plant. Gardeners who unknowingly buy these counterfeit plants are then disappointed when they don’t live up to expectations.

Fortunately, Star® Roses and Plants/Conard-Pyle has joined with other well-known brands to help protect consumers from buying knock off plants.

Proven Winners Color Choice®, Encore® Azaleas, Endless Summer Collection®, First Editions®, The Knock Out® Family of Roses, Drift® Roses, and Southern Living® Plant Collection have expanded the Plant Watch® nursery inspection program aimed at protecting their plant patents and branded programs across the country.  Inspections are underway from New Jersey to Oregon and from Michigan to Louisiana.

“Each year we do this inspection program, the value of the brands and patents becomes more clear to growers.  We’ve worked hard to establish our brands and spend a lot of money on patents. Enforcing these Intellectual Property rights is necessary to support our customers and licensees and ensures that compliance is improving,” said Jacques Ferare from Star Roses and Plants/The Conard-Pyle Company.

Look for the chartreuse pot to help you know that you’re buying an authentic Knock Out® or Drift® Rose.

Nurseries across the country have undergone a polite inspection by Plant Watch® representatives to see how they are meeting the requirements of these branded programs and respecting the patents.  It’s well known how expensive it is to establish a plant brand in our industry.  Growers who comply with patent and branding requirements are at a disadvantage when infringers undercut prices.

Plant Watch® has a proven track record in the industry, and has successfully intervened with infringers to curtail their illegal activities for over seven years.  According to Plant Watch® Managing Director, Peggy Walsh Craig, “It’s obvious our industry needs to sell more plants to more and different kinds of people.  Marketing new varieties helps make consumers aware of exciting new colors and sizes of plants and homeowners have more satisfying ways to beautify their gardens. When a few growers unfairly take advantage of the investment made by other nurseries in new varieties, the whole industry suffers.”

Nurseries found to be non-compliant are assessed a significant fine based on the number of unauthorized plants discovered, and the destruction of those plants will be required.

Looking Ahead to 2014 at MANTS®

Star® Roses & Plants/Conard-Pyle exhibited at last week’s Mid-Atlantic Nursery Trade Show (MANTS®) in Baltimore. This annual show brings together garden enthusiasts, landscapers, and horticultural companies to spotlight the latest offerings in the industry. Attendees can browse plants and nursery stock, landscape and garden items, equipment, tools, furniture, and other garden-related items. Sometimes called The Masterpiece of Trade Shows™, MANTS® is the one of the largest private trade shows for the horticultural industry.

We debuted some of our new roses and plants that will be available in 2014 at this year’s show – take a look!

Coming to a Garden Near You in 2013

Decisions, decisions – which of these twelve new roses will you add to your garden this year? All will be available in the spring from Star® Roses and Plants/Conard-Pyle:

Popcorn Drift®

Francis Meilland

Hydrangealicious, part of the Look-A-Likes™ series

Eyeconic® Pomegranate Lemonade

Eyeconic® Melon Lemonade

Cinnamon Dolce™

Raspberry Cream Twirl™

BIg Momma™

Cloud 10™

Dark Night™

Phloxy Baby, part of the Look-A-Likes™ series

Tequila Gold™

Popcorn Drift® is the newest addition to the Drift® groundcover series. It starts yellow and then fades to a cream white. Drift® Roses have many of the same great characteristics as The Knock Out® Family of Roses, but are much smaller in habit.

Francis Meilland™ is the 2013 AARS winner. This tall Hybrid Tea rose with a very large bloom, good exhibition form and strong fragrance is a multiple award winner in Europe. It is named to commemorate the centenary of Francis Meilland’s birth and to honor of our historic relationship with Meilland International, the breeder behind the historic Peace rose and our most recent series Drift.

Look-A-Likes® Hydrangealicious is a unique new hybrid shrub rose with dense flower clusters of small red blooms with a white eye that almost look like a Hydrangea!  Like Drift® Roses, this variety is low-growing and easy to maintain.

The Eyeconic® series of Hulthemia roses is an exciting addition to our lineup of roses. This year we are introducing two new varieties — Eyeconic® Pomegranate Lemonade and Eyeconic® Melon Lemonade. This series grows best in the Western United States. Eyeconic Pomegranate Lemonade is a diminutive rose with large deep pink flowers and terrific novelty. All the varieties in this series have unique coloring with the characteristic red Hulthemia blotch in the center.

Cinnamon Dolce™ has brick red petals dusted with pink spots and is very fragrant.  This variety needs the dry heat of the West to thrive.

Raspberry Cream Twirl™ is the first striped climber to have a true modern rose exhibition-type flower.

Big Momma™ is a big, pink, very fragrant Hybrid Tea that is great for cutting.

Cloud 10™ is a pure white climbing rose that has a very full flower similar to the English roses. It is hardy to zone 6 (in zone 5 it would be more like a large shrub). It will do great everywhere, but especially in the South and all areas troubled with black spot.

Dark Night™ is a new, well-tested novel rose for the West Coast. The color is dark velvet red, almost black, with a cream yellow reverse. The flower form is classic with a high centered bud and a cuplike opening.

Look-A-Likes® Phloxy Baby is a Polyantha Hybrid from the hybridizer of The Knock Out® Rose. It displays extremely good disease resistance and is more upright than most Polyantha roses. It would be perfect for use as a hedge. It attracts bees and is hardy to zone 5.

Tequila Gold™ is a mutation of Tequila™, one of our most popular new landscape roses. Like its parent, it produces a symphony of bright color nonstop through the season. The bright golden color will shine as a bright spot in any modern garden. Can be grown as a specimen or a hedge for stronger effect. Great for landscaping in dry hot climates, and also with good performance on the East Coast. One of the very few good yellow landscape roses.

Roses Get in the Holiday Spirit

Roses can help spread holiday cheer – especially with perfect names for the season like White Out™ and Peppermint Pop™.

Happy holidays from Star® Roses and Plants/ Conard-Pyle!

Peppermint Pop™

White Out™

Peppermint Pop™

White Out™

A Meeting of the Rose Minds

This summer, two great rose minds met in the test fields at our headquarters. Listen in as Steve Hutton, president of Conard-Pyle/Star® Roses & Plants, and Alain Meilland, head of Meilland International, discuss our favorite flower.