Rose (member) Garden  

Listing last updated on Wed Aug 2024

United States

Second generation Central Ohio rose hobbyist. My father picked up the hobby of growing roses around 1960 and kept it up until I removed the last 11 of his in winter 2014. I transplanted those 11 to my home in Columbus with varying success and as I write this am down to the last specimen of 'Tiffany'. Many of my formative memories have to do with being enlisted labor to dig, water, mulch, dead-head, and burn prunings from the nearly 200 roses he maintained at one time. I wasn't trusted with fertilizing, spraying, or pruning and took little notice of those complications. As I got out on my own I dabbled a bit with some roses, but always left them behind upon moving. As my career slowed and Dad took ill with Alzheimer's and a brain tumor, I made time to spend with my parents and help take care of the place. This is why I adopted his last 11 and have expanded to about 40 over the past three years. My Dad passed last July, 2015 at the age of 88. My girlfriend tells me every day how much I am just like him.

My interests center on mid to late 20th century Hybrid Teas and Grandifloras which show above average fragrance. I don't particularly care what color or disease resistance a variety shows, as long as it produces blooms and they have fragrance. My habits of rose culture follow what I watched and heard from my father, so you may say I'm a throwback.