Ah, roses. What is it about them that captivates us so?

Today we had a rose expert in our midst -- Peter Kukielski from the New York Botanical Garden (NYBG). Peter was at Lewis Ginter because we’re planning a major expansion of our Rose Garden to open in 2008.

Peter is the curator of the Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden at NYBG. He has good news for people who shun growing roses thinking they are too difficult. While hybridization has been focused on “the perfect bloom”, he says the trend now is moving toward creating roses that are good garden plants (disease and pest resistant). We’ll be showcasing some of these in the new Rose Garden at Lewis Ginter.

Roses probably have had some significance in your life. In our family, there’s a beautiful rose my late grandmother grew. My dad tends the plant now and when it blooms (around Mother’s Day) he always cuts a few blooms for me.

Do you have a special “rose” story?

Beth Monroe is public relations director at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden.

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