The New Zealand Rose Society

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Rose of the Month

Grandma’s Rose

This month we feature a brand new release for spring 2022, numbers will be limited but will be more widely available in 2023. ‘Grandma’s Rose’ is bred by Rob Somerfield of Glenavon Roses and named by his children for their grandmother (Rob’s mother) as the bloom colour “is her colour”. The colour is a unique rich purple-red, quite unique and even better, the blooms are highly scented. Medium growing with dark green healthy glossy foliage. … [Read more...]

DECORANZA® Lotsa Love

Our feature rose for this month is a new release for 2022 that’s name just says it all. DECORANZA® Lotsa Love has well-formed blooms of warm cream to soft yellow with pink, peach and yellow highlights.The moderately scented blooms either come one to a stem or in small clusters and have potential for exhibition.  A very healthy variety, the bush grows to 1.5 metres high and is covered in dark green foliage. Bred in Ireland by David … [Read more...]

Wish Come True

This month we feature one of the new releases for winter 2022 that has been named to celebrate 75 years of Matthews Nurseries Ltd in 2022. It is also part of the My Rose Collection. ‘Wish Come True’ features cupped blooms of soft lemon to cream. An added bonus is there is a refreshing scent.  A medium-growing plant with excellent health, there are plenty of blooms to enjoy throughout the summer months. Bred by Bob Matthews who has bred … [Read more...]

Inkspots

The Persica or Hulthemia roses have generated much interest in the rose world over recent years and this months featured rose is one developed right here in New Zealand. Bred by Rob Somerfield,  ‘Inkspots’ covers itself in masses of white blooms with a burgundy centre. In full bloom, you can hardly see the foliage. The compact growing plant is very healthy with glossy dark green leaves. It looks great in any garden or pot and looks great … [Read more...]

FLORANZA ® Bright & Breezy

This month we feature an award winning rose from the New Zealand Rose Society International Rose Trials in Palmerston North last year. FLORANZA ® Bright & Breezy gained a Certificate of Merit which indicates a consistent performance over the two years of the trial. No doubt what caught the judge’s eyes the most was the display of bright orange blooms with a yellow reverse which covered the plants during the growing season. A very colourful … [Read more...]

Legend

Of all the different types of roses, the Hybrid Teas are what people often associate roses as being – large, well-formed blooms with scent being a desirable bonus. ‘Legend’ is one of the best Hybrid Teas to be released in recent years and should appeal to those who like to pick flowers from their garden. The large honey apricot blooms are richly scented and repeat well. The healthy plant grows to 1.1 metres high so is ideal for any garden, … [Read more...]

Green with Envy

Green is not a colour often associated with roses so this month’s featured rose has certainly created a lot of interest since its release last year. ‘Green with Envy’ is the culmination of 29 years of work by Rob Somerfield to create a green rose. The lime green blooms come in clusters on a medium-growing plant. The flowers will last for a long time, either on the bush or in a vase and intensifies with age.  There is no scent but the novelty … [Read more...]

Thunderstruck

Striped roses are either loved or loathed by rose lovers but this month’s featured rose is one that has attracted a lot of attention since its release in 2020. ‘Thunderstruck’ is something completely different when it comes to striped roses with its blooms being a blend of chocolate orange with cream stripes. It makes a great display in the garden and the dark burgundy red colour of the new foliage really contrast with the blooms.  A … [Read more...]

FLORANZA® Eye Popping

To start off 2022, we feature an award-winning rose from the latest round of results from the New Zealand Rose Society trials in Palmerston North. FLORANZA® Eye Popping is a very floriferous rose with masses of single blooms starting yellow and fading to white with a red/purple ‘eye’ to the blooms.  At times, you can’t see the foliage by the sheer masse of blooms which repeat well throughout the summer and into autumn.  A very … [Read more...]

Flower Carpet® Mini Cherry

The Flower Carpet® series of groundcover roses have been very popular in New Zealand since the first one was released nearly 30 years ago. This month we feature the latest in the series which has just been released in New Zealand. Flower Carpet® Mini Cherry has masses of small cherry red blooms covering the plant. A smaller grower than others in the series, it reaches 50cm high by 60cm wide making it ideal for  edging, hedging or in a … [Read more...]