Mulberry Wine
Rose trials, such as the New Zealand Rose Society International Trials in Palmerston North, are a great place to see the latest trends in roses. This month we feature the overall winner from the most recently concluded trial presented last November. ‘Mulberry Wine’ was a standout winner for breeder Rob Somerfield. Masses of fragrant purple […]
Allison Scott
Every now and again, a rose variety will produce a sport which is a naturally occurring change in a characteristic of that variety. This month’s featured rose is a sport from the very popular rose ‘My Mum’. ‘Allison Scott’ is named after a well-known Hutt Valley Rosarian who discovered this sport in her garden. With […]
New Zealand rose breeder takes top award at rose trial
New Zealand rose breeder Bob Matthews has taken out the top award at the New Zealand Rose Society International Rose Trial Grounds in Palmerston North in late November. Mr Matthews variety, named ‘Allison Scott’ for a prominent rosarian won the Gold Star of the South Pacific for the highest scoring rose on trial. The success […]
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 […]
Irish rose breeder takes top award at rose trial
Rose breeders from the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland dominated the awards presented at the trials with five of the six awards going to rose breeders in this part of the world. Amateur rose breeder David Kenny, a retired school teacher from Tullow took home the main awards with the variety ‘FLORANZA® Eye Popping […]
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 […]
Rosy success at International Rose Trials
A rose named for the breeder’s mother topped the list of awards presented at the New Zealand Rose Society International Rose Trial Grounds in Palmerston North in early December. Tauranga Rose Breeder Rob Somerfield from Glenavon Roses topped the trials with his variety ‘Grandma’s Rose’ which won the Gold Star of the South Pacific. “The […]
January – Quintessential
We begin 2018 by featuring a promising new rose variety that will be released this winter in New Zealand. ‘Quintessential’ comes from the breeding program of Rob Somerfield and combines his signature traits of lots of flowers and exceptional health. The medium pink blooms have a lighter reverse to the petals and as they are […]
Rose Trial Winners 2017
The awards for Trial 47 (2015 – 17) at the New Zealand Rose Society International Trials were presented on November 26th at the Dugald Mackenzie Rose Gardens in Palmerston North. It was a clean sweep for rose breeder Rob Somerfield of Glenavon Roses in Tauranga with all four awards presented on the day by the […]
August – Fireball
This month we feature a rose guaranteed to light up any garden this coming season. ‘Fireball’ is a new release floribunda with masses of orange blooms with a silvery – yellow centre and reverse to the petals. The blooms are lightly fragrant and it is a free flowering variety, with quick repeat during the summer […]