This year, following on from the Gardens Trust’s successful 2022 series on the rose, in partnership with the Historic Roses Group, the Gardens Trust is happy to announce a new rose-related lecture series, again with the HRG, this time including an international slant.
With speakers hailing from Iceland to Australia, via England, Italy and the USA, these talks are wide-ranging. We begin with a portrait of a popular 19th century rosarian who loved riding as much as roses, knew everyone on the literary scene, was a celebrity preacher and organized the first ever National Rose Show in London. An account of a hillside rose garden in Italy which started as a collection of pots on a terrace in Rome; how to grow roses in the Arctic Circle and ‘down under’ on a working Australia farm; the intriguing stories behind the names of some romantic heritage roses; and where to find a unique UN Food and Agriculture Organization collection of the other – edible – members of the rosaceae family continue the series. We finish with practical advice about training and pruning your climbers, whether roses or wisterias, from a professional horticultural gardener, the latest in three generations of market gardeners and a shows organizer and designer whose sumptuous stands have won medals for the Historic Roses Group at the Hampton Court Flower Show.
This ticket costs £28 for the entire course of 7 sessions or you may purchase a ticket for individual sessions, costing £5. Attendees will be sent a Zoom link 2 days prior to the start of the talk, and again a few hours before the talk. A link to the recorded session (available for 1 week) will be sent shortly afterwards. Register through Eventbrite HERE or visit https://thegardenstrust.org/events-archive/page/3/
In Week Three, Michelle Endersby will discuss The Role of a Rose Garden on a Working Farm. A formal rose garden in the middle of an Australian farm with a high likelihood of drought and flooding rains may seem like a frivolous extravagance. But at Sages Cottage Farm in Baxter, Victoria, an historic 38-hectare property run by disability service provider, Wallara, the rose garden plays a pivotal role in the experience and programs for clients and visitors alike. Not only a tranquil and calming display garden, the roses are also a source of fodder for the farm animals, a cutting garden for the café, a source of materials for craft projects and food source for the bees for honey production. With a collection of interesting roses, rose garden tours are a potential source of income and education. Michelle will show you the microclimates and the multitude of opportunities provided by this special rose garden.
Michelle Endersby is a writer and visual artist from Melbourne, Australia, and the ‘Rose Lady’ at Sages Cottage Farm where she is responsible for the care of over 150 roses. Inspired by a vision of a light-filled rose garden she experienced on awakening from a coma following emergency brain surgery, Michelle has made roses the focus of her creative and horticultural endeavors. She is also a member of the HRG and has contributed to the Historic Rose Journal. Michelle is the creator of the popular Art, Gardens and Always Roses monthly e-newsletter.
