Rose of the Year Debuts at Stockton Bury

So many of us have had to find new ways of doing things over the past year and it appears rose breeders are no different. The Rose of Year is traditionally launched at the RHS Hampton Court Flower Show but this year the debut was in a beautiful Herefordshire garden.

Sitting in the sunshine, surrounded by flowers and with sheep grazing in a field alongside, I decided it was a far more suitable stage for an entry into British horticulture than the canvas marquee at Hampton.

'It's a Wonderful Life' the Rose of the Year 2022.
‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ Rose of the Year 2022.

All flowers look better outside and ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’, Rose of the Year 2022, postively sparkled in Stockton Bury Gardens. The choice of name, echoing the title of a classic film, needed permission from Paramount Pictures.

It’s difficult to describe the colour as the flowers are a mix of peach, apricot, pink and orange tones but they are wonderfully full and have a delicate scent. What struck me was the really glossy foliage and the number of buds on each plant.

Marilyn Stevens, from Roses UK, which supports rose breeders, told us a little about the journey the rose had undergone from being bred in Northern Ireland by Colin Dickson of Dickson’s Roses to submission to the Rose of the Year trials.

Those trials take two years and look at flower, flower shape, scent and whether the rose looks good in a pot – important if it’s to be a commercial success.

Marilyn Stevens launches the Rose of the Year 2022 at Stockton Bury Gardens
Marilyn shows off the new rose.

All this takes place years before the roses hit the British market – a criteria for entry is that they must not be available in Britain. In fact, ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ was chosen in 2018 and is Rose of the Year for 2022. The long time frame allows commercial growers to bulk up stock before the winner is announced.

“It’s no good having a Rose of the Year, and saying, ‘Well, we’ve only got 200’,” Marilyn explained. “We want to have 10,000 or more.”

There were roses in Stockton Bury too.

The other advantage of holding the launch at Stockton Bury was the chance to look around the four-acre garden, somewhere I’d previously seen only in spring – you can read about my visit here.

It was, as I told director Tamsin Westhorpe, depressingly good, full of colour with every border needing close examination to fully appreciate the planting.

Borders are positively bulging at Stockton Bury Gardens.

The old buildings that stood out in spring are now enveloped by plants, the brickwork providing the perfect foil.

The large borders mean things such as geraniums can be given free reign while still leaving space for many other plants.

Astrantia at Stockton Bury Gardens
A mass of astrantia giving a beautiful display.

The garden is part of a farm that has been in Tamsin’s family for generations and has been developed from mainly pasture by her uncle, Raymond Treasure, and his partner, Gordon Fenn.

The carefully tended vegetable plot.

Gordon’s particular passion is vegetabe growing and I was in awe of his plot. Beautifully neat and obviously thriving. So much better than my attempts.

The scent of philadelphus was everywhere.

There were philadelphus in many borders and the scent was carried throughout the garden. They are one of my favourite shrubs and it’s inspired me to plant more.

There’s a close attention to detail in the garden.

And one of the strengths of Stockton Bury is that every corner is considered. Here a path between hedges is given an extra lift by martagon lilies. Simple but very effective.

The Rose of the Year 2022 will be available to buy from autumn 2021 at rose nurseries and garden centres.

Stockton Bury Gardens is open to the public. Visit the website for more details.

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