What’s the perfect thing to do with your 16 year old niece while visiting Portland together? Go to a botanical garden! It turns out that it’s all about roses in Portland and we hit the jackpot. We discovered the International Rose Test Garden and all of the roses were in full bloom throughout this astonishing rose garden.
What a beautiful rose garden! I can honestly say that I have never seen a more spectacular rose garden anywhere. (My second choice, or rival first choice would be the Parc de Bagatelle in Paris).
This Portland rose garden was founded in 1917 and its purpose is to serve as a testing ground for new rose varieties. Each year, the City of Portland Gold Medal Awards are issued to the best new rose varieties. The first of these medals was awarded in 1919, making it the oldest rose testing program of its kind in the US. Portland is the only North American city to issue such an award. There is even a Gold Medal Garden in this rose garden where winning varieties are planted. It is a jewel – and a must see – in Portland!
One of Julia’s tests to determine which roses were her favorites was fragrance. It turns out that she has a finely-tuned sense of smell and can describe the different rose scents with astonishing accuracy. She added this Climbing Pink Eden to her day’s list of favorites :).
The beautiful roses I saw today literally took my breath away. Enjoy the visual feast of just a few of the roses I discovered today… You’ll recognize some of them, but hopefully there are a few new ones to consider for your garden. I’ve placed the names below each flower in case you too wish to track some of these beauties down!
‘Whisper’
‘Souvenir de Baden Baden’
‘Chihuly’
‘Tahitian Sun’
‘Pink Flamingo’
‘Heart of Gold’
‘New Zealand’
‘Sunny Sky’
‘Francis Mielland’
‘Best Kept Secret’
‘Abbaye de Cluny’
‘Carding Mill’
‘Classic Women’
‘Big Mamma’
‘Love & Peace’
‘Cinderella’
‘Home & Family’
