Is this a good thing? I sure hope so. What does this mean for us? Anybody know?? Judy

Prettypetals, I am wondering the same thing. Maybe Star roses will make the Kordes roses more available at local nurseries, but I have no idea what this means, but it seems to be big news.

Suebelle

1. Kordes garden rose license management

2. Kordes potted rose license management

qu'est-ce que c'est?

What happens to that nice lady called Chris? I thought that she and her husband were the growers of all the Kordes roses. I also thought that Palatine was the exclusive nursery for the Kordes roses. This agreement will make it much harder for both companies.

We need diversity to try to find regional roses rather than roses for the entire country.

Dr. Huey doesn't thrive everywhere, nor do own roots.

With the consolidation of the rose industry, we hope not to lose roses or rose enthusiasts.

I don't think it's good news.

I think Chris works in the trials area of it which I think it said NewFlora would keep. From my talks with her over the last year or so I believe she said several diff folks grow them then sell them. I know lots of places sell them not just Palatine. I am curious how this is going to work. Hoping Chris will chime in and set us straight with everything. Judy

Looks like Ball purchased all of Newflora's assets, including their license to sell. Maybe Chris is retiring :).

I'm going to be optimistic and say that this is a good thing. Of course, I could be wrong. Chris, we are all waiting patiently for your response. :-)

Maybe it just means that Star Roses will be the distributor and Chamblee's, Heirloom, etc. will have to buy from them. Star roses supplies many local nurseries in all states, I think. Can't wait to get all of the facts. Maybe it doesn't mean much at all, but most sites are saying this is big news. They don't say good or bad, just that it is important.

Suebelle

I wonder if what might be left of Newflora might be interested in importing from some of the other European rose companies. I would love to see Karin Schade's roses, and her found albas, available in NA, and there would surely be a decent market for roses from Noack and Evers/Tantau. From what I can gather, Christopher (I think that is the name of Hans' son} Evers might just be one of the great breeders of our time.

I understand how diversity may help with the problem of needing regional roses, but fundamentally other than Knockouts I know of NOTHING that I can buy locally now that would be selected to be region specific. I haven't been interested in roses for long (about 6-7 years) but I can't EVER remember of anything being available locally that was selected for our specific issues anywhere. Oh sure, a few small nursuries locally here and there, but what do they select? Austins, that for the most part are awful here--the hybrid tea craze redo. So I don't see this as possibly worse than the status quo. Those of that want more specific roses will continue to buy the way we have been buying. Those that don't know better might have a bigger selection of roses that may or may not work for them locally--not terribly different but a with more quantity and with roses with some intent bred for healthiness creates better chance of finding something. Did the Knockout phenomenon hurt rose growing in general? Or did it pull people in?

mcnastarana, I am very interested in the Evers/Tantau outcome for the US market. So Hans' son is the principal hybridizer now? Do you have any more information on this? I am getting excited just thinking about all those Tantau roses I want.

subk3, some of still love our Austins, and they certainly grow well here (The Prince is an exception). I personally don't feel they are a hybrid tea redo, though I disagree with many of DA's current marketing strategies. Diane

nanadoll, don't misunderstand me there is nothing wrong with loving Austins. If they grew here I'd have a garden full of them. My point is that they are like hybrid teas (which can be great too) in that people bought them and local nurseries stocked them for the bloom with little to no concern if the plant could actually live here without significant and intensive intervention. You live in a place, if I recall, where you have lots of viable selections. I don't. The importance of the regionality of roses is much more germane here than there. Austin sold here in very select nurseries for the same reasons Hybrid teas did. The bloom and only the bloom. The truth is I don't know of a local nursery that has much rose selection at all--probably nobody with more than a dozen. If we could actually get a few viable garden roses in local nurseries people might, just might, try them again. If a large national distributors wants to distribute roses whose breeding and selection involved evaluating disease resistance? Well other than knockouts that's a first around here.

For one truly appreciated having Chris here. She will be missed. I liked the way she ran things. I truly hope this is what they wanted and was not forced upon them.

Might as well add that I hope this does not negatively effect any mail order businesses.

Star has played a part in KnockOuts and the Drift series roses being a household name (and sold everywhere). This may give us much better access to Kordes roses, as well as helping the Kordes roses find their way into public gardens.

Nothing on the Star website yet about this new relationship.

I sure will miss all the insider info from Chris tho!

“We are confident that the North American licensing of Kordes is in good
hands, and that our network of licensees will continue to find success
in the rose marketplace,” say Gary and Chris Pellett, founders of
Newflora, LLC., who will continue to support these programs through a
transition period.

Chris and Gary are lovely people. I hope they can kick back and enjoy life at an easier pace. They deserve to. What about the peaches? Oh no!!!!!!

The Kordes roses are already in Walmart, Home Depot, Lowes and many mail order nurseries. Don't know how much better distribution can get.

nanadoll, apparently Hans Evers passed away in 2007 and has been succeeded by his son Christian Evers, not Christopher as I had it. Christian Evers is listed on HMF as breeder of for example the pianos, which I would love to see come to the US.

http://www.helpmefind.com/gardening/l.php?l=7.7779

Modestgoddess, that may be true in your region, but not here in the Midwest or other areas. The only Kordes roses I've seen at the big box stores are the Kolorscape roses, and some off patent varieties as body bags, and I'm in a big city. Even the good local nurseries aren't carrying them. My only source is mail order.

Same here. If you want something other than Kordes Perfecta in a body bag you have to mail order. I'm ok with mail order, but of course I'd love to see newer varieties at HD, Lowe's, etc like much of the country does. Local nurseries mostly carry Weeks and Austin's.

I happen to be in Lowes this morning. They were packed to the gills with plants and had a couple dozen Kordes roses--but in only two varieties.

Chris

I hope you will stay on this forum even after the transition and give us the benefit of your advice regarding Kordes and rose growing in general .

I agree! Please stay on the forum we loved having your input and enjoyed your photos very much :)

~SJN

Chris, please don't go. You are one a such few experts we can rely on here. It would be such a huge loss for both us and Kordes as we give you so much feed back as wel,

Chris best wishes to you and Gary! I've really appreciated your expertise, stick around the forums :). Very helpful and just so nice!

Well darn it. Just when I was about to come visit Newflora

And the peaches are/were wonderful! What are we going to do?

Oh Shelia, don't worry we still have our organic fruit orchards and we will stay here on our farm. More time to travel and take it a bit easier. I think no one knows how much work it was to bring Kordes into N. America. We started the company in 2003 and really there was almost no Kordes varieties offered at that time. Now there are really quite a few and new introductions have kept up with the European introductions. I think that Star Roses will have the ability to move Kordes to the next level and I am happy about that. I do lament that there were still some ideas and varieties that I wanted to bring to market, but hopefully Star will do that. Kristine call in June and maybe you can see the roses before they are moved.

Oh, thank you, Chris! The peaches are wonderful! I'm so glad you are staying on your farm. I really agree, you deserve to kick back a bit.

I would really like to be able to get some of the varieties that I used to have and a few more of the ones I do have. Somehow when companies get bought out or quit or otherwise disappear, so do many of the varieties that are never seen again. I would like to have shrubs like Mannheim, some more of Ulmer Munster, some more of Kordes' Brillant (German spelling), the shrub Lydia, the HT Feuerzauber, and the HT Wienerwald/Vienna Woods, among maybe a few others. Wienerwald was an absolute bloom machine that resembled the HT Brigadoon in color and form, but in a smaller size on a short plant. It was marvelous. I don't know how it would do in this climate, but it was nice where I was living when I had it. Now I can't get more of Kordes' Brillant because Hortico does not have it; Palatine does not have it; and Vintage Gardens is gone. This is the only rose I have ever had that literally caused people to stop their cars in front of my house if I was outside to ask me what it was. Pink roses do not do that no matter how pretty they are. Yes, I would like to try some of the new ones, but I would like to have some of the older ones again also. I would hope that some of these would be offered again somehow.

I do hope Star does as good a job at distributing as Newflora was doing. I was really staring to see Kordes roses at my big box stores sold by Vigoro. Star Roses sure does get those darn Knock Outs everywhere. If they can get the Kordes that far out we'll all be happy.

Sheila, the peaches we grow at Harry and David are phenomenal. We even sell them at the Peachpalooza for 20 cents s pound for 3 or 4 weekends in July and August

I talked to Jim (K&M Roses) the other day about this situation, while I was visiting. He told me he has a solid contract for 2017, so this will have no affect on him this year. He will continue to graft all the Kords roses all this coming season and doesn't see any problems getting a new contract for 2018. But like he said, "You can't go by word of mouth. It HAS to be on paper."

Ken

Are there any new varieties of Kordes available now at K &M ?

bustopher, according to HMF, the Garden of Legend and Romance in Ohio has 'Mannheim'. They do have an annual rose sale; maybe you could contact them about availability of 'Mannheim' plants or cuttings. Do you have any pictures that show the flowers? The HMF pix only show a large, thorny bush, another candidate for property line protection.

Thanks for the tip. Unfortunately I do not have any pictures of Mannheim. It is a cherry red flower. When I had that rose it was back in the early 1990s, before the digital cameras came out. It was one that I got when I had roses imported from Kordes with a quarantine program permit. So were the other varieties that I mentioned in my above post. I really liked Kordes' Brillant, which I have, and the Wienerwald/Vienna Woods roses. Wienerwald would have been perfect in containers because of its small size plant.