I just add this message to respond to the notion of a rose sale or auction. Following the lead of Jeri n Clay, the Ventura County Rose Society put on major rose auctions of rare and unusual roses for about ten years; first, annually, then later every two years. As an educational device, the auction was a great success for those putting it on. As someone who started out as a contributor to the catalog that accompanied the auction and wound up writing most of it, I learned a lot. (Most of it had to do with commercial viability.) As a financial effort, it was also a great success. HOWEVER,it was every bit as labor intensive as the traditional rose show, involved enormous amounts of energy and time (gathering and storing of roses, mailing off winning bids to those out of state, etc.) and engendered some antipathy on the part of rose society members who did not want to be involved in what they regarded as scut work; (unfortunately, a lot of life involves doing scut work.) Eventually, we gave it up with 2011 being the last of the auctions. Over the course of the years we probably distributed over a thousand roses, most of which were OGRs or unusual and rare (Clark roses from Austalia before they became easily available, frix.) The only way for the enterprise to operate was to open up a national audience in order to find buyers for roses not well known--even if said roses were perfectly suited to the Ventura County climate--e.g. chinas, noisettes, and teas. The trouble is that the audience for OGRS and unusual roses tends to be spread out across the country in numbers not large enough to sustain viable commercial operations. I might add that the practices of many rose societies in permitting widespread use of cuttings from rose shows, celebrations and the like cuts down on the potential profit or even transactions. I am reminded that Frank Benardella used to dip his show roses in Round-up so as to discourage people from using his entries as sources for free roses... Jim D

How inspired are you mirendajean? We are not allowed to import large plants from Britain anymore, but we can get cuttings. There are many varieties that we love to get cuttings from if you'd like to consider an exchange program. As our European branch you could send us cuttings that we are searching for and we'd be happy to help you out. All you really need is a friend to work with you. It might seem like a small effort at first, but even if you can help save one plant from extinction, you are making an important contribution. Kathy is a great help to us and while we really want to know what plants rosarians in the US are looking for, please let us know if you have cuttings of a variety that you think is rare. Working with Chris in Columbus, we were able to get plants of Conrad Hilton, Miss Hillcrest, Texan and Magic Moon. I am working on getting more plants of Ralph Moore's 'Most Unusual Day', which seems to have disappeared from commerce. At the moment we have been desperately searching for Sunrise-Sunset (Herb Swim's not Ping Lim's). Let me know if anyone can provide cuttings. I appreciate anyone who wants to help in our "Save the Roses" campaign. John This post was edited by kstrong on Mon, Nov 26, 12 at 15:01

THE CCRS 14th ANNUAL RARE AND UNUSUAL ROSE PLANT AUCTION IS NEXT WEEKEND. Here are further details: Saturday, Nov. 15th and 16th. The power point presentation of roses featured in the SILENT PORTION of the Auction by our distinguished authorities will begin on Saturday at noon. Our Speakers for Saturday, November 15, 2014, are Ping Lim (Hybridizer Altman Plants) at 12:00 noon; Burling Leong (Hybridizer Burlington Nursery) at 1:00 PM; Jill Perry (Curator San Jose Heritage Rose Garden) at 2:00 PM; Dr Keith Zary (Hydridizer Spring Hill Nursery) at 3:00 PM; Bob Martin (Hybridizer, Author, ARS Master Rosarian) at 4:00 PM and Cliff Orent (Hybridizer, Author, ARS Consulting Rosarian and past owner Euro Desert Nursery) at 6:30 PM (after dinner). Our Speakers include 5 Hybridizers, 2 Nursery owners, 1 Curator of an important public garden rose collection, 1 Master ARS Consulting Rosarian, multiple ARS CRs and multiple prolific Authors. Dinner with the Speakers will be at 5:00 PM. Several seats are left. Make your reservations via the website or email me. Each diner orders just what he/she wishes and will receive his/her own bill. On Sunday we will hold the SILENT AUCTION from 10:00 AM to noon. We will have volunteers with special knowledge of the plants offered on the floor to attempt to offer advice for those who seek it while they are shopping. At noon the Bidders will take a break for the next hour and a half for a leisurely lunch while all available CCRS members will help with sorting. The LIVE AUCTION will take place Sunday from 1:30-3:30 PM. Keep in mind that the minimum bid in all parts of the Auction is $1. Payment is by cash or check. The Auction may be accessed online at CCRSAuction.com. Online bids for both the live and silent auctions are accepted up to 12 noon on Friday, Nov. 14th, and will be acknowledged by a confirmation e-mail. On Sunday, November 16, 2014, our Proxy Bidders will attempt to obtain plants for online participants, as if they were spending their own money -- plants will be sold to the highest bidder, but only at around $1 over the next highest bid, so even if you bid high over the internet, you are protected from overpaying if there are no other bidders. We will mail plants purchased to warm climates within 2 weeks and special arrangements can be made online for those living in areas with a winter for delivery next spring. With the help of many, John Bagnasco has assembled over 300 really wonderful hard to obtain, rare, endangered and sometimes unique plants. I am certain that you will find something to suite your taste. Please take a moment to check the offerings on the website. We have linked the listings in the auction with the HMF page for that variety to assist you in learning about these roses. We have also provided a form for internet bidding at the beginning of each list of roses to be auctioned, that should be e-mailed to us no later than Friday, Nov. 14th at 12 noon (PDT) if you can't make it to the auction in person. I do recommend coming in person, however, since we always have more roses available than bidders, and many bargains will be available, It is up to you to do your research ahead of time so that you know it when you see a bargain! Internet bidders also get their share of bargains, but some of that is ultimately eaten up by shipping costs, which we ask each internet bidder to pay at our actual cost for shipping (no "handling" fees -- we volunteer for that). See you then, Kathy Strong Here is a link that might be useful: video of prior CCRS auction This post was edited by kstrong on Sat, Nov 8, 14 at 10:07

@Lilyfinch z9a Murrieta Ca yes, I just got word of an open garden in Vista. That still might be a little far for you but wanted to share. Also, we had a few additions in the auction I will share next. Vista Garden Club’s 87th Annual Flower Show and Plant Sale, May 6-7, 2023! May 6, Noon to 5:00 p.m. Plant & Garden Art Sale; Flower Show open 2 to 4 p.m. May 7: 10 to 4 p.m. (all events) Jim Porter Recreation Center, 1200 Vale Terrace Drive. The Vista Garden Club presents “Art in the Park”, an NGC Standard Flower Show, Plant Sale, and Garden Art Boutique. Our Horticulture exhibits are awesome, displaying the bounty of Vista. Be prepared for stunning Floral Designs, interesting Educational Exhibits, and Botanical Arts Photography entries. In addition, we always have a fabulous Plant Sale, with an astounding amount of beautiful and interesting varieties donated and nurtured by our club members. Lastly, but not least, our Garden Art Boutique has many creative hand crafted garden treasures for you to enjoy in your own garden. Join us for this beautiful event Rain or Shine! Admission is free and everyone is welcome. PLEASE NOTE: Amateur gardeners and designers may enter any division of the flower show. There is no cost to enter. If you are interested in submitting an entry in the Flower Show, please contact Marsha at vistagardenclub @gmail.com for more info.