Earlier this year, I was accepted as a curator for The Friends of Vintage Roses. I am currently the only curator overseeing the Gallica group. I am thrilled and humbled by the privilege and responsibility of collecting, preserving, propagating, and distributing these roses to other future curators, collectors, botanical gardens, and home gardeners.

This is a large group of roses, at the heart of which – a least in my mind – is the Apothecary’s Rose. As an herbalist, this is an enormously important herbal ally and teacher. It belongs in every Apothecary garden within its growing range.

There are over 100 cultivars of Rosa gallica. They are easy to grow but tend to be more ephemeral than other rose species. Most gardeners and growers are looking for roses that will hold in a vase. What they lack in vase life, they make up for in habit, ease of propagation, and scent. They can also be somewhat promiscuous. Crosses of these and Rosa moschata resulted in the beautiful Damask rose famous for producing precious oil. She is the mother or grandmother of all of the roses we know now, in fact.

It is the joy of my life to look forward to playing a part in preserving as many of her cultivars as possible for the enjoyment of future generations. What a rare gift to be able to pass on to the next generations.