If you’ve ever been driving along the north side of Putah Creek in West Davis during late spring/early summer, you’ve probably noticed a spectacle of vibrant colors just off the road behind a research fence. Those beautiful colors belong to the roses in the FPS Rose Clean Stock Program.

The story of the Rose Clean Stock Program starts back in the 1960s with Dr. George Nyland, a plant pathologist and advocate of virus-tested planting stock. He began using heat therapy to propagate rose material free of rose mosaic disease and created a collection of clean rose stock. The collection was revamped in the 1990s by our current Head of Production, Mike Cunningham, and serves as a source of clean budwood for nurseries and growers across the United States.

The eight acre collection is the largest public collection of virus-tested roses in the United States. That eight acres holds seven understock and over 500 scion cultivars! You can find a list of all the varieties on the FPS website under the Rose tab.

If you’re interested in roses, there’s a great opportunity coming up in May. For the past several years, the California Center for Urban Horticulture (CCUH) has hosted an annual Rose Day. This year, Rose Day has become “An ‘Eyeconic’ Weekend” with free informational programs, a rose sale from 10 am - 4 pm, and free tours of the FPS Rose Collection from 12:30pm – 3:30pm! All of this is happening on Saturday and Sunday, May 4 and 5, 2013. There is no registration required and the event is open to the public.

For more information, please see the attached agenda or visit the event website.

Free mini floribunda roses will be handed out to the first 250 attendees!

Scroll down for a sneak peak at some of the roses you'll see on the tour of the Rose Collection.