Corralitos Roses Still Smell Sweet! by Rachel Wedeen

The rose is a legend of its own. It is written that the floors of Cleopatra’s palace were carpeted with rose petals and Confucius had, in his vast library, some 600 books about the proper care of this archetypal flower. Believed to have mysterious healing powers, Napoleon provided his officers rose petals to boil in white wine to cure lead poisoning from bullet wounds. 
 
This, the “queen” of flowers, seems ageless yet is simultaneously tied to antiquity. Recently archaeologists discovered the fossilized remains of wild roses over 40 million years old. The Chinese introduced the first true primary red rose, “Slater’s Crimson China” to Europe in 1792. Immediately rose breeders began using it to hybridize red roses for cultivation.  Ever since the quest for the “perfect” red rose has been the Holy Grail of rosarians; a fragrant, disease-resistant, long-lasting, long-stemmed, reblooming, perfectly formed flower with clear non-fading vivid red color.
 
Roses, explains local nursery manager Guinivere Vestal Wiley, fall into in excess of fifteen distinct categories.  Old roses and their heirs originate from groups known prior to 1867 when the “La France”, the first Hybrid Tea, made its debut. Voila! Rose breeding was forever changed with the introduction of recurring bloom, she explains. “Modern” roses, as commemorated by The American Rose Society, were varieties such as Floribundas, Hybrid Teas, Polyanthas and Minatures, introduced after 1867. These became commercial favorites.  Falling out of favor were “old” rose groups such as Damask, Gallica, Alba and Moss. 
 
Since the 1930’s, however, when Francis Lester first established Roses of Yesterday and Today on Brown’s Valley Road, a certain old rose Renaissance has ensued. With true dedication and hard work, four generations of the Wiley-Stemler family continue to enchant visitors with a vast array of some 230 rose varieties, including many old roses.  The mother plants are started and established at the Corralitos nursery and the bud wood is sent to growers in the San Joaquin Valley. The plants are then grown in fields and the bareroot plants are returned to RYT for cold storage. Own root roses are started and grown at the Brown’s Valley Road nursery.
 
Welcoming more than 1,000 visitors each year, the display rose garden is open daily. Stop by to enjoy a picnic surrounded by roses and redwoods. May and June are the optimal times to enjoy the rose garden. Their Mother’s Day weekend events are renowned. Guinivere acts as greeter with great bravura. She assembles orders and manages the website while her husband Jack provides “ big maintenance “ when not occupied by his day job running a software company. Brother-in-law Andy is responsible for much of the garden work and performs as “rose-wrangler”, tying all of the orders for shipment. Winters are their busiest time of the year.
 
 Bareroot roses are available for order and pick up January through February or shipment January through early May. Residents of the colder states like Montana often cannot plant until May. Potted roses are available year round. The new season’s bareroot roses are potted and available beginning in March of each year.  Fragrant old rose potpourri is available year round.
 
Guinivere, who has been manager since 1998, estimates that approximately seventy-five per cent of their business is from mail order.  Many customers purchase in excess of 20 roses in a single order. Their two most popular roses are Just Joey, a Hybrid Tea, and Sombreuil, a Tea Rose, “the finest ivory climber, popular for weddings and a repeat blooming old rose.”  New to the catalogue this year is the Hot Cocoa rose.
 
Ever popular with local rosarians is the Hybrid Musk, available in some twenty varieties, shade tolerant, repeat blooming and fairly disease resistant. The Robin Hood 1912, an heir to the old roses of yesterday, may only consist of five flat red petals but repeatedly bursts into bloom. This rose, says Wiley, is a “show-stopper”.
 
Their catalogue offers roses whose origins derive from many parts of the globe. Some “purebred” and others of “mixed blood”. Pat Wiley, owner of RYT from 1976-96, writes by way of an introduction, “Some varieties are tough and hardy with a natural ability to stay dormant through alternating freezing and growing temperatures, allowing them to survive more severe climates; some are soft and tender from mild climates where living is not a challenge; others a mixture of both.” She explains that there are as many types of roses “as there are races of people and breeds of dogs”. Their catalogue instructs that the Rugosas (are the hardiest) and that, for instance, all roses directly descending from the Rosa Gallica are extremely hardy and have one annual flowering (the Autumn Damasks being an exception). Apparently the more China or Tea there is in the ancestry of a rose, the less hardy it is. The most tender of roses, Noisette, Tea, China and Hybrid China, she recommends, be grown only in very mild climates or in a temperature controlled greenhouse.
 
What accounts for the renewed popularity of old roses? Perhaps an interest in things historic ? art, furniture, heirlooms. Customers restoring Victorian houses may shop for roses that are in keeping with the period architecture, the gingerbread trim, and the lace curtains. There must be magic in growing roses so steeped in history such as The Musk rose, immortalized by Shakespeare in A Midsummer Night’s Dream.  These old charmers evoke the fragrances of ripe apples, the spiciness of cloves. Their blooms are often big, loose cabbages, short powder puffs or single-petaled starbursts. Their colors range from creamy white to bright orange and pink.
 
Smiling, Wiley explains that first-time purchasers often are taken aback when they see the bareroot rose for the first time. “What people often don’t realize is that the plant will grow approximately six inches in the first month and by the end of the second month blooms will appear.”  The Corralitos Valley climate, she claims, is ideal for growing.  Roses, she emphasizes, like to go dormant in winter. “They need the cold temperatures.  Residents of Florida, in contrast, do not have success with old rose varieties that require cold temperatures.”
 
Care for old roses could not be easier, she maintains. Water deeply, fertilize with a complete fertilizer monthly and prune to shape after blooming. The Wiley’s extensive research suggests that a rose plant should be pruned exactly 65 days before you wish your plant to bloom. Keep this in mind when planning your next garden party.
 
 Wiley, her husband, Jack, and brother-in-law Andy are available to offer advice on planting, winterizing and pruning.  “Don’t be timid with pruning”, she opines. ”As a general rule, prune roses that bloom repeatedly in the late winter or early spring before new growth starts. Prune the once annual flowering roses only after they have bloomed in the spring.”
 
  They suggest planting in an aviary basket to protect from gophers and are happy to share their own recipe for deer repellant.  Black spot or mildew may appear in the mid-summer months. The Wiley’s recommend that gardeners spray their roses once a week for 3 weeks with a recommended solution, remove infected leaves and clear away any fallen leaves to prevent the spores from being splashed up onto the plant.
 
A local nemesis and pest is the curculios bug. Rose growers sometimes find this black, needle-nosed insect that pokes holes in blooms, implanting its eggs. Guinivere picks these off the plant and does them in. (No benign spray is effective, she believes).
 
The art and science of rose growing is constantly evolving. The practice of burying the bud union (the point of grafting) below the ground has been followed on the East Coast for some time.  Recently West Coast growers have adopted this planting method hoping that it will result in the grafted rose establishing its own roots over time.
 
There is ongoing debate about the pros and cons of grafting. Grafting, Wiley explains, often amplifies growth of an (sometimes slower growing) old rose.
 
But fear not rose purists. Precious varieties of old roses abound at RYT and many of the original old antique roses planted by the late Francis Lester, including a rose in his name, still bloom in the garden of his old house on the corner of Redwood and Brown’s Valley Road, the location of the original RYT. 
 
 
 
 
RYT remedy for blackspot or mildew:
 
Make a solution of:
 1 Tablespoon baking soda and 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil
(or 1/4 teaspoon of horticultural oil from the garden store) to
1 gallon of water.
 
(Spray as directed)
 
*************************************************
 
RYT formula to be used to discourage deer:
 
Blend two eggs (in blender) with ? cup of water for at least 2-3 minutes, at high speed.
Add 2 cups water and 2 Tablespoons Tabasco sauce. Blend.   Pour into plastic bottles,
add water to top off and refrigerate. 
Pour contents into a plastic cosmetic bottle with fine spray trigger handle. Spray plants thoroughly.
Repeat after rain.
 
(Guinivere suggests garlic be added to this mixture for extra measure and
 that this will help with aphid and beetle problems as well).
 

July 20, 2006

Heirloom roses back in style
BY ABBIE BLAIR
SENTINEL CORRESPONDENT
What is it about that queen of flowers, the rose, that mesmerizes us no matter the era and keeps us hopelessly in love?
The rose was sacred to the Egyptian goddess Isis, cultivated extensively by Empress Josephine at Chateau Malmaison and packed in covered wagons, headed west. From the earliest Persian literature, they were an integral part of our past, remaining ever popular. As humans have grown and changed, so has the rose. And sometimes, as with all change, what was once old becomes new again.
Old roses and their heirs originate from groups known prior to 1867. That was the year "La France," the first hybrid tea, made its debut, forever changing rose breeding by offering the strong habit of recurring bloom. The American Rose Society commemorated the event by designating roses originating from groups introduced after 1867 as "modern." Modern Floribundas, Hybrid Teas, Polyanthas and Miniatures became the darlings of the commercial market.

Old rose groups such as Alba, Damask, Gallica and Moss, the inspirations for Shakespeare and artist Pierre Joseph Redoute, fell from favor and were relegated to the realm of memories and specialty nurseries. But those fond memories along with the old rose's powerful fragrance, disease-resistant hardiness, and unique flower and plant forms have sparked an old-rose Renaissance in the gardens of today.
Visit the Roses of Yesterday in Corralitos and discover the enchanted world of old roses. You will find it tucked in a pocket of sunlight in the Corralitos redwoods. Slip through the gate and breathe in the sensuous perfume of roses, rich soil and redwoods. Stroll the paths, let the warm afternoon sun suspend time.

Dressed in a Levi's skirt, sandals and a straw hat, nursery manager Guinivere Wiley is usually found tending the plants. Emerging from a bed of roses, she weaves through the garden, a hostess introducing a new guest to longtime friends. She pauses at each plant exposing its finest points and history.

Wiley has been introducing visitors to old roses for the past eight years after leaving a career as a certified hypnotherapist to join her husband, Jack, and brother in-law, Andy, in re-opening the family nursery after being closed for a few years. The nursery was originally established in the 1930s by Francis Lester and later owned by Dorothy Stemler until her death in 1976. Her daughter Patricia Stemler Wiley and her husband, Newton, ran the business until passing it on to sons Andy and Jack.

People are amazed at the beauty and diversity of old roses, she says.

"The single rose gets the most comments," says Wiley. The hybrid musk Robin Hood 1912, an heir to the old roses of yesterday, is a great example. The flower may only consist of five flat red petals, but it repeatedly explodes into a profusion of blooms.

"The five-petal rose is one of the clues in the DaVinci Code" mentions Wiley. "It is a show-stopper."

In full bloom, Madame Alfred Carriere 1879 is a commanding sight, climbing skyward in an apple tree creating clouds of color. Wiley's enthusiasm in showing it off ignites the imagination as she explains that it is such a robust climber that it can easily reach a second-story bedroom. Thornless, too!

Young couples intent on eloping come to mind — although it was most likely purchased by parents with young children, for its large white flowers flushed with pink that repeat all season.

The delicate Eglantine, or sweet briar, Rosa rubiginosa ancient, is a nursery favorite described as having "small single flowers, like exquisite rose pink jewels hung on soft, crumpled green leather." It is mentioned in Shakespeare's "Midsummer Night's Dream" and has the fragrance of crisp, ripe apples. Wiley stops to point out the furry sepals of Alfred de Dalmas 1855, a moss rose, along with the chestnut rose, Rosa Roxburghii 1814, named for its buds resemblance to chestnut burrs.

Use "Rugosas, Gallicas and Albas for the backbone of the landscape, then utilize hybrid teas and floribundas. Mix perennials and annuals at their feet for a stunning landscape," explains Wiley.

For a special landscape effect, peg roses, such as the common moss rose, produce flowering arches that can be woven together for a spectacular effect.

Care for old roses could not be easier, says Wiley. Water deeply, fertilize with a complete fertilizer monthly and prune to shape after blooming. For protection, "We always recommend planting in an aviary basket to protect from gophers, and apply deer repellant if necessary," she concludes.

Wind through the beds one last time. Savor the colors, textures and fragrances and let your imagine float back: Madame Hardy 1832, Celsiana Damasks 1732. R. gallica 'Versicolor' Rosa Mundi prior to 1591, Rosa Rugosa alba ancient date unknown. With a little imagination, centuries of history begin to swirl along with countless human dramas played out in rose gardens.

How many tears were shed when the answer was no? How many breaths were held before a first kiss? How many hours of mediation or study? Perhaps it is the answers to all these questions and more held in each old rose that continues the fascination.

Contact Abbie Blair at svreeken@santacruzsentinel.com.

Everything's coming up roses

If You Go
WHAT: Roses of Yesterday. More than 230 old, rare, and select modern rose varieties. Potted roses available year-round. Bareroot roses available by ordering ahead, January through early May.
WHERE: 803 Brown's Valley Road, Watsonville.
hours: Garden open every day 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

DETAILS: 728-1901 or www.rosesofyesterday.com.
Heirlooms for your heirs
On a ride through the Stanford campus in the late 1970s, Celia Roddy, a rose grower from Aptos, and her mother spotted "a really huge old rose," recalls Roddy. They were fascinated with its beauty; it seemed to be growing unattended in the middle of nowhere.
They took a bloom to a local nursery and discovered it was Mermaid (1918), and it was an introduction from Roses of Yesterday. The Roddy family garden grew over the years to include some 20 old roses. When the home was sold, Roddy could not bear to leave the roses behind, so they moved the majority of them to her new garden. While digging, Roddy remembered the Appalachian folk saying, "We don't pass things down. We pass down our plants."
"I think that is how people who like roses feel about them," explains Roddy.
Roddy is drawn to roses that have long histories and nice stories associated with them. One of her favorites, Dainty Bess (1925), is "a sweet rose that tends to need a little encouragement," laughs Roddy as she recalls urging the plant on. "You can do it." Windchime, on the opposite end of the spectrum, has a mind of its own, growing more on the wild side.
Each year, stories unfold in Roddy's garden. Some years the deer nibble a few leaves, some years a lot. Her father's roses take root and thrive, and Dainty Bess needs annual encouragement as she struggles. In bountiful years, rose bouquets are gifts for friends and family.
For Roddy, Theodore Roethke summed up rose growing nicely: "What need for heaven, then,/With that man and those roses?"
-- Abbie Blair

Deer Repellent
Spray your roses with this mixture to deter deer from your roses.
Materials
2 raw eggs
Tabasco sauce
Garlic juice (optional)
Plastic 24-oz. spray bottle
Blender

1. Put two eggs in a blender with ? cup of water. Blend very well, at least 2-3 minutes at high speed.
2. Add 2 cups water and 8 tablespoons of Tabasco and some garlic juice. Blend. Put into plastic bottle — add water to top and refrigerate.
Rose pegging
Causing rose canes to grow in an arch or horizontal by the use of pegging will induce flower stems to form along the entire length, forming graceful bowers of flowers.
Materials
8-gauge wire
pliers

Hook an 8-gauge wire over a matured cane. Secure it in the desired position, then push the other end of the wire into the ground.
Weave two or three canes together for a delightful effect.

San Jose Mercury News (CA)
Published on January 28, 2005

SPRING IS IN THE MAIL
  by Holly Hayes

     This is the time of year I feel sorry for my mail carrier.
     Yes, he struggles with armloads of slippery catalogs during the holidays. But the volume really amps up in this post-holiday period when the spring seed, plant and garden catalogs start arriving at our house. I can easily spend an hour or more each evening leafing through that day's haul. And I run through a small mountain of sticky notes, marking pages that feature new plants, old favorites and cool gizmos that catch my
eye. Of course, I never actually order a fraction of this stuff, but hey, the dreaming and the ideas are free.
[the following is just an excerpt:  The entire article may be available at www.mercurynews.com]

Roses of Yesterday  www.rosesofyesterday.com (831)728-1901 Old, rare, unusual and selected modern roses.  Online and in the catalog there are lists of roses that are good for cutting, have beautiful hips, make good hedges and spill over embankments.  (See www.rosesofyesterday.com/specialconditions.com)  What I tagged with a sticky note:  invitation to drop by the display garden.  On  Mother's Day they serve lemonade, tea and cookies.  "We hope you will come and meet us and see the current years potted roses."  Thanks!  I will.
Gardens Alive www.gardensalive.com   (513) 354-1482  Great little reference manual to insects, diseasees and nutrient deficiencies in the garden and orchard.
John Scheepers Kitchen Garden Seeds www.kitchengardenseeds.com  (860) 567-6086  37 varieties of vegetables, herbs and both edible and ornamental flowers from Connecticut.
Charley's Greenhouse & Garden www.charleysgreenhouse.com  (800)322-4707  No. 1 Hobby Greenhouse Supplier in the country.
High Country Gardens  www.highcountrygardens.com  (800)925-9387  Selection of perennials, ornamental grasses and shrubs, including some varieties you will not find anywhere else.  Specializes in water-wise native and adapted plants that grow particularly well in the West.
Seeds from Italy  www.growitalian.com (781)721-5904 In the catalog and online oodles of detailed growing instructions plus "authentic recipes from some darned good Italian cookes."  tagged with a stick note:  The sinfully simple recipe for bean salad.
The Natural Gardening Company  wwww.naturalgardening.com  (707)766-9303  A well-edited selection of vegetable seedlings and seeds, plus  some perennials such as lavender, hollyhock and sage.  Its specialty is heirloom organic tomatoes.  Sticky note:  cute Jack-Be-Little pumkin.
Ronnigers Potato Farm  www.ronnigers.com  (208)267-7938  Great varieties of seed potatoes as well as garlic, onions and cover crops.
Nichols Garden Nursery  www.nicholsgardennursery.com  (800)422-3985 Seeds for herbs, everlasting flowers, vegetables of all types
(and lots of Asian greens) -- this catalog from rural Oregon has a wonderful, broad selection.
Bountiful Gardens  www.bountifulgardens.org (707)459-6410 Ecology Action, the parent of Bountiful Gardens, began in 1970 to encourage ecologically sound lifestyles.  Today, the heart of Ecology Action's work is to offer a supportive environment and training center for teachers and practitioners of founder John Jeavons' Grow Biointensive method.  Sticky note: Barbara P. Kerr's 79 page book ($15.) on building a solar box cooker.

Mother's Day in Bloom
     by Ramona Turner
[Excerpt:  entire article may be found at www.santacruzsentinel.com]

     With Mother's Day coming up Sunday, you may be thinking:  What do you get a woman who should have everything? Here are some tradtional and unusual gift ideas fromlocal shops that moms might enjoy:

     Roses are a traditional gift on the day we honor the women who nursed us back to health, stood behind us and gave us a nudge when we needed it.
     But for an unusual approach to roses, try the Watsonville garden shop called Roses of Yesterday and Today for a "gift that keeps on giving," according to Guinivere Wiley, who co-owns the nursery with her husband Jack and his brother, Andy Wiley.
     The 70-year-old business has been in the Wiley family for 50 years.  It specializes in growing and selling bare root and potted roses.  Some of the plants date back to the 1870's.  "We sell heirloom roses, as well as hybrid and modern roses," she said.

     Spoiled Rotten Day Spa Aptos, CA 831.688.7714  www.spoiledrottenspa.com

     Cakes by Joan  831.421.9988 or email joan@cakesbyjoan.com  Send a personal message on her tasty coconut cake.

     Club Ed.  Best place to go for a surf lesson in Santa Cruz, as well as week long surf camps.  www.club-ed.com 831.459.9283

     Capitola Book Cafe www.capitolabookcafe.com 831.462.4415

More Goldies
Critics' Choice Awards
Best View Through Rose-Colored Glasses
Roses of Yesterday & Today
No, a rose is not just a rose, especially to those who love them. From hybrid teas to florabundas, they are colorful children, fragrant aunties, incandescent movie stars, each with a personality of its own. Then there's a whole bunch of rosarians who dig older beauties, heirloom varieties of roses that date back hundreds of years. These folks shop their blooming hearts out at Roses of Yesterday & Today, a gardener's paradise that showcases more than 300 varieties of old, rare and unusual roses throughout its lush gardens. Whether your taste runs toward a heady Autumn Damask or a crimson Eugene deBauharnais, chances are co-owner Guinevere Wiley has it or can get it for you. Drop by or order online; either way, the blushing beauties are waiting for you. (803 Browns Valley Rd., Corralitos; 728-1901; www.rosesofyesterday.com)
by Kelly Luker, Metro Santa Cruz

Sunset,  June, 2003  by Clare Chatfield
Corralitos in bloom: near Santa Cruz, country roads lead to roses and redwoods
Travel: Northern California Day Trip

Nestled in the southern foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains, Corralitos is an easy place to miss. It doesn't have its own zip code. Nor does it have lodging, gift shops, or beachfront real estate. But it does have acres and acres of apple orchards, a local sausage market whose wares attract a cultlike following, and a 50-year-old heirloom-rose garden surrounded by redwood forests.

Although it's only 15 miles from downtown Santa Cruz, Corralitos can feel as much like New England as it does California (redwoods aside). Maybe it's those apple orchards and the old farmhouses, or the gently winding backroads that lead in and out of shady forests. Whatever the reason, a visit to Corralitos is a wonderful way to escape.

The area is best explored on wheels, two or four. A bicycle offers country air and good exercise; a car has the advantage of giving you a place to stow your goods. You can begin your trip the way many locals start their day-at the funky Corralitos Coffee Court (2904 Freedom Blvd.; 831/722-5700), where each cup of coffee is made to order.

While some would argue that Corralitos is too small to be considered a town, none would deny that the Corralitos Market & Sausage Co. (569 Corralitos Rd.; 831/722-2633) is the town center. Referred to simply as "the market," this 46-year-old institution is the social hub of the community. There's a little store selling basic groceries, with a meat and deli counter at the back. More than 25 kinds of sausages (fresh and applewoodsmoked) are made on the premises. The top-selling sausage is Cheezy Bavarian, says president Dave Peterson, who has worked here 27 years. More adventurous eaters might want to bring home some venison or ostrich sausage.

If you're just here for lunch, grab a sausage sandwich and eat at the grassy park across the street. Those wanting to stretch their legs can explore the nearby grounds and outbuildings of the 1960s Corralitos Community Center, on Brown's Valley Road.

Rose lovers should head 2 miles north to the small, family-owned Roses of Yesterday and Today (803 Brown's Valley Rd.; www.rosesofyesterday.com or 831/728-1901). Stroll through the redwood-edged garden featuring unusual and oldfashioned roses of every size and hue. The company does a lot of business through the mail, but some popular potted roses are available on-site.

If you're not in a hurry, continue north on Brown's Valley Road for another 1/2 mile, then turn onto Hazel Dell Road (which eventually becomes Casserly Road), where you can meander through shady redwood groves for 10 miles before the road loops around and emerges in Watsonville. Or go back to the market and take Eureka Canyon Road through the Santa Cruz Mountains. If you like country roads, there's not a wrong turn to take.

Sunset Magazine,  Feb, 1994  by Kathleen Norris Brenzel

Antique roses for today's gardens: grow them for their beauty, fragrance, and history

On a warm spring day, delicious fragrances float in the air above a sunny clearing in a valley near the California coast. It's bloom time in this 1-acre display garden at the Wiley family's Roses of Yesterday and Today, and roses are unfurling with perfumed madness, attracting visitors from around the world. They come to amble among the blossoms, to sniff, and to take photographs. "I had no trouble finding the garden," says one visitor as she steps out of a sports car. "I just rolled down the windows and followed my nose."

Much of this heady fragrance comes from the Wileys' collection of antique roses (also called old garden roses)--ones belonging to classes that were developed before 1867, the year that 'La France', the first hybrid tea, ushered in the era of modern roses. As with other commercial growers of old roses, the Wileys' love of these historic beauties grew into a business.

As Pat Wiley leads this visitor through the forest of shrubs, ramblers, and climbers, each cloaked with sumptuous blossoms, she introduces her favorite roses as though they are old friends: 'Baronne Prevost' is "perfection itself," 'Petite de Hollande' has "buds that hold their shape beautifully when dried in potpourri," and 'Salet' is "my favorite old moss." In the garden's center, white-flowered Rosa moschata scrambles up a tall, rusted windmill "in memory of a cow named Rosey who used to live here." Just down the hill, 'Marechal Niel' drapes its long canes over an old apple tree and dangles its yellow blossoms above eye level ("the flowers seem to follow you, like they're watching you," Wiley says).

As bustling as their garden is on this bright spring day, for the Wileys, winters are the busiest time of year. That's when they ship some 95,000 bare-root plants, grown in fields near Wasco, California, to gardeners around the country. (February is not too late to order old roses for blooms in your own garden by late spring.)

The Wileys and other growers report rising demand for old roses. What accounts for their renewed popularity? "There's such an interest in old things now--art, furniture, family heirlooms. I get calls from couples who are restoring Victorian houses in San Francisco. They want roses that are in keeping with the period architecture, the gingerbread trim, and the lace curtains." Indeed there's magic to growing roses so steeped in history: the musk rose immortalized by Shakespeare in A Midsummer Night's Dream, for example, or the Rose of Castile brought to California by Spanish missionaries in the 1700s ("hardly a mission garden was without one," Wiley notes), or the Harison's yellow rose pioneers brought West in their covered wagons.

The names of many old roses suggest regal elegance and romance: 'Prince Camille de Rohan', 'Empress Josephine', 'Belle Amour'. But their names don't begin to describe the delicious fragrances of many of these old charmers--the fruitiness of ripe apples, the spiciness of cloves, or the heady sweetness of the most floral perfume. Neither do they evoke the beauty of their blooms--big, loose cabbages, short-petaled powder puffs, or single-petaled starbursts--nor their range of colors, from creamy white to bright orange to pink striped with cherry red, like ribbon candy.

There's a stately grace to the plants themselves, and many kinds possess the toughness and disease resistance that have made them survivors.

How do you choose from so many kinds now available? We asked Wiley and other growers around the West to name some of their favorites ("about as easy as singling out your favorite child," one commented). The box on the opposite page lists 18 kinds; use it as a guide to get started. Order plants now and plant as soon as you get them.

Choosing the best types for your garden:

Old roses range widely in habit. There are compact, 4-foot shrubs with wide clusters of small flowers (China roses). And then there are taller, 5- to 8-foot shrubs with big, opulent, often very fragrant flowers (hybrid perpetuals). You'll also find vigorous, somewhat gangly shrubs with cup-shaped blooms (Bourbons).

Some old roses (albas, damasks, gallicas, centifolias, and most moss roses) bloom only once a year. Others, including most Bourbons, Chinas, hybrid perpetuals, hybrid musks, rugosas, and teas, are repeat bloomers; choose these for prominent spots in the garden.

Choose roses that are most suited to your climate. China, noisette, and tea roses, for example, are somewhat tender and thrive only in mild-winter climates, or in greenhouses. Bourbons, hybrid perpetuals, and Portlands are somewhat hardier but still need protection in cold-winter areas. The hardiest ones for the West's coldest climates (Alaska, Colorado) include autumn damasks, gallicas, centifolias, and species roses such as R. rugosa and its hybrids. Where to buy old roses
Well-stocked nurseries are beginning to sell some old roses. But for the best selection, order bare-root plants by mail.

Best of the old roses? Here are rosarians' favorites
Best for beginners
'Alfred de Dalmas' (hybrid moss, 1855). "A charming rose with fragrant blush pink to white blooms. It's compact--great for small gardens--and tough."
Pat Wiley, Watsonville, California
'Jacques Cartier' (also called 'Marquise Boccella', 1842). "Cup-shaped pink flowers are packed with petals, all folded inside. Plant is a repeat bloomer."
Joyce Demits, Fort Bragg, California
'Souvenir de la Malmaison' (Bourbon, 1843). "It's easy, even in containers. I've grown it in a big pot for 25 years, and it blooms twice a year."
J. D.
'Reine des Violettes' (hybrid perpetual, 1860). "Thornless, easy to grow, always in bloom. The most blue of all roses."
P. W.
Unforgettable fragrance
'Baronne Prevost' (hybrid perpetual, 1842). "Big, open flowers with many small, tightly packed rose-pink petals that are very perfumy."
P. W.
'Boule de Neige' (Bourbon, 1867). "Everybody's favorite. Snowy white, camellia-like blooms smell like cold cream."
P. W.
R. eglanteria (sweet briar, before 1551). "Should be in every big garden against a back fence where its marvelous, fruity, ripe-apple fragrance can waft across to patios and into open windows."
P. W.
'La Reine' (hybrid perpetual, 1842). "Heavy damask fragrance is very pleasing to the nose."
P. W.

Contact: Christina Glynn, Communications Director/Film Commissioner

February 19, 2003
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, CA—On a budget? Need a fall getaway that won’t break the piggy bank? Look no further than Santa Cruz County. From wine tasting to touring eclectic gardens, many of Santa Cruz County’s attractions and activities won’t even cost you your spare change. Listed below are the top 10 free things to do and see in Santa Cruz County.

1. Sample Fine Wine: Dozens of wineries in the Santa Cruz Mountains offer free wine tasting. Chart your next wine tasting adventure with a map and guide from the Santa Cruz Mountain Winegrowers Association or the Santa Cruz County Conference and Visitors Council.

2. Tour the Historic and Eclectic: A variety of free walking tours bring to life the history of Capitola, the logging days of Boulder Creek, the Victorian homes of Watsonville, the outdoor art of Santa Cruz and more. Tour brochures are available at the Santa Cruz County Conference and Visitors Council.

3. Explore Magical Gardens: Wander through bamboo gardens, smell the scents of rare roses, and see exotic plants from around the world. Bamboo Giant Nursery, Roses of Yesterday and Today, UCSC Arboretum, and many other gardens are free to explore.

4. Discover Museums: Learn about Santa Cruz surfing legends, the farming methods of a bygone era, the old logging days and more at admission-free museums such as the Surfing Museum, Agricultural History Project, San Lorenzo Valley Historical Museum, Capitola Museum and the Aptos Museum.

5. Savor Fine Art: Peruse galleries exhibiting rare glass paperweights, masks of Carnaval, electronic interactive art, and the work of local printmakers and watercolor painters. L.H. Selman Glass Gallery, Pajaro Valley Arts Council, Mary Porter Sesnon Gallery, Santa Cruz Arts League, and Santa Cruz Mountain Arts Center are just some of the galleries offering a glimpse into Santa Cruz County’s visual arts world.

6. People Watch and Window Shop: Stroll the vibrant streets of Downtown Santa Cruz. The pedestrian-friendly, tree-lined streets are populated with unique shops, exquisite art galleries, outdoor bistros, public art and an eclectic cadre of sidewalk musicians.

7. Hike Amid Towering Redwoods: A number of Santa Cruz County parks with great hiking trails are admission-free, including Pogonip, DeLaveaga Park, Quail Hollow Ranch and Fall Creek State Park. Other state parks only charge a $3 to $5 admission fee per vehicle.

8. Walk Scenic West Cliff: On foot, by blade or by bike, head north from the Santa Cruz Wharf following the scenic two-and-a-half mile path paralleling West Cliff Drive. Along the way, check out the Surfer Statue, Surfing Museum, and the big wave riders at the world-famous Steamer Lane.

9. Enjoy the Beach: With 29 miles of coastline, finding an admission-free beach for playing in the surf or lazing away on the sand is easy. Favorites include Main Beach, Capitola Beach, Rio Del Mar Beach, Twin Lakes Beach and Seabright Beach.

10. Watch a Free Sea Lion Show: The Santa Cruz Wharf is the gathering place for playful and boisterous sea lions. Stroll to the end of the wharf and watch these lumbering creatures as they suddenly acquire a ballerina’s grace the moment they hit the water.

A private, non-profit corporation, the Santa Cruz County Conference and Visitors Council (CVC) exists to enhance tourism and the economy by positioning Santa Cruz County as a visitor, conference and film destination. For more information, contact the CVC at 831-425-1234 or 800-833-3494. Or visit the CVC's web site at www.santacruz.org

     The story of Roses of Yesterday and Today begins with the well-known authority on old roses, Francis E. Lester.  He was attributed with collecting and keeping available many old roses and writing about the subject in his book My Friend, The Rose published by J. Horace McFarland Co. in 1942. According to Thomas Christopher’s book In Search of Lost Roses, Lester was born in England’s Lake District in 1868 and grew up during the heyday of England’s romance with the rose. He moved to the United States around the turn of the century and spent nearly 25 years in  Mesilla Park, New Mexico where he grew a 2 acre rose garden.  In his mid fifties he and his wife moved to California.   He searched the foothills and missions of California where he recognized the old roses from his childhood and  collected cuttings for propagation.  Pat Wiley said it was an honor for him when the British Government allowed him to quarantine roses at Sunnydale Nursery in England for export to the U.S.  He settled with his wife Marjorie, in Corralitos, south of Santa Cruz in 1938 on the Central Coast among “the circles of redwoods.”  Nestled on four acres of beautiful forest, he created a display garden and propagation field along a quiet mountain stream.   The business was called “Lester Rose Gardens” and some of the roses can still be found at that address just up the road from the current “Roses of Yesterday and Today Garden.”  Lester put out the Lester Rose Gardens catalog that served as a model for the rose catalogs for years to come.  He wrote in 1941, “This catalogue differs from many catalogues you will receive;  it has no expensive colored illustrations, and, I hope, no extravagant claims.  But it does offer you the benefit of long experience with roses;  it tries to tell the truth;  and it offers you nothing that has not been tried out and found to be of real merit, not for the expert horticulturist but for the amateur gardener, whom we try to serve faithfully, and whose interests we hold to be paramount.  My occasional personal comments about the Old Roses, I trust, be excused, for they come from the heart.”
     Francis E. Lester’s successor, Will Tillotson, carried on the tradition of the “chatty catalog” updating descriptions with “field notes, customer comments, notes from reference books, and unties the ‘old sack of adjectives’ and submits his efforts to your tender mercies.”  He and Marjorie Lester ran the business together and it became “Lester and Tillotson Rose Gardens” for a while, and when Marjorie Lester passed away the business became “Will Tillotson’s Roses.”  The catalog, however, was usually titled Roses of Yesterday or Roses of Yesterday and Today.  Will Tillotson and Dorothy Stemler lived a short distance down the stream from the Lester Rose Gardens and across the street from where the “Roses of Yesterday and Today Rose Garden” is today.
     Will Tillotson wrote approximately ten catalogs and the book Garden Notes, Will Tillotson - Diaries which can be viewed at the UCSC Library, Special Collections.  Dorothy Stemler, became Will Tillotson’s “Honorable Secretary.” He introduces her and describes himself in the 1952-1953 Roses of Yesterday catalog, “Your letter (which we hope to receive), will be answered by Mrs. Dorothy Stemler, ‘Honorable Secretary,’ hardworking and efficient, who through some undue modesty, begs her physical attributes remain undescribed.  She spends much of the summer in the growing fields . . . knows more about the personal habits of roses than any of us . . . likes humans.  The catalog-writer surveys [himself] ‘the irrepressible Will Tillotson’ with many misgivings and feels the less said the better.  Variously described, according to taste, as something midway between Monty Woolley and an old goat ( the beard and the stubbornness no doubt).  Grows the roses WE like, regardless of profit . . . Jack of All Trades in our business and certainly master of none.  Enjoys some people, shuns others.  You definitely wouldn’t like him.”  He states in the 1955 catalog “This catalog will not try to impress you with great ‘professional knowledge,’ which we do not claim . . . rather that we have ‘good taste’ in roses, and those which we offer from the hundreds available to us for propagation, all of them are distinct rose personalities.” Will Tillotson and Dorothy Stemler said they were privileged to acquire and grow many roses sent to them by Graham Stuart Thomas in England, and indebted to Dr. Griffith J. Buck if Iowa State University whose advice and help in propagation were invaluable.
     Dorothy Stemler’s daughter, Patricia Stemler Wiley, took care of Francis E. Lester in his final days as he suffered from leukemia.  She later worked with her husband, Newt Wiley, propagating roses for Will Tillotson.  After Will Tillotson passed away on a trip to England in June, 1957,  Dorothy Stemler continued to run the business as “Will Tillotson’s Roses” with the help of Pat Wiley and her husband.  Dorothy Stemler and Pat Wiley were both great ladies of Rosedom.  Dorothy and Pat established the current “Roses of Yesterday and Today Garden.” They spent time in England, France, Germany, Scandinavia and New Zealand, touring gardens, and visiting with friends like Graham Thomas, Peter Beales, David Austin, and Trevor Griffiths.  Both women traveled worldwide, giving talks to various rose societies and associations.  When Dorothy Stemler passed away in 1976, the business name was officially changed to “Roses of Yesterday and Today.” Patricia Stemler Wiley and her husband, Newton Wiley, ran the business for 20 more years until 1996 when they finally retired in their 70’s.  A vast collection of books on roses, 4 albums, 2 scrapbooks, and photos and prints dating back to 1917, which would have been in the libraries of Francis Lester, Will Tillotson, and Dorothy Stemler,  were gifted to the UCSC library in 1996 by Patricia Stemler Wiley.
     In 1998, their fourth son, Jack, his wife-to-be, Guinivere, and the eldest son, N.D. (Andy) Wiley reopened the garden to the public everyday with roses for sale year round on the Honor System.  They continue to ship bare root roses January through April.  They offer both grafted and own root roses and rotate in approximately 150 varieties a year out of 240 that are on display in the garden.
     The garden is 40 minutes north of Monterey, 20 minutes south of Santa Cruz, and one and a quarter hour south of San Francisco.  The beautiful mountain canyon, with its great redwoods, maple trees, ferns and a rippling stream is peaceful and enchanting to visit any time of the year, but the roses are at their peak during May and June.  Each Mother’s Day Weekend is the Annual Open House, when the garden is bursting with new blooms and the season’s potted roses. Cookies, ice tea and lemonade are served and members of the family are on hand for questions and recommendations.  
     Descriptions and photos of old, rare, unusual and selected modern roses currently available as well as rose recommendations for special conditions such as shade, seaside conditions, cold climates, and roses suitable for pergolas, fences, training for pillars, etc. can be seen on the Roses of Yesterday and Today Garden’s web site, www.rosesofyesterday.com.  The current business name is “Roses of Yesterday” and the 2006/2007 Roses of Yesterday catalog is available for $5. Guinivere Wiley is currently producing a full color book compiling descriptions and photos of over 240 varieties of selected roses and the writings of Will Tillotson and Dorothy Stemler.  

Roses of Yesterday and Today Rose Garden   www.rosesofyesterday.com
803 Browns Valley Road, Corralitos, CA 95076  (831)728-1901

The Roses of Yesterday business on Brown's Valley Road was established by Francis E. Lester in the 1930s. He was originally a citrus grower from Riverside, CA. He lived at the house on the corner of Brown's Valley and Redwood Roads. It was there that he ran Lester's Rose Gardens. His catalogs were titled Roses of Yesterday and Today. Will Tillotson joined him in the business. After Lester's death, Mrs. Lester started a display garden and packing shed on the property across from Jensen's apple shed (410 Corralitos Road) with Tillotson and Dorothy Stemler.

Tillotson owned the business himself from 1948 to1957 as Tillotson's Rose Gardens. He established his home and rose office at 802 Brown's Valley Road and used the packing shed on Corralitos Road for a time. When Fred Hamisch owned the property at 410, he grew a few crops of the roses. Later the crop growing was moved to San Jose because roses could not be grown on the same piece of land without rotating the crops. It was necessary to grow alfalfa or cotton to replenish the land, so it was a constant effort to find land to propagate the roses.

Dorothy Stemler became Tillotson's “Honorable Secretary” and together they collected, propagated and distributed many of the old roses at a time few were. They were a fine pair. They enjoyed correspondence and feedback from customers. They would incorporate this into the descriptions each year in the catalogs.

Dorothy became sole proprietor when Tillotson bequeathed the business to her in 1957. She ran the business until 1976 as Tillotson's Roses with the help of her daughter, Patricia Wiley. They officially changed the business name to Roses of Yesterday and Today in 1977. Patricia and her husband, Newton E. Wiley, grew the business even more from 1976 to1996. They established the garden at 803 Brown's Valley Road. They added a shed and expanded to encompass the 240 varieties of roses that are there now. When Pat and Newton retired, their elder children, Andy, Jack and wife, Guinivere, continued to keep the garden open to the public every day and offer potted and bareroot roses. In 1998, the rose business established an Internet site www.rosesofyesterday.com.

“In this garden we live with the same inspiration from the land and this rose business that guided their everyday life and we are blessed to serve in this way.” Guinivere Vestal Wiley