The San Jose Municipal Rose Garden is a historic rose garden in San Jose, California , in the Rose Garden District . Founded in 1927, the garden is exclusively dedicated to roses and features more than 3,500 shrubs representing 189 rose varieties.
8-487: The AARS named the SJ Municipal Rose Garden as "America's Best Rose Garden" , making it the winner in the first nationwide competition ever. The garden, 5.5 acres in size, was once a prune orchard, but was bought by San Jose in 1927. The garden was founded on 20 November 1927, when San Jose City Council set aside 5 1/2 acres of an 11–acre tract of land for a rose garden. Its creation had been championed by
16-642: A meeting in Chicago on January 8, 1939, with representatives from the seventeen largest rose growers. The outcome of the meeting was the creation of the non-profit organization, "All-America Rose Selections, Inc. (AARS), with the goal of evaluating and promoting outstanding roses."' The first rose trials began in 1939 in AARS test gardens throughout the US. The first AARS winners were announced in 1940. The "All-America Rose Selections" continued each year from 1940 until 2013. The award
24-524: Is considered to be the most prestigious rose award in the United States . Hybrid tea rose , 'Francis Meilland' was the last rose awarded by AARS. AARS was discontinued after 2013, and was replaced by the new "American Garden Rose Selections" program. The AARS selection process began with a rose grower submitting a new rose (or roses) to AARS for testing. Roses were grown in official rose testing gardens, typically universities and rose nurseries throughout
32-705: The Santa Clara County Rose Society, which subsequently provided the roses for the new land given by the city. Groundbreaking took place on On 7 April 1931 and the Municipal Rose Garden was officially dedicated on 7 April 1937, six years later. As an official Display Garden for the All-America Rose Selections (AARS), the San Jose Municipal Rose Garden receives AARS award-winning roses in advance of public release. In
40-471: The early 2000s, city budget cuts impacted the garden, which led to the AARS placing it on probation. In 2007 Friends of the San Jose Rose Garden (FSJRG) was established, a volunteer nonprofit organization whose mission was to restore and renovate the garden. In 2008 the AARS lifted the garden from probation and restored full accreditation, and the following year over 800 new roses were planted as part of
48-471: The first nationwide contest of its kind. The winning garden was selected based on beauty, creativity and community involvement. The Municipal Rose Garden is a City of San Jose historic landmark. All-America Rose Selections The All-America Rose Selections (AARS) is an award that was given annually, from 1940 to 2013, by the American rose industry to an outstanding new rose variety. The AARS selection
56-513: The restoration project. On May 2, 2009, it was rededicated as an official AARS test garden, one of 23 in the US and the only one in Northern California . On December 15, 2009, the restoration of the San Jose Municipal Rose Garden was nationally recognized on the Corporation for National and Community Service website. On August 12, 2010, the AARS named it "America's Best Rose Garden", in
64-467: Was regarded as the most prestigious rose prize in the United States for 73 years. AARS was discontinued after 2013, and was replaced in 2016 by the new American Garden Rose Selections (AGRS) program. In 1938, W. Ray Hastings, creator of "All-America Rose Selections", approached Charles Perkins, president of the Jackson & Perkins company with an idea for a rose testing program. Their conversation led to
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