Michel Trudeau Memorial Rose royalties aimed at life-saving education and services

Following stellar reviews at its public dedication during the World Rose Festival last June, the Michel Trudeau Memorial Rose will be released to the trade this fall, with proceeds from the propagation and sale of the plant going to charity. 

The new variety, discovered by Betsy and Robin Dening of Brentwood Bay Nurseries on Vancouver Island, was named in honour of their nephew. The son of Canada’s most well-known Prime Minister, the late Pierre Elliot Trudeau, Michel perished while skiing in Kokanee Glacier Provincial Park. 

Last winter in British Columbia, 17 people were killed in avalanches; since Michel’s death, 83 have died in Canada in avalanche-related incidents. The rose is a way of contributing to those programs that offer life-saving training and warning bulletins to both locals and the numerous international tourists who enjoy the area’s breath-taking but too often lethal backcountry.  All royalties collected on the rose will be donated to the Canadian Avalanche Foundation.  Organizers envision that the Michel Trudeau Memorial Rosetm will become not simply a living memorial, but also a symbol of growing awareness—one with tangible benefits for an organization that works hard to keep people safe.

“It’s truly a gem,” says Dave Adamson of Adamson’s Heritage Nursery in Langley, B.C., “and one that will grow and thrive in practically any conditions.”  Like other Rugosa roses, the Michel Trudeau Memorial Rosetm flourishes—disease-free—from temperate coastal USDA Zone 8 to chilly minus 40 winters of USDA Zone 2 gardens, and has outstanding value in home, municipal and commercial applications. What differentiates this rose from those of its Rugosa parentage, however, are snow-white streaks through its deep pink petals, and spectacular autumn colour in plum-red hues.  Its full-bodied, spiced aroma brought accolades from renown rosarian Peter Beales this summer.

Limited quantities of the Michel Trudeau Memorial Rose are available for the 2010 season.  Growers wanting to obtain a license to propagate the rose, and retailers looking for finished product, should contact Adamson’s Heritage Nursery of Langley, British Columbia, which holds administrative rights to the rose.

About the Michel Trudeau Memorial Rose:

Bloom Time: Repeat flowering from spring to fall
Exposure: Plant in fertile, free-draining soil in full sun
Water: Mulch soil after planting and water 2-3 times per week until established
Height: Grows 4 feet (120 cm) high to 3 feet (90 cm) wide – bigger on West Coast
USDA Zone: 2-9
Description: Long pointed reddish-pink buds open to large, very fragrant, double deep pink flowers with yellow stamens and white splashes in the centre; silvery-pink undersides. Medium sized shrub with disease resistant, glaucous-green ruffled foliage and prickly stems. New growth has red veining and reddish stems. Spectacular plum-red fall foliage and large red hips, wonderful grown as a shrub in borders or as a hedge.