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Home & Garden readers might also want to read Keep it Green, a gardening column by Michael Womack.

Saturday, November 3, 2001
Blooming with pride
Network of rose growers help soften the thorny side of blossoming buds
By Mike Bratten
Caller-Times

George Tuley/Caller-Times

‘Blast Off’ roses have little pointy petals. The blooms last longer than most roses and give off a slightly spicy fragrance.

In a 70 mile-per-hour world, where cell phones, faxes and high-speed Internet are almost indispensable, who would want to slow down and grow roses? You may be surprised.
   There's a tight-knit network of people out there who are content to chuck instant gratification and invest their time in growing something that pays back in beauty.
   "For me, it's a stress reliever to go out there and tend to my roses after work," said Steve Nikolanci, a bookkeeper at a local law firm. "It's an exercise in patience, in a good way."
   Since he started growing them about eight years ago, Nikolanci's roses have garnered him blue ribbons at shows he's attended locally and in San Antonio and Houston.
   Today, he'll show his hybrid teas, miniatures and floribundas at the Corpus Christi Rose Society's annual Fall Rose Show in Sunrise Mall. The show, which opens to the public at noon, will feature more than 600 single blooms plus arrangements, all grown outdoors by amateur rose growers.
   Jan Shannon, president of the Rose Society, said local growers will be joined by others from San Antonio, Austin, Houston and possibly Louisiana.

David Adame/Caller-Times

Christina Hirko, 7, thinks she has a good chance of winning awards at today’s show for her roses.

   Part of the appeal of roses is the camaraderie that develops between their growers. And in South Texas, where fungus is a common problem, it helps to be part of a knowledgeable network.
   "Blackspot and powdery mildew are common on roses here. The solution is to spray them with fungicide and join the Rose Society," Shannon said with a laugh.
   Rose growing is a blend of artistic and scientific skill, and showing them requires skill as well. Judges at shows scrutinize even the leaves on the roses, Shannon said.
   Christina Hirko, 7, thinks she has a good chance of winning awards at today's show with her arrangements of miniatures and hybrid teas.
   "If you're more creative, you have a better chance of winning, and I'm a creative person," said Christina, who has been growing roses in her backyard since age 5.
   "I want to win a ribbon pretty bad. It would be a nice reward for all my work."


Contact Mike Bratten at 886-3623 or brattenm@caller.com

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