Author: NRS Webmaster

May 19, 1:30-4:00 pm – Spring Grand Prix Rose Show

Previous Grand Prix winners for Large Roses (other than hybrid tea)
The Nashville Rose Society 2024 Spring Grand Prix Rose Show will be held during the regularly scheduled monthly meeting on Sunday, May 19, 2024, in the Massey Auditorium of Botanic Hall / Visitor Services Building at Cheekwood Garden and Estate.

The purpose of the Grand Prix is to give members a chance to learn about and practice exhibiting roses. A grooming room will be open at 1:00 pm. Experienced exhibitors will be there to help anyone needing help grooming their roses. All you need to do is know the names of the roses you bring. This show is an excellent opportunity to learn how to enter your roses in the Nashville Rose Show on May 25-26, 2024.

Click here to open the schedule for the Grand Prix.

The Master and Consulting Rosarians will talk about “Why Are Some Roses Winners”. The 2024 Nashville Rose Show schedule will be discussed and there will be members who can help you fill out the tags that go on your entries.

Please note: The NRS Grand Prix rose shows are not sanctioned by the American Rose Society .

For more information on how roses are judged, visit the American Rose Society website, rose.org, and study the “Guidelines and Rules for Judging Roses”.

April 7, 1:30-4:30 pm – Jason Reeves, “Garden Heroes – Top Performing Easy to Grow Annuals and Perennials”

The April meeting of the Nashville Rose Society will be held on April 7, 2024, in the Massey Auditorium of Botanic Hall / Visitor Services Building at Cheekwood Garden and Estate. We will have refreshments at 1:30 and the program will start at 2:00 PM.

Jason Reeves – Garden Tours, Garden Lecturer & Writer, Photographer, Landscape Designer and Consultant with more than 20 years experience in the green industry.
Our guest speaker will be Jason Reeves. Since 2002, Jason has been a research horticulturist and curator of the University of Tennessee Gardens located at the West Tennessee Research and Education Center in Jackson, Tennessee. He grew up on a farm in West Tennessee, where he fell in love with the plant world. Jason received his Master’s degree in Ornamental Horticulture and Landscape Design from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

Let’s face it: some plants are just better than others! In the plant world, new is not always better. With his extensive experience in gardens and landscapes Jason focuses on dependable new and older, but underutilized, good garden performers may of which attract bees, butterflies, and other pollinators to your domain. This talk will have you racing to the nursery to try out these champions of the garden.

Jason’s colorful plant combinations and unique garden art, made by recycling everyday objects, draws several thousand people each year to the Center’s annual lawn and garden show, Summer Celebration. His past experiences include work at the Opryland Conservatories in Nashville, Missouri Botanical Garden, Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania, and in private gardens in New Zealand.

When he’s not bringing the grounds to life with his imaginative garden displays, he’s evaluating hundreds of new and unique plants for the state’s green industry; speaking at gardening symposiums or traveling the world leading gardening tours, and serving as a contributing editor to Fine Gardening magazine. He is also a landscape designer and consultant whose influence may be seen in landscapes across Tennessee in the form of distinct plant combinations and his signature garden art. He does all this and manages to find time to garden at home. You can follow him on Facebook at Jason Reeves – in the garden.

The Cheekwood Campus Map shows the location of Botanic Hall.

Note: Admission to Cheekwood is not required – let the gate attendant know that you are attending the NRS Meeting in Botanic Hall.

March 3, 1:30 – 4:00pm – “A Blooming Success Story”

Ricky Lockhart
The March meeting of the Nashville Rose Society will be held on March 3, 2024, in the the Massey Auditorium of Botanic Hall / Visitor Services Building at Cheekwood Garden and Estate. We will have refreshments at 1:30 and the program will start at 2:00 PM.

From just one bed of roses planted over thirty years ago, Ricky Lockhart’s passion and love for roses has grown to nearly 250 rose plants. While he grows multiple types, he mainly focuses on exhibition-style roses including Hybrid Tea and Grandiflora Roses, as well as Floribundas. He is planning to build two new beds this spring.

In addition to tending his beloved roses, Lockhart manages 98 acres of land, cattle and crops, which he says “makes a great hobby for retired folks and is an excellent way to pass the time.”

Ricky and wife Mary Ann, Team Lockhart!
An active member and former president of the Bowling Green Rose Society, Lockhart regularly participates area rose competitions and often wins. During the Southeast TENARKY District Rose Show in Knoxville, Tennessee last year Ricky was awarded the prestigious McFarland Rose award for the second time. This top award, named after the famous rosarian John Horace McFarland, is the highest award to be achieved at our regional show. Ricky consistently places in a variety of classes when he shows.

To ensure that his roses are properly grown and cared for, Lockhart has developed a specific watering and fertilizing system for his rose beds and a tried and true method for transporting and showing roses. We are excited to have him share his tips and tricks with the Nashville Rose Society at our monthly meeting on March 3.

The Cheekwood Campus Map shows the location of Botanic Hall.

Note: Admission to Cheekwood is not required – let the gate attendant know that you are attending the NRS Meeting in Botanic Hall.