Below is a collection of papers and presentations detailing the creation and development of the rose survey project.
Roses for the 21st Century: The 2012 Survey
A joint project of The Rose Hybridizers Association and the Texas A&M University Rose Genetics Project. This PowerPoint, linked below, contains the questions that made up the 2012 survey. View the PowerPoint here.
Survey of the rose community: desired rose traits and research issues
D.H. Byrne, H.B. Pemberton, D.J. Holeman, T. Debenee, T.M. Waliczek, and M. Palma
Abstract
In 2012-2013, an online survey run by the Rose Hybridizer Association and Texas A&M University asked the rose community for input on the importance of rose traits in the selection of rose cultivars. When ranked on importance compared to other traits, the most important trait was disease resistance. The comments confirmed this rating among both recreational gardeners and breeders with the most mentioned disease being black spot followed by mildew, rust and rose rosette disease. Pests mentioned were Japanese beetles and thrips. Among abiotic traits that were mentioned, cold hardiness was the most mentioned followed by heat, drought, and shade tolerance. For horticultural traits, the most desired trait was improved fragrance. The preliminary results from a new survey supports the previous conclusion that the most important rose traits are disease resistance, fragrance, number of flowers produced and plant size.
Read the full paper Survey of the Rose Community: Desired Rose Traits and Research Issues
Growers’ and Consumers’ Knowledge, Attitudes and Opinions Regarding Roses Available for Purchase
T.M. Waliczek, D.H. Byrne, D.J. Holeman
Keywords: Rosa × hybrida, survey, rose breeding, disease resistance, fragrance, recurrent blooming, flower color, flower size
Abstract
Rose breeders historically have bred plants based on what they personally have deemed important, or instead on variables growers have noted as important for the success in growing the crop. End-user opinions have not been formally considered. The purpose of this study was to investigate the growers’ and the consumers’ knowledge, attitudes, needs and opinions of roses available on the market and their experiences in growing them in the nursery and home landscape. A survey tool was developed to measure what attributes consumers were looking for in purchasing and growing rose plants, their knowledge of diseases and pests and their hopes for new plants coming to market. The survey was developed using Limesurvey web-based survey design tool. A link was sent to horticultural group mailing lists including the Rose Hybridizer Association, the American Rose Society, the Texas Landscape and Nursery Association, Master Gardeners among others as well as distributed through personal email lists, Facebook, and a news release from Texas A&M University. The survey was posted for 10 weeks. It included approximately 66 questions and took 30 min or more to complete. Over 1800 responses were received from rose growers and consumers worldwide. Data were automatically downloaded into Microsoft Excel. Data formatting was conducted in Excel and transferred to PASW/SPSS. Results of the survey found that respondents preferred roses that were disease resistant, with fragrant, abundant, red and recurrent blooming flowers. The ideal height of the rose shrubs is waist to shoulder-height. Therefore, roses should be bred to include these attributes.
Read the full paper Walizcek rose trait preference Acta Hort 2015 (1)
Advances in Rose Breeding and Genetics in North America
D.H. Byrne, Department of Horticultural Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, 77843-2133 USA
Keywords: Rosa, disease resistance, black spot, Diplocarpon, rose survey, taxonomy, rose rosette virus
“In the online survey, of about 1,800 responses received, 135 indicated that they bred roses. So who were all these rose breeders? The majority are part-time breeders of which almost 3⁄4 of them were 50 years or older (Fig. 2). 31% of these breeders were in their 60s and 23% were in their 70s and 80s! The most common profession listed was retired (Fig. 3) which makes sense given the age distribution. The next most common profession was horticulture. Some of these would be nursery professionals that breed and release varieties to have new products for their business. Beyond that, a wide range of professions is represented among these rose breeders: from artists to legal eagles to engineers to students. There are even a few professional breeders in the mix! The other significant fact is that 70% of these programs are located east of the Rockies where there are more disease pressures than there are in the drier west coast environment.
It is the private rose breeding programs that release most of the new cultivars in North America. In fact, there are only three publicly funded landscape rose breeding programs operational in North America: the University of Minnesota, Texas A&M University, and the Research and Innovation Centre in Ontario, Canada. All three focus on disease resistance (with black spot being the major disease issue) with the northern programs emphasizing cold hardiness and the southern program in Texas more interested in summer heat tolerance.”
Read the full article Advances in Rose Breeding and Genetics in North America
Growers’ and Consumers’ Perceptions Regarding Roses Available for Purchase
Tina M. Waliczek, David Byrne, Dan Holeman
This powerpoint, linked below, details the expectations and attitudes about roses collected by the 2013 survey, identifies market limitations, and discusses strategies to increase rose use.
Grower’s and Consumer’s Perceptions Regarding Roses Available for Purchase
Rose Breeding and Genetics Research in North America
David H. Byrne
This powerpoint uses the survey as a source to discuss who is breeding roses, the trends in rose types, the trends with black spot resistance, the regional testing of roses, and rose research genetics and breeding projects. The full powerpoint is linked below.
Rose Breeding and Genetics Research in North America
The Survey of the Rose Community Desired Rose Traits and Research Issues
David Byrne, H. Brent Pemberton, Marco Palma, Thomas Debener, Don J. Holeman, Tina M. Waliczek
This powerpoint, linked below, discusses the survey currently under development using the information from the 2012-2013 survey. It includes information on the sample demographic used, charts detailing the responses on the importance of rose traits and how they factor into the purchase of roses.
Survey of the Rose Community Desired Rose Traits and Research Issues