Just a little over 50 years ago, two Marin residents met for the first time at a three-day American Rose Society Western District convention and rose show at the historic Eureka Inn in Humboldt County.
They had no idea at the time that their serendipitous meeting would result in the founding of one of Marin’s great long-serving garden groups, the Marin Rose Society, which commemorates its 50th anniversary this year.
The Marin Rose Society will celebrate the milestone with a certificate from the American Rose Society and the chapter’s annual rose and photography show from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. May 11 at the Bon Air shopping center in Greenbrae.
Besides the two juried shows, there will be a number of exhibits, a panel of consulting rosarians, interactive games for kids and a miniature rose giveaway for Mother’s Day. The popular bloom sale takes place after the show.
Back in Eureka, those many years ago, one of those two men was the late Joseph J. Klima, a retired engineer from the East Ohio Gas Co. and a nationally recognized rosarian.
The Kent Woodlands resident had been the 35th president of the American Rose Society in 1962, was the recipient of its national Gold Honor Medal in 1971 and was one of a group of American Rose Society members responsible for the methodical task of trialing new roses in their home gardens for the American Rose Society’s rose-rating program.
The other Marin man, Gary Scales, worked in commercial real estate and mortgage lending in San Francisco and was a rose novice.
He and his wife, Janet, had recently purchased their Ross home and, after transplanting the six existing rose bushes planted around the property to one location, he claims he was “hooked.”
“I read everything I could find on roses, their cultivation, classifications and history,” Scales says. “I joined the American Rose Society and sent away for a dozen rose catalogs.”
When the two met in Eureka, Scales asked Klima why there wasn’t a Marin Rose Society.
Klima responded he had six prospective members and, when Scales said he could recruit four more people, the roots of the Marin Rose Society were planted.
Its mission was simple and enduring — the promotion of the preservation and appreciation of America’s national flower, the rose.
“The Klimas were selfless in this effort,” Scales says. “There was no task or duty too small for them. At every monthly meeting, they gave the rose lectures, judged the rose show competition, brought the refreshments and cleaned up.”
He describes Klima, and his wife Marion, both from Ohio, as “out of central casting.”
“The perfect gentleman, always dressed formally in a suit and tie, but most willing to take off his coat and enthusiastically show a novice the proper way to dig a hole for a rose,” Scales says. “Marion let Joseph have center stage, but she was as knowledgeable and perhaps as formidable as he. They were dedicated to the rose.”
Early meetings were held in the second floor conference room of the former Westamerica Bank in Larkspur.
“Several of us would retire to the old Black Oak saloon down the street to discuss the finer points of rose cultivation over a beer or two,” Scales says.
Today, the Klimas’ legacy lives on at the American Rose Society’s headquarters and the site of America’s Rose Garden in Shreveport, Louisiana.
It was the beneficiary of the Klimas’ large estate, where the 4,000-square-foot visitor’s center, Klima Rose Hall, holds the library and hosts special events. It is also where the prestigious Klima Medal to honor the highest levels of excellence in rose education is awarded annually, as well as where the Klima rose, a climbing yellow miniature introduced in 1993, is recognized.
Gary and Janet Scales’ long-term love of and devotion to roses is evident in their home’s gorgeous, terraced, English-style rose garden that once topped out at 400 roses, but today holds steady at about half that.
Although he maintains his membership in the Marin Rose Society, Scales is no longer active in the meetings.
He credits the later generations of Marin Rose Society members for shaping it into a “vibrant and significant organization.”
From its original 10 members to the 82 members now operating under the current leadership of co-presidents Elaine Ganas, of San Rafael, and Andy Smith, of Mill Valley, the Marin Rose Society has been a trusted resource for Marin rose lovers for 50 years.
“Its consulting rosarian advisors provide a source of information and support for every level of rose enthusiast,” he says. “Its lectures and speakers are always knowledgeable and its annual rose show has been a hit with Marin residents for decades.”
And unsurprisingly, he adds that “no garden is complete without a rose bush.”
• Details: The Marin Rose Society’s rose and photography show is from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. May 11 at 110 Bon Air Center in Greenbrae, next to the Wells Fargo Bank. Rose and photography entries will be accepted from 7 to 10 a.m. Judging of the entries will take place from 10 a.m. to noon. Show blooms are available for $1 each, with proceeds to benefit the Center for Domestic Peace. Admission and activities are free. For more information, go to marinrose.org.
Membership in the Marin Rose Society costs $25 per year and includes access to monthly (except for December) informative meetings with guest speakers and rose shows and copies of the chapter’s newsletter. Meetings are held at 6:30 p.m. on the second Tuesday of each month except for December at the Marin Art and Garden Center at 30 Sir Francis Drake Blvd. in Ross.
If you have a beautiful or interesting Marin garden or a newly designed Marin home, I’d love to know about it.
Please send an email describing either one (or both), what you love most about it and a photograph or two. I will post the best ones in upcoming columns. Your name will be published and you must be over 18 years old and a Marin resident.
PJ Bremier writes on home, garden, design and entertaining topics every Saturday. She may be contacted at P.O. Box 412, Kentfield 94914, or at pj@pjbremier.com.
