Dear breeders around the world

A new rose trial ground, the third in Japan, is born! The trials starting here are : "The International Fragrant Rose Trials in Echigo Hillside Park, Nagaoka, Japan"

Generally speaking, the western areas of the Japanese Archipelago, a long thin stretch from north-east to south-west, enjoy a mild winter climate, while some places in the eastern areas have a cold climate and a lot of snowfall in winter. The City of Nagaoka in Niigata Prefecture is located approximately in the centre of the country. The city provides 400ha of its area for a national park with a rose garden.

Before commencing rose trials in this park, we discussed the plan from various viewpoints. They noticed that not a few of the roses introduced in recent years have little or no fragrance one of the excellent qualities this flower is known for. The new trials are going to put a special emphasis on this quality. Also, since the park is located in an area snow-bound in winter but not excessively cold - the snow stays from the middle of December to the end of March, and roses normally come out toward the end of May - the trials held there are expected to help promote the breeding of roses suited to many areas around the world.

We are now ready to invite entries, and hope breeders around the world, both amateurs and professional, will support our ideas and enter many of their new roses in our trials.

Enclosed please find the guidelines and some reference materials. Please send your roses to us. Thank you