Proposed by: River Oaks Garden Club, Zone IX

Peter Kukielski has revolutionized the American Rose Garden, so that it now can be beautiful, easily grown and safe for all creatures great and small.  It began in 2006 when as Curator of The Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden (a  part of the NY Botanical Garden), he was charged with the mission of transforming the famous Beatrix Farrand designed garden into one which would meet New York’s new environmental standard.  A statistician by earlier training, Peter researched European roses that had the characteristics and genetics to allow them to successfully complete rigorous French and German trials for sustainability. He also embraced the then nascent Earth-Kind movement evolving out of rose sustainability trials developed by pioneer, Dr. Steve George, at Texas A& M University. The Rockefeller Garden became the first East Coast Earth-Kind trial site. After removal of hundreds of roses, most replaced with his new choices, Peter’s work culminated in The Peggy Rockefeller Garden receiving the Great Rosarians of the World Garden Hall of Fame Award for 2010 and was voted America’s Best Public Rose Garden Display by the All American Rose Selections (AARS) Committee.  In 2012 the Garden received the Award of Excellence from the World Federation of Rose Societies, recognizing it as the best rose garden in the world. Today Peter is the Executive Director of the new American Rose Trials For Sustainability (ARTS).  Launched in 2014, these are national rose trials to scientifically determine the best roses based on regionality and climate.  Also, in 2014 he introduced his new book, Roses Without Chemicals.