Welcome to my Hybridizer's Journal. Within these pages you will find my journey into the world of the amateur rose breeder. This journey takes place in the southeastern corner of Pennsylvania. A climate where the summers provide just enough time to scurry about the garden, depositing pollen here and there and everywhere, and the winters are just short enough to prevent complete madness from setting in as you wait for that first sign of spring to herald the coming of the first rose blooms of the year. I invite you to join me as each chapter unfolds in my quest for a rose I can truly call my own.
Enjoy!
Michelle L. LeVan-SteklenskiEmail: michellynn@hotmail.com
HOW IT ALL BEGAN....
My interest in rose breeding actually began in the summer of 2002, during my second year of growing roses. However, my awareness of how to go about attempting this myself came rather late that growing season. As a result, I unfortunately fell quite short of being adequately informed and prepared, and my first feeble attempts ultimately produced nothing of note. Determined to overcome my initial lack of success, I began to seek out whatever information I could find on the topic. I wanted to absorb as much as possible from experienced individuals willing to provide tutelage to a novice such as myself. I was fortunate enough to find a great deal of support and knowledge through an online rose forum that I had begun to frequent, Rosarian's Corner. There, I came into contact with several other novice hybridizers foraging down this same path, as well as a few established rose breeders. We banded together and began to call our little group of emerging rose breeders, the Stigma Betas.
Over the winter of 2002/2003 I began my earnest studies in the practice of hybridizing roses. That following June, I stepped into the garden armed with collection cups and a razor blade and began collecting pollen. There began my journey.
If you would like to read further detail about my first year as a novice hybridizer, you can find a series of articles l wrote during that time by visiting my Articles page.
INSIDE THE JOURNAL...
Within these pages I have compiled some of the highlights of my breeding activities. In the 2003 Seedlings section you will find photos and brief descriptions of some of my most promising seedlings resulting from my 2003 pollinations. In the 2004 Activities, there is a somewhat more detailed review of what potential future seedlings are in the works, and the progress of my efforts to date. The Journey pages comprise a review of how and where my seedlings are grown, photos of my growing setup, and additional miscellaneous information on what goes on behind the scenes. Next, if you peruse through the Articles pages you will find various articles that I have written for rose society publications, with a good majority of them having a focus on rose hybridizing. Finally, contained on the Links page there are a list of websites about hybridizing, links to articles on hybridizing and roses, and links to various e-commerce sites where you can find supplies related to growing roses.
| Welcome | 2003/04 Seedlings | 2004/05 Seedlings | 2004 Activities | The Journey | Articles | Links |
****
A Rose of My Own * Souderton, PA 18964
Original photographs and site content © Michelle L. LeVan-Steklenski 2004, 2005. All rights reserved.
Page updated on July 8, 2005
