The Charles E. Nail Memorial Rose Garden

The Rose Garden, as seen today, was constructed in 1977 in memory of Charles E. Nail, Sr. Nail was a former chairman of the Kingwood Administrative Board and an avid rose grower. The garden contains nearly 500 roses that fill the air with the scent of thousands of blooms from June through September. The majority of the plants are hybrid teas and grandifloras, although a section is being newly devoted to David Austin roses, selected hybrids of old English shrub roses.

The garden focuses on visual display, as opposed to collections of individual cultivars. Those roses that are resident though, are not only selected for their beauty, but also for their ability to perform in our region. Except for those of horticultural significance, roses that do not grow well are discarded.

The garden is symmetrically arranged off a main axis which leads to a pergola, originally designed to accomodate climbing roses. Their success has been limited by our climate, so the pergola has also become host to a variety of clematis and annual vines. Although the formal rose garden ends at the pergola, there are roses scattered nearby. Test beds behind the pergola are utilized to trial low-maintenance roses that can be grown by the home gardener with a mininum of assistance. There is much to see and learn in the Rose Garden. Bring a pen and some paper. You'll be sure to take some notes,