I get asked from time to time what exactly makes Kordes Roses so special, that they get mentioned so often.  There are three very simple answers to that.  The first is that the Kordes Rose lines are some of the most beautiful roses you’ll ever find.  They tend toward the more elegant, simple colors, and many gardeners really appreciate the more subtle, traditional beauty that they represent.  The second reason is that W. Kordes & Sons is one of the oldest rose breeding groups in the world.  They’ve been hybridizing roses for more than a century.  Rose gardening is a culture that is very deeply steeped in tradition, and Kordes represents one of the most entrenched traditions in the world of roses for good reason.  Wilhelm Kordes II was often referred to as "the Grand Old Man of Rose Breeding."  He and his family developed many of the methods that are still dominant in modern rose breeding, and no small amount of the breeding stock used by rose breeders around the world came from varieties originally cultivated by the Kordes family.  No rose breeders have won more European awards than Kordes Roses have.

The third reason that Kordes Roses are so special is probably the most important to the average rose grower.  Kordes Roses are some of the toughest roses you’ll ever find.  They’re bred in Northern Germany, which yields very cold-hardy roses that thrive in much of North America (some are even completely hardy to zone 4).  They are also bred specifically to be resistant to diseases, pests, and fungus, and grown in the those harsh regions without artificial chemicals or growth enhancers.  This yields an incredibly robust rose plant that many rosarians claim is rivaled in toughness only by the Knock Out Roses.  Kordes Roses really are bred to be not just tougher than other roses, but to be some of the toughest plants in your garden.  Wayside Gardens is proud to be one of the only retail sources of Kordes Roses in the United States.