Noted rosarian Hayden Foulds, of Manawatū, is the guest speaker and, for him, the highlight of the world conference was receiving the prestigious WFRS World Rose Award for his years of work with and for roses.
There are 38 national rose societies in the WFRS, formed in 1968. New Zealand was one of the original six members and the first conference was held here in 1971.
The immediate past president of the NZ Rose Society, Mr Foulds works as propagation manager at a nursery near Palmerston North that produces 500,000-plus plants for re-vegetation, riparian planting and other projects.
He will be in Dunedin for the Royal NZ Institute of Horticulture conference and associated International Plant Production Society (IPPS) conference, running from April 29-May 3.
IPPS president for the past two years, Mr Foulds is a prolific writer, speaker, grower and exhibitor of roses as well as serving since 2016 as president of the Manawatū Rose Society, which he joined 30 years ago while still a schoolboy.
