Open Garden Days
Three Sundays in June
10, 17 and 24 June 2018
10 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Everyone is cordially invited to Freedom Gardens' 21st Annual Open Gardens, Sundays
10, 17 and 24 June 2018, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. each day, at the homestead of Susan and Peter Schneider, 6193 Vair Road, Freedom Township, Portage County, Ohio.
Our collection of over 1200 different roses features newer and hard-to-find hybrid teas, floribundas, climbers and shrubs from the European nurseries, and heritage roses imported from Andre Eve in France, Peter Beales in England, and Martin Weingart, the nurseryman near Sangerhausen, Germany. Many of these roses cannot be seen anywhere else between Europe and California.
All of our roses are grown without winter protection, which provides an excellent opportunity to see exactly which varieties are winter hardy in northern Ohio.
We grow nearly complete collections of Paul Jerabek's Ohio-bred creations, the Canadian Explorer roses and David Austin's English roses. Our rose garden has been featured in Horticulture and Ohio magazines and its story is told in Peter Schneider's most recent book, Right Rose, Right Place which Peter will of course be happy to sign during the Open Gardens.
We also have a growing collection of noteworthy trees, an orchard, lily ponds, many other plants and a multitude of song birds situated on a bucolic eight-acre setting.
An interesting selection of potted roses, all propagated at Freedom Gardens, will be offered for sale on a first-come, first-serve basis. Most of these roses are not available anywhere else. We feature the best of Paul Jerabek's introductions, and include an eclectic selection of winter-hardy roses from all classifications: heritage roses, rugosas, climbers, true species, and modern roses that have proven themselves in this climate.
Once again this year, by popular demand, we will also be offering a selection of rare and choice lilacs propagated from our collection of nearly 100 correctly named cultivars.
We'll be open rain or shine (no rain dates). Children and picnickers are welcome. Please do not smoke in our garden. There is no admission charge and no need to make a reservation.
We look forward to seeing lots of rose friends on 10, 17 and 24 June!
The map below is more helpful than these things used to be, but still not perfect. Main thing: from State Route 88 take King Road south until it ends at Vair Road. Turn left, and we are 1000' (and fourth driveway) on your left.
[There is indeed a "Ravenna Arsenal Street" but we as civilians have no access to it.]
Important note: our garden is not open at any other times.
Our annual autumn shipping season has ended and we will not be shipping plants again until autumn 2018. The roses and lilacs below can be purchased now for pick-up at one of our June 2018 Open Garden Days (or later by appointment). To reserve any of these plants please call Peter on 330.296.2618 or use the contact form on this website to confirm availability. We accept cash, checks, PayPal, all major credit cards and Euros.
Beginning 10 June 2018 we will release a new crop of over 100 rare and (apart from us) impossible-to-find rose varieties--none listed below, but expect heirloom hybrid rugosas, hybrid perpetuals and bourbons, and some surprising new roses from Europe. These will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis during our Open Garden Days.
Hard-to-Find Roses For Sale
Own-root roses propagated at Freedom Gardens. 1-gallon pots. $25 each.
ANNA DE DIESBACH (Lacharme 1858) 100 intricate petals, glowing pink hybrid perpetual
ANTIKE (Kordes 1988) crimson and cream with Old Garden form, climber or large shrub
BANSHEE (c. 1773?) super tough light pink Old Garden Rose
BELLA DONNA (<1844) pink fragrant damask, very long spring bloom
BELLE ROSINE (Vibert 1829) dark pink gallica, well-formed blooms last when cut
BLUSH HIP (1840) tender pink on a tough plant, the alba that acts like a gallica
CAPTAIN THOMAS (Thomas 1935) spectacular single-petaled yellow climbing hybrid tea
CENTENAIRE DE LOURDES (Delbard 1958) indestructible pink floribunda/shrub
CHARLES DE MILLS (<1746) gallica, what they called red back then, plant and stand back
COMPLICATA (Vibert 1835) gallica hybrid, simply one of the most beautiful single-petaleds
DR JOHN DICKMAN (Bridges 2003) best purple/mauve mini-flora
ELINA (Dickson 1984) best yellow hybrid tea for northern Ohio
FUNNY FACE (Lim 2004) healthy shrub, pink splashed on cream
GALLICANDY (Barden 2003) bubblegum pink, profuse, modern gallica
GOLDEN GATE (Kordes 2005) best yellow climber for northern Ohio
HART CRANE (Schneider 2010) purple single-petaled rugosa, a top exhibition classic shrub
HEINRICH KARSCH (Leenders 1927) cute, prolific mauve polyantha
INDIGO (Laffay 1830) compact constant-blooming purple Portland
JAMES MASON (Beales 1982) blood red modern gallica for hedge or back of border
KEAN (1820?) purple pink gallica, recommended to all who dislike complicated OGR names
KIT DELAHANTY (Delahanty 2008) deep pink modern bourbon
LOUIS VAN TYLE (<1846) opulent lavender pink gallica, wider than tall
MECENE (Vibert 1845) compact gallica, white stripes running out of deep pink petals
MEIN SCHONER GARTEN (Kordes 1997) tall, healthy, pure pink shrub
MORGENROT (Kordes 1985) startling bright red single-petaled compact shrub
PAROLE (Kordes 2002) deep pink hybrid tea; huge blooms, huge fragrance
PEARL DRIFT (LeGrice 1981) glistening blooms and foliage, wider than tall
PINK PAVEMENT (Baum 1991) rugged deep pink hybrid rugosa
PINK ROADRUNER (Uhll 2003) vigorous bright pink hybrid rugosa
PINK ROBIN (Lens 1992) rare R. helenae hybrid, tall and profuse
PINK SURPRISE (Lens 1987) saucer-size single-petaled light pink blooms
PRAIRIE JOY (Collicutt 1990) very healthy clear pink upright shrub
R. ARKANSANA 'PEPPERMINT' pink dapples and stripes, top exhibition species
R. PALUSTRIS the Swamp Rose, pink single, perfectly happy with wet feet
SHOGUN (Tantau 2000) climber with elegant cherry red/pale gold blooms
SUZANNE (Skinner 1949) coral pink hybrid spinosissima; super cold-hardy
THERESE BUGNET (Bugnet 1950) fragrant, very double indestructible rugosa
WICHMOSS (Barbier 1911) the iconic mossed rambler, light pink, now quite rare
WILLIAM BAFFIN (Svejda 1983) pink; most winter hardy repeating climber
WILLIAM LOBB (Laffay 1855) velvety crimson-mauve moss rose
Paul Jerabek Introductions For Sale
Own-root roses propagated at Freedom Gardens. 1-gallon pots. $20 each.
AUNT RUTH red/white semi-double climber, trophies at national shows
CHATEAU DE VAIR 93 exuberant cerise/white polyantha, trophies at district shows
JUSTINE MEE LIFF free-blooming pink grandiflora
OUR PEARL climber, white with pink edge
PAULSPRIDE lovely pastel yellow and pink climber
WOMEN IN MILITARY bright red shrub, vigorous and healthy
ZENAITTA superb orange-red polyantha for exhibition and garden
We feature Paul Jerabek's roses but also have an excellent selection of modern hybrid teas, floribundas and shrubs from other rose breeders--all proven winter hardy in this climate--on our $20 sale tables.
Rare and Choice Lilacs For Sale
Own-root lilacs propagated at Freedom Gardens. 1-, 3- and 5-gallon pots. $25 each.
ANABELLE pink, earliest to bloom
AVALANCHE white, tall, Fiala introduction
BETSY ROSS white, bushy, healthy
CATAWBA free-blooming bright pink
CROIX DE BRAHY rare heirloom pink, wide habit
LILAC SUNDAY lavender, superb garden plant, long bloom period
LOIS UTLEY pink/lavender, Fiala introduction
MAIDEN'S BLUSH pink, healthy, early to bloom
YANKEE DOODLE soft violet, free blooming
Additional and extremely rare lilac varieties will be available on site beginning on our first Open Garden Sunday, 10 June 2018.
Rose/lilac availability list updated 21 June 2018.
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