For the seventh year in a row, Reiman Gardens has been awarded the All-America Rose Selections 2001 Award for Outstanding Maintenance on its Jones Rose Garden.

“We’ve won this award ever since the [rose] garden has been out here,” said Nick Howell, garden superintendent of Reiman Gardens.

“This award is a very prestigious honor,” Howell said. “It reflects very well on the garden and my staff.”

He said roses are difficult to grow, especially in the Midwest.

The award-winning “outstanding maintenance” of the rose garden is achieved by a system Howell developed while at Iowa State.

“Our planting techniques are in direct contradiction to most literature on rose gardening,” Howell said.

Howell uses less fertilizer than what people think is needed. He sprays once a week for diseases prone to roses, uses an extensive covering technique and does not prune the bushes at the end of the season.

“The rose garden is the single most expensive and labor-intensive garden out here. We have 2,000 rose plants in the garden and we average about two to three hours per [rose] plant per year,” Howell said.

Howell became the garden superintendent upon graduating from Iowa State in 1985. At that time, he was happy if the loss of roses each year was less than 20 percent.

Now, however, there is no loss in roses, due to the implementation of the new system of care and maintenance in the rose garden.

“Nick has done a great job . all of the credit goes to him,” said Jeff Iles, chairman of the horticulture department and former judge for the All-America Rose Selections.