Portland, Oregon is the City of Roses. It is home to the renowned International Rose Test Gardens, the oldest official continually run test garden in the United States. The garden was opened in 1917 and included twenty miles of rose bordered streets. It was this that inspired the name, “City of Roses.” The garden was intended to serve as a testing ground for new rose varieties and, in the beginning of its life, became home to roses sent from hybridists around the world for protection from the battles of World War One. Today it is home to over ten thousand varieties of roses and five separate gardens. The International Rose Test Garden is one of twenty-four official testing sites for the All American Rose Selection, the seal of approval for the best performing new rose varieties across all climates. They are also one of six test gardens for the American Rose Society miniature rose test program. These gardens hold the best heirloom roses, as well as the best new varieties; they are home to the past and present of the rose.

Their care is the responsibility of one year round gardener and a whole host of volunteers. As a public garden, the park employs the volunteer talents of rose gardeners, master gardeners and park hosts . It is supported by the Portland Rose Society, the Royal Rosarians and the Portland Rose Festival Association. The roses are irrigated in the early morning using an automatic underground irrigation system because they need to have very moist roots. This way their foliage can dry early in the day. They are fertilized three times per year, in April, June, and August. This is done with a 15-10-10 fertilizer containing trace elements that was developed by the Portland Rose Society. The primary soil amendment used on the roses is garden compost. Insect sprays are used in the garden as necessary, at ten to fourteen day intervals. The plants are topped in November to about three feet high and in February they are pruned to twelve to eighteen inches high depending on their growth.