Life with a smell of roses

The largest rose garden was opened this year in Romania, in Mandruloc.

Ana-Maria Cononovici, 11.09.2016, 14:00

The largest rose garden in Romania was opened this year, in Mandruloc, Arad county, on the occasion of the Eutopia Rose Celebration. Over 2 thousand species of roses, many of which won international competitions, can be found there. The Eutopia Rose Celebration, now at its 9th edition, is a festival that celebrates roses. Mihaela Aurora Buzatu, head of the Eutopia Gardens Foundation, tells us the story of this wonderful rose garden:

Mihaela Aurora Buzatu: “It was not my initial intention to build such a large rose garden. It all started in the 1990s, when I owned a firm that traded plants. By the same time, my parents had asked me to arrange the garden of their holiday home. It was then that I learned a few things about landscaping. The results were impressive, the neighbours were enthusiastic about it and even I was surprised. I confess I had made some research before to figure out how to match plants, which of them lasted longer and which plants won prizes. The outcome was a really special garden. That result encouraged me to open a business with plants, because Romania was lacking in colour and green areas, it was all gray. And I found it interesting. The on-line trade was not developed enough at that time and I would often end up with a lot of unsold plants. So I decided to buy a bloc of land, three hectares initially, to plant what I had in stock. And this is how this garden was born, which drew the attention of people driving by. In six years, from 2000 until 2006 I kept purchasing land and we built this park. The joy of the visitors brought me joy as well, so now I think of it as my gift for the community.

The garden initially covered 3 hectares. Now the park has been expanded to 25 hectares, of which 3 are entirely devoted to roses and the other to perennial plants, decorative trees and an orchard:

Mihaela Aurora Buzatu: “I have consulted with garden designers, I have visited about 600 parks from all over the world in trying to find the best options for us. In Romania I have worked with experts from the Bucharest University, in trying to find the best park structure. On this structure we can now build new modules, in trying to enhance the effect. The garden changes its appearance every season. The rose is the star of the month of June. We have over 2 thousand species. They start blooming in mid-May, and some of the species can be admired until the end of autumn, and even when its freezing outside and their petals start falling. In June they are in full bloom, thats why we celebrate roses in the first weekend of June.

Passionate about everything that brings a supplementary tinge of beauty, Mihaela Aurora Buzatu found new species of peony, so it is not only the rose which is the star of the park.

Mihaela Aurora Buzatu: “In the month of May, worth visiting is a big collection of peony, which we brought from China, from a research institute, since the peony is Chinas national flower. I dont think anybody has such a large collection of flowers. There are three types of peonies: the ones that we are familiar with, the herbaceous type, and also woody species of peony that is shrubs with large-sized flowers. We also have numerous species of lilac and of irises. We have around 55 hundred species of plants of which 2,000 are roses.

With professionalism and a lot of love for beauty, our guest arranged the rose garden:

Mihaela Aurora Buzatu: Roses are grouped in several categories, depending on their destination and type. For instance, the roses that we find in urban green areas are known as Floribunda, as they generally have an abundant blooming, smaller flowers and strong colours. The floribunda parcel comes first with us, since it is the most appreciated. The second parcel, that covers a hundred square meters, just like the first one, is the Hibrithea rose, which we find in bunches on our festive tables. These are roses with very big, scented flowers and thicker petals. The bush of this species is visible from a distance, yet it does not have such an abundant blooming. Another category is that of the garden roses, romantic roses, the classical flowers that dont bloom very often, but have the strongest scent. Then there is a category suitable for larger courtyards, as a bush can be five meters wide. Lets not forget about the climbing roses, of which we have 340 types. They are scattered all around the park and the image of our three meter-wide pergolas with rose vaults has become an emblem of the park.

And, since she loves nature that much, our guest also has educational projects held in her park, as several classes in Arad can learn about life in the Mandruloc gardens, enjoying its breathtaking beauty.