This year’s edition of the festival will feature a blend of old and new events. New additions include a culinary workshop and an aromatherapy workshop. A biodanza session that includes roses is also scheduled to take place.
Matjaž Mastnak will hold an interesting lecture on how roses evolved from dog roses. The Nova Gorica Rose Society is trying to put together a collection of dog rose varieties from all parts of Slovenia. The Pečno nad Kanalom park already features 10 varieties of dog rose, and the project is expected to be completed within a year or two.
According to Katja Kogej, a representative of the Nova Gorica Rose Society, organizers expect more visitors this year: “One of the reasons is that the Kostanjevica bourbon roses were added to the European catalogue of rosaria.” Featuring 70 varieties of bourbon rose, the collection of bourbon roses in the garden of the Franciscan monastery in Kostanjevica is the second largest in Europe. Admission is €2 per person. The Nova Gorica Rose Society hopes to set up a city rosarium close to the Bartolomei Mansion for next year’s festival.
Bourbon roses can trace their origins back to the year 1817 when two varieties of rose were crossed on the island of Île Bourbon. The first bourbon rose was named “Rose Edward”. The variety was one of the first to be planted in Nova Gorica.

Zdenka Tomulić, Radio Koper; translated by D. V.