Category: Rose Society Activities

Nashville, Tennessee, is right smack-dab in the middle of the country, so you have options for how to get here. Most people will probably chose to drive or fly.

Flying into Nashville International Airport

If you fly, you will likely land at the Nashville International Airport (BNA). The Sheraton airport shuttle runs daily from 4:00am-12:00am every 20 minutes – on the hour, 20 minutes past the hour, and
40 minutes past the hour.

To be picked up at the airport by the shuttle, follow signs to Ground Transportation (lower level) – Hotel Shuttles Zone 3. No need to call the hotel. Again, the shuttle operates from 4:00am-12:00am.

To return to the airport on the shuttle, check in with the valet at the front of the hotel.

Driving to Nashville and Parking at the Sheraton

For guests staying at the Sheraton, overnight self-parking is discounted to $10 per vehicle per night. When you come into the parking lot, you will get a ticket from the automatic gate to pay for parking. Take the ticket to the valet booth at the front of the hotel to receive the Medley of Roses parking passes for the discounted rate.

For guests coming to the Medley of Roses – 2026 ARS Rose Show on Saturday afternoon or Sunday morning (see the Schedule of Events for times), the discounted parking rate is $10 per vehicle per day. Again, when you come into the parking lot, you will get a ticket from the automatic gate. Take the ticket with you to the Hermitage Lobby area where the Convention is being held. The valet will be next to the Registration desk and will exchange it for a discounted parking pass you will use to exit the parking lot.

We wish you safe travels to Nashville!
See you soon!

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If you would like to visit local gardens around Nashville before the Friday evening reception, we have three gardens that will be open – Becky Willoughby, Ron Daniels, and Lisa Schaaf, all members of the Nashville Rose Society. Lisa’s garden will be open from 10:00am to 3:00pm, and Becky’s and Ron’s gardens will be open from 1:00pm to 3:00pm.

A bus going to Becky’s and Ron’s gardens will be leaving the Sheraton Music City Hotel at 12:30 and will be back by 3:30. The first 25 people who sign up (see below) will have seats on the bus. John Wendler, Nashville Rose Society member and former co-president, will be the tour guide on the bus. Directions to all three gardens will be available at the Registration Desk for those who have their own transportation.

The Willoughby Farm in Gallatin, Tennessee, is where “A Rose Named David” sits on a hill overlooking the farm. What began for Becky Willoughby as a love of roses has grown into a garden of more than 320 bush roses, representing many different types and varieties, all planted in a self-designed, English-inspired garden setting. As you walk through the garden, you’ll find numerous arbors, trellises, and obelisks supporting an additional 36 climbing roses. Each rose seems to have its own personality.

Growing roses in Zone 7b has certainly come with its challenges. Freezing temperatures and unexpected cold snaps, pest pressures, and late summer heat waves can take their toll. But every season brings something new to learn and enjoy, which is part of what makes this garden so special. Roses bring endless inspiration, opportunities to stay active, and many dear friendships and mentors. Becky says, “I’m grateful to share my garden with you, and I hope it is able to bring you inspiration and joy like it has brought me”.

Ron Daniels’ garden, known as Gadwall Abbey Rose Garden, is a carefully designed landscape of beauty, learning, and hospitality that has earned admiration among rose enthusiasts and visitors alike.

Established in 2013, Gadwall Abbey is Daniels’ third rose garden. Rather than simply planting roses wherever space allowed, Daniels approached the project with clear priorities: accessibility, strong plant performance, and ease of care. The result is a garden that balances serious rose growing with thoughtful design.

Today Ron’s garden has more than 150 roses spanning an impressive range of classes. Visitors will find climbers reaching upward, sturdy shrub roses, exhibition hybrid teas, grandifloras, floribundas, miniatures, and mini-floras. Old garden roses and species roses share space with modern varieties, including beloved selections from David Austin. Even tree roses add a vertical element to the display.

Lisa Schaaf’s garden in Franklin, TN, will be open from 10:00am to 3:00pm. Lisa has 280+ roses, slightly neglected, poorly pruned roses, weeds and all (but overall happy). A garden with an attitude!

Directions to all three gardens will be available at the Registration Desk on Friday, October 2, 2026.

To sign up for the bus, send a message to diane@medleyofroses.org. There is not charge for the bus, but tips for the driver will be appreciated.

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Hello rosarians attending the national show!

We are working on the final layout for the upcoming rose show on October 3 at the Medley of Roses convention to determine space for exhibits for national and district challenge classes in horticulture and also for all arrangements. We hope that all of you are planning to bring roses, arrangements, and photos to exhibit!

If at all possible, please let me know if you plan to exhibit in any of the national and district horticulture classes by notifying me on or before Wednesday, September 30, at noon CT. This will ensure you having a reserved space at the show. Of course, we will have some additional spaces for entries available if needed. For Arrangements, the schedule requests, September 30 at noon also.

We are so excited to host this event! Your exhibits will make it a fabulous show! The weather in our area been crazy, so we need everyone to bring blooms so we can fill the tables with roses, arrangements, and photos. Any questions, just ask. See you soon,

Mary Ann Hext, mhext@outlook.com
270-781-8171

Pre-order your roses from Antique Rose Emporium by September 25, 2026, You will get a 10% discount AND the roses will be delivered to the Medley of Roses – 2026 ARS Convention & Rose Show, Sheraton Music City Nashville Airport Hotel for pick up on on October 3rd or 4th. There will be no delivery charge, but a $6 handling fee may apply.

If you are not attending the Convention, you can still order and plan to come to the Rose Show on Saturday afternoon (1-4:00pm) or Sunday morning (9:00am-1:00pm) when you pick up your roses. The Rose Show is free to the public, but there is a $10 parking fee.

To pre-order, you must order from the website https://aregardens.com/collections/medley-of-roses and use the passcode NRS2026.

Can’t make it to the event? You can still order your roses to have shipped to you. Use the Antique Rose Emporium e-commerce website https://www.antiqueroseemporium.com/ and enter the code MEDLEY10 for 10% off your online order. Select your best ship week for planting during the first step of checkout.

Antique Rose Emporium is one of the Convention vendors and Jim Keeter, owner of ARE, will be our speaker on Sunday morning, October 4, at 10:00am. His presentation is “Deep Roots, Lasting Blooms: Old Garden Roses, Companion Planting and Sustainability”.

We hope to see you in Nashville!

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You won’t want to miss the Friday evening reception at the Medley of Roses – ARS National Convention & Rose Show! The reception theme, “I Never Promised You a Rose Garden,” may sound familiar. It comes from Lynn Anderson’s legendary 1970 hit song, “Rose Garden.” The song earned Lynn a Grammy Award for Best Country Vocal Performance in 1971 and went gold.

This very special evening will be hosted by Lisa Sutton and Melissa Hempel, Lynn Anderson’s daughters, who will share a glimpse into their mother’s remarkable life and legacy.

The reception will begin at 4:30pm. Enjoy a drink (cash bar), appetizers, and time to mingle with fellow rose enthusiasts as the evening gets underway.

At 4:45pm we will have the Convention Kick-Off with welcomes from our Janie and Liz, our Convention Co-chairs, announcements, and important information about Friday night’s special outing to the Grand Ole Opry Birthday Weekend, featuring the Oak Ridge Boys and Ricky Skaggs.

From 5:00–6:00pm we will enjoy an hour of live musical entertainment by Karen Walrup.

Before heading out at 6:30pm for the evening, take advantage of this final half-hour to visit, linger, and get your picture with Karen and, of course, Maverick!

Come celebrate an unforgettable evening where roses, music, horses, memories, and Nashville come together. You may not have been promised a rose garden — but we think you’ll find that the Medley of Roses Friday reception comes pretty close! For more information, click here.

If you have not included the Reception on your registration, but would like to attend, send an email to diane@medleyofroses.org.

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Be sure to take time to browse the vendor tables and discover something special. You’ll find a wonderful variety of offerings, including rose vendors, garden supplies, painting, sculpture and ceramic artists, jewelry, soil enrichment products, and even a Rose Doctor Clinic.

With so many unique vendors to explore, there’s sure to be something that catches your eye—and perhaps something new to take home for your garden!

Our vendors include:

(Vendors subject to change.)

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Do you dream of an organized inventory of your roses? Notes in one place? Rose photos in labeled albums? Finding roses online with discounts at your fingertips?

In short, do you just want to click, snap, and be done?

Kimberley Dean, ARS Consulting Rosarian and Master Gardener, St. Mary’s County, University of MD, has been growing roses for over 30 years now. She grows 1600 roses in Maryland zone 8. You may know Kim as The Rose Geek on social media. Kimberley will be speaking on Sunday afternoon at 1:30pm. Unfortunately, due to circumstances, Robin Jennings will not be able to join us.

This presentation shares a new tool, My Rose Tracker, designed to help you maintain your garden like a “Rose Geek.”

Kimberley Dean is a passionate consulting rosarian with more than 1,100 roses in her extensive garden. She is known for sharing garden tours, spotlights, and vendor unboxing videos through her YouTube channel, The Rose Geek, giving viewers the opportunity to discover new varieties and see roses growing in a real-world garden setting.

Like many rose gardeners, Kimberley found herself using multiple places to keep track of her roses, notes, photos, and wish lists. She also wanted an easier way to find where roses were available to buy. That led her to create My Rose Tracker, bringing these resources together in one place. The website allows gardeners to build a personal rose inventory, explore a comprehensive Rose Library, map their garden, compare varieties, maintain wish lists, record notes and observations, organize rose photo albums, and connect with participating nurseries offering roses and exclusive discounts.

Kimberley is passionate about helping gardeners move beyond simply growing roses to building a more organized relationship with their gardens. Her presentation will showcase My Rose Tracker and show how an organized garden is possible!

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Mary Ann Hext, ARS Master Rosarian, member of the Bowling Green Rose Society, Nashville Rose Society, and Rose Show Judge, led a Zoom meeting focused on preparing exhibitors for the upcoming Medley of Roses – 2026 ARS Rose Show which includes the Nashville Rose Show and the Tenarky District Rose Show.

Mary Ann explained the show schedule, the different divisions (Horticulture, Arrangements, and Photography), and the rules for each, emphasizing that all blooms must be exhibitor-grown outdoors. She detailed the various classes within each division, including challenge classes, open classes, and novice classes, and provided visual examples to help attendees understand what to expect. She encouraged new exhibitors to participate, even with just a few roses, and offered to answer questions via email at mhext@outlook.com. This is an excellent opportunity for the members of the Nashville Rose Society and the Tenarky District to attend a national ARS rose show and convention within driving distance of their home town.

The presentation covered how to select and prepare roses for entry, the importance of correct naming, and tips for successful exhibiting.

Click here to see Mary Ann’s presentation. Please note that you will be required to register before the video is played.

Click here for a copy of the Rose Show Schedule (2026 02 27).

Enjoy! Please plan to come and exhibit at the Medley of Roses – 2026 ARS Rose Show.

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The Rose Doctor’s Clinic is an Extension and Outreach booth where we will answer questions about rose rosette disease and other common rose diseases. We will have printed copies of our publications on rose rosette disease available for visitors.

Participants are welcome to bring diseased photos or plant samples to discuss with your “Rose Doctor”, Dr. Nar Ranabhat, Assistant Professor and Extension Plant Pathologist, University of Tennessee. Stop by to share your experiences, including strengths, challenges, opportunities and threats facing your rose garden or the rose industry with Dr. Ranabhat.

And it is FREE!!

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On Friday, October 2, 2026, after attending the Welcome Reception, plan to continue the evening with the Grand Ole Opry Birthday Weekend, featuring the Oak Ridge Boys and Ricky Skaggs.

The Medley of Roses – 2026 ARS National Convention & Rose Show Welcome Reception will be held from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the Sheraton Music City Nashville Airport Hotel. You’ll have plenty of time to enjoy the reception before heading to the Grand Ole Opry at the Opry House, 600 Opry Mills Drive, Nashville, Tennessee 37214, just approximately 15 minutes from the Sheraton.

For ticket information, click here. Lyft is the official rideshare partner of the Grand Ole Opry. A Lyft promo code GOOPRY gives new Lyft users 50% off their first 2 rides, up to $10 off per ride – no parking and you are dropped off at the door (you should verify current validity in your Lyft app).

The Grand Ole Opry is Nashville’s legendary live country music radio show and stage performance, a tradition that has been entertaining audiences since 1925. Known as the home of country music, the Opry brings together country music legends and rising stars for an unforgettable evening of live music and entertainment.

The Grand Ole Opry will host its annual Birthday Weekend celebration from October 1–4, 2026, as part of its ongoing centennial era Opry 100 festivities. The entire month of October features special birthday shows, plaza parties, and events at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, Tennessee.

It’s a wonderful opportunity to enjoy an evening of Nashville’s rich musical heritage while celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Grand Ole Opry and attending a weekend at the Medley of Roses – 2026 ARS National Convention & Rose Show .

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