''Rosa'' 'Gold Medal' (aka AROyqueli) is a yellow blend Grandiflora rose cultivar, bred by American hybridizer, Jack E. Christensen and introduced in the United States by Armstrong Roses in 1982. The rose is a vigorous grower and does extremely well in hot climates.

Description

'Gold Medal' is a tall, bushy, upright Grandiflora rose, in height, with a spread. It has a high-centered, ruffled bloom form. Bloom size is . The rose has a light, fruity fragrance. Bloom color is initially a golden yellow with splashes of pink and orange, fading to a pale yellow. The flowers are typically borne singly on long, straight stems or in small clusters. 'Gold Medal' blooms in flushes throughout the growing season. It is almost thornless and has large, semi-glossy, dark green leaves. The plant is a vigorous grower and thrives in hot climates.

History

Jack E. Christensen

Jack E. Christensen (1949–2021) was an award-winning American rose breeder, garden writer and biology teacher from

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

. Christensen was born in

Glendale, California Glendale is a city located primarily in the Verdugo Mountains region, with a small portion in the San Fernando Valley, of Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is located about north of downtown Los Angeles. As of 2024, Glendale ha ...

, in 1949. He showed an early interest in nature and gardening when he was very young. In high school, Christensen won a scholarship to

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...

. He initially planned to become a doctor, but later changed his mind and transferred to

Cal Poly Pomona California State Polytechnic University Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona) is a public polytechnic research university in Pomona, California, United States. It is the largest of the three polytechnic universities in the California State University syst ...

to study

Botany Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

. Christensen spent most of his horticultural career at Armstrong Nurseries in

. He progressed through the company until he became a hybridizer of roses and fruit trees, and vice-president of research. During his career, he developed over 80 new rose cultivars, including 'Henry Fonda', 'Cricket', 'White Lightnin'' and 'Fragrant Plum'. Christensen was the youngest hybridizer to win an All-America Rose Selections (AARS) in 1986, with his hybrid tea, 'Voodoo'.

'Gold Medal'

'Gold Medal' was developed by Jack Christensen from a cross between hybrid teas, 'Yellow Pages' and ('Granada' and 'Garden Party'). The new rose cultivar was introduced in the United States by Armstrong Roses in 1982. The cultivar was used to hybridize four child plants: 'Heart O'Gold', 'Lynn Anderson', 'Magic Lantern' and 'St. Patrick'.

References

{{Rose, state=collapsed

Gold Medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have b ...

1982 introductions