美国月季（玫瑰）育种者协会 – 月季杂交领域最具影响力的非营利性行业自律组织之一

协会沿革与组织定位

美国月季（玫瑰）育种者协会（Rose Hybridizers Association，简称 RHA）成立于 1969 年，由最初的十三位会员以手写新闻稿形式在彼此之间传递而创建。如今协会已发展为涵盖全球 20 多个国家、超过 200 名会员的国际性月季杂交专业组织，会员培育的新品种在商业市场发布数量已突破 500 个。RHA 与美国月季协会（American Rose Society）保持长期合作关系，是月季杂交领域最具影响力的非营利性行业自律组织之一。

会员服务与教育推广

RHA 通过季度会刊（每年春、夏、秋、冬四期）、借阅图书馆、测试花园合作项目以及线上论坛为会员提供全方位支持。协会与美国月季协会合作，在路易斯安那州 Shreveport 的美国玫瑰中心（American Rose Center）和威斯康星州 Hales Corners 的 Boerner 植物园设立业余育种者月季测试花园，每年根据全美月季评选（AARS）评分标准对参试品种颁发金、银、铜奖证书。RHA 出版的《月季杂交入门》与《月季杂交进阶》是业内公认的入门读物，新闻档案库则可追溯至创会 1969 年，是研究二十世纪后期月季杂交史的宝贵一手资料。

代表品种与育种成就

RHA 会员培育的多个月季品种获得国际权威奖项，包括 1996 年 AARS 奖得主 ‘St. Patrick’（杂交茶香月季）以及同时获得 2000 年 AARS 奖与 2002 年德国 ADR 认证的 ‘Knockout’（灌木月季）。此外，Joseph Winchel 培育的 ‘American Dream’（1986）与 ‘The Temptations’（1989）双双获得美国玫瑰中心测试花园金奖。测试花园历年金奖获得者如 William Blok、James Bailey、Dr. Thomas McMillan 等都长期活跃于协会活动。

组织架构与国际交流

依据 RHA 章程，协会由总干事（General Director）和地区干事（District Directors）共同治理，下设财务、秘书、编辑、图书管理员及顾问团队。协会每届年会与美国月季协会全国会议同期举办，促进会员间的育种技术交流与品种资源互换（包括花粉、芽接、砧木与种子等）。RHA 论坛（forum.rosehybridizers.org）作为全球育种者的开放交流平台，与会刊、测试花园和借阅图书馆共同构成协会四大核心服务体系。

官网：https://rosebreeders.org/

Heritage and Organizational Mission

The Rose Hybridizers Association (RHA) was organized in 1969 by thirteen founding members who initially circulated hand-written newsletters among themselves. Today the association has grown to more than 200 members across 20+ countries and is one of the most influential international non-profit organizations dedicated to the art and science of rose hybridizing. RHA members have introduced over 500 new rose cultivars to the commercial market, with multiple varieties earning the prestigious All-American Rose Selection (AARS) award and the Anerkannte Deutsche Rose (ADR) certification.

Member Services and Educational Resources

RHA supports its members through four core service pillars: a quarterly color newsletter published every spring, summer, fall and winter; a lending library from which members can borrow books and breeding materials; a Test Garden Project operated in cooperation with the American Rose Society at the American Rose Center in Shreveport, Louisiana and Boerner Botanical Gardens in Hales Corners, Wisconsin; and an online forum (forum.rosehybridizers.org) where breeders from around the world share techniques, photos and resources. The association also publishes two foundational manuals, “Rose Hybridizing for Beginners” and “Rose Hybridizing – The Next Step,” widely regarded as essential reading for novice breeders.

Notable Cultivars and Breeding Achievements

Among the most celebrated RHA-bred cultivars is ‘St. Patrick,’ a yellow hybrid tea that earned the AARS award in 1996. Even more widely recognized is ‘Knockout,’ a shrub rose that earned both the AARS award in 2000 and the ADR certification in 2002, becoming one of the best-selling landscape roses in North America. The American Rose Center Trial Grounds have awarded gold, silver and bronze certificates annually since 1979, with distinguished winners including Joseph Winchel (‘American Dream’, 1986; ‘The Temptations’, 1989), William Blok, James Bailey and Dr. Thomas McMillan, all of whom remain active in the association.

Governance and International Cooperation

Per the RHA Constitution, the association is governed by a General Director elected by plurality vote of members, together with District Directors representing regional membership constituencies. Appointed officers include the Treasurer, Secretary, Editor, Librarian and Consultants. RHA’s annual meeting is scheduled as part of the American Rose Society National Convention, fostering direct exchange of breeding materials (pollen, budwood, understock and seeds) among members. The open-access forum, the lending library, the test garden project and the quarterly newsletter together constitute the four foundational pillars that have sustained RHA’s mission of promoting unbiased evaluation and global dissemination of rose hybridizing knowledge since 1969.