Wohl Rose Park (

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

: גן הוורדים, ''Gan HaVradim'') is a public garden in

Givat Ram Givat Ram ( he, גִּבְעַת רָם) is a neighborhood in central Jerusalem. It is the site of Kiryat HaMemshala (Hebrew language, Hebrew: קריית הממשלה, ''lit.'' Government complex), which includes many of Israel's most important na ...

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

, located opposite the

Knesset The Knesset ( he, הַכְּנֶסֶת ; "gathering" or "assembly") is the unicameral legislature of Israel. As the supreme state body, the Knesset is sovereign and thus has complete control of the entirety of the Israeli government (with ...

and government precinct, at the foot of the

Israeli Supreme Court The Supreme Court (, ''Beit HaMishpat HaElyon''; ar, المحكمة العليا) is the Supreme court, highest court in Israel. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all other courts, and in some cases original jurisdiction. The Supreme C ...

. The park was established in 1981. Over 400 varieties of

rose A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...

s are grown there, many of them gifts from countries around the world. The Wohl Rose Park covers . It is one of the few rose parks of its kind in the Middle East, where there is no rainfall in summer.Wohl Rose Park
/ref> The park's Garden of Nations is made up of sections donated by other countries. Each section has rose varieties characteristic of, or grown in, the respective country. The park also has an experimental section where new varieties of roses are tested for their suitability for public and private gardens in Israel. In October 2003, the Wohl Rose Park won an award for excellence in an international competition for rose gardens from all over the world. The park was proclaimed one of the eleven most beautiful rose gardens in the world. In addition to some 15,000 rose bushes, the park features expansive lawns, hills, quarries, an ornamental pond with aquatic plants and fish, a waterfall, rockeries, and sculptures. A sixth-century

mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

floor unearthed at

Kibbutz A kibbutz ( he, קִבּוּץ / , lit. "gathering, clustering"; plural: kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1909, was Degania. Today, farming h ...

Sde Nahum Sde Nahum ( he, שְׂדֵה נַחוּם, ''lit.'' Nahum Field) is a kibbutz in the Beit She'an Valley in northern Israel. Located around 4 km northwest of Beit She'an, it falls under the jurisdiction of Valley of Springs Regional Council. ...

was installed in the park.The Wohl Rose Park of Jerusalem
(history & description) at the Municipality website. Accesses 19 April 2022. The

Knesset Menorah The Knesset Menorah (Hebrew: מנורת הכנסת ''Menorat HaKnesset'') is a bronze Menorah (Temple), Menorah 4.30 meters high, 3.5 meters wide, and weighs 4 tons. It is located at the edge of Wohl Rose Park (Hebrew ''Gan Havradim'', "Rose Ga ...

is located outside the park, facing the

. Due to the park's location opposite the Prime Minister's Office and other government buildings, it is a choice site for Israeli demonstrators: The garden often hosts tent cities of protesters, with tables for petition signing, banners and placards.

History

The original design for the park was drawn up in 1949. In its early years, the park was only used for official government ceremonies. It opened to the general public towards the end of the 1950s. It was known at the time as President's Park. In 1978–1979, David Gilad of the Israel Flower Board was looking for a location for a rose park that would be the focal point of the international rose congress that was to convene in Israel in October 1981. President's Park was deemed an appropriate site due to its unique location and panoramic views. The park was re-landscaped by landscape architect Joseph Segal. The project was carried out in cooperation with the

Jerusalem Foundation The Jerusalem Foundation ( he, הקרן לירושלים, ''HaKeren LiYerushalayim''; ar, مؤسسة صندوق القدس) is a nonprofit foundation that promotes the development of the city of Jerusalem, by raising funds for social, cultural a ...

under the sponsorship of Vivienne and Maurice Wohl.

Planting goals

When selecting the rose varieties, one of the goals was to show different groups of roses: Species roses - the original species from which varieties were bred 300 years ago; Old Garden Roses - the products of early breeding of roses; and modern roses such as Hybrid tea roses, Floribunda, Polyanthas, miniature roses, rose shrubs, and modern climbers. Another goal was to demonstrate various garden possibilities: Blossoming swathes of color, roses climbing up pergolas and pillars, "sculpted" rose shrubs, rambling roses, standards roses, roses with decorative fruit, hedges made up of rose bushes, and more.Rose Varieties in the Park
/ref>

References

{{Coord, 31, 46, 45, N, 35, 12, 13, E, display=title Parks in Jerusalem Rose gardens

History

Planting goals

See also

References