Twenty-five years ago, a rose bloomed that would forever change how gardeners viewed America’s most iconic flower.
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Celebrating Knock Out Rose 25th Anniversary and Its Creator
By Jill Brooke
Twenty-five years ago, a rose bloomed that would forever change how gardeners viewed America’s most iconic flower. It wasn’t the product of a sprawling laboratory or an army of scientists. It was the vision of one man: Will Radler, a retired landscape architect from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, with dirt under his nails, a dream in his heart, and a passion for making gardening more joyful and less daunting.
Radler wasn’t a commercial breeder. In fact, he began hybridizing roses in his basement, using a ping-pong table as his workbench and recycled milk jugs to catch runoff water. His mission? To create a rose that was not only beautiful but also resilient—something everyday gardeners could grow without the heartbreak of black spot, mildew, or endless spraying. He wanted a rose that would thrive, bloom continuously, and be virtually bulletproof.
“I wasn’t doing it for profit but to make myself happy,” he says. “I wanted to go into my retirement years by having easy to care for roses.”
He had been fascinated by roses since a young child when he perused a Jackson & Perkins rose catalogue at his grandparents house in the 1950’s. At 9 years old, he planted his first rose bush. Intuitively, he thought that the declining interest in roses was that the plant had been overbred for beauty resulting in a more fragile flower. This was a lifelong passion and like many dedicated selfless researchers, he didn’t even know what was going to be successful but wanted to advance the knowledge of roses through this efforts.
Of course he faced naysayers. Including a neighbor who routinely criticized his efforts and the sight of all the failing roses in his yard. It took 15 years until 1989 before he planted a rose in the soil with the tag number of “89-20.1.” A few weeks later as the rose bloomed, that next-door neighbor said, “if you could produce more roses like that one, you’d probably be onto something.”
Of course, he knew that too and agreed. After all the “tinkering,” he found the magic formula.
What he bred became the most widely sold rose in North America—the Knock Out® Rose. Released in 2000, this plant was a revolution wrapped in petals.
That year the All America Rose Selections committee named Radler’s original red Knock Out® shrub rose as one of its winners and it quickly became the best-selling new rose on the market. Last year alone, some 3 ½ million Knock Out were sold, a total only this rose can claim.
“Knock Out’ succeeded in transforming the image of the rose from a fussy Prima Dona to a friendly garden plant,” says Pat Shanley, a past president of the American Rose Society and the chairman of the American Garden Rose Selections (AGRS). “A rose of this degree of maintenance-free growing had not been seen before. It changed the benchmark against how roses are judged by the general public and how people garden with roses. It is used by hybridizers worldwide in their breeding programs and literally saved the rose industry by renewing interest in growing roses.”
A Rose by No Other Name
The Knock Out Rose was unlike anything else on the market. It bloomed from spring to frost in flushes of vibrant red, held glossy, dark green leaves that resisted disease, and required minimal maintenance. While traditional hybrid tea roses demanded spraying, pruning, and pampering, Knock Out Roses asked little and gave back a lot.
“People were tired of plants that made them feel like failures,” Radler said. “I wanted to create a rose that made gardeners feel successful.”
The Knock Out Rose wasn’t just a hit; it was a sensation. It sparked a rose renaissance, particularly among younger and novice gardeners who had once written roses off as too fussy. Garden centers couldn’t keep it in stock. Landscapers loved its durability. And home gardeners loved that it bloomed constantly and could thrive in a wide range of climates.
A Star is Born: Partnering with Star Roses and Plants
A key chapter in this extraordinary journey was Radler’s partnership with Star Roses and Plants, a renowned nursery with a century-long history of rose excellence. Based in Pennsylvania, Star Roses is not just a grower—it’s a powerhouse of innovation, research, and horticultural integrity. Known for introducing countless award-winning roses over the decades, including famous names like Peace and Double Delight, the company had a reputation for spotting genius in the garden.
They saw the promise in Radler’s rose and had the infrastructure, marketing prowess, and distribution network to make it a household name. Star Roses helped bring the Knock Out Rose from a private backyard to millions of public and private gardens across North America. Their breeding standards are rigorous, their testing expansive. That’s why they’re considered one of the most respected rose producers in the world.
In fact, the rose was going to be first called “She’s a Knock-Out” but then shifted to “Knock Out.” After all, men, women and children love this rose.
In Radler’s Knock Out, they saw a once-in-a-lifetime phenomenon—and they treated it as such.
The Magic Behind the Rose
So, what makes a Knock Out Rose so special? First, its disease resistance is near legendary. Black spot, powdery mildew, rust—these common rose ailments hardly touch it. Second, it’s self-cleaning, meaning spent blooms fall off naturally, eliminating the need for constant deadheading. Third, it’s cold hardy and heat tolerant, able to withstand a wide range of USDA zones with grace.
And let’s not forget the blooming power. A Knock Out Rose produces waves of flowers from early spring until the first hard frost—without interruption. It’s not just a plant; it’s a performance.
Like a scientist in a laboratory, Radler knew that making a disease resistant flower was no easy task – but essential. He literally. found a cure for it. How? He would take previously diseased leaves, dried and ground them in a blender, then spread it on healthy plants when the leaves were wet. He would also use overhead watering during growing season since it activates disease. Since resistant plants are easily. observed, he would use those for future crosses.
An Enduring Legacy
Since its debut, the Knock Out Rose has inspired an entire family of colors—pink, yellow, coral, even a white version—all carrying the same easy-care promise. But nothing compares to the original. Gardeners still reach for it like a favorite pair of jeans: dependable, flattering, always in style.
In the world of horticulture, few plants achieve the status of a cultural shift. The Knock Out Rose did. It democratized roses, removing their reputation as prima donnas and putting them into the hands—and hearts—of the everyday gardener. It has been called “the rose that saved the rose.”
I think that is true. Some have said that the only drawback is that to get the flower to rebloom, it lost some of the perfumed fragrance of past roses. Small price to pay for such beauty and endurance.
However Radler was more concerned about the color being a drawback. It was a fire engine red that “would not fade” and the trend was a darker color.
“I had hoped people would accept the color and they did,” he says. “I threw it out there because it had everything else going for it.” Now there are so many other colors to enjoy.
To celebrate the 25th anniversary, there is now a national Knock Out rose day and his town is celebrating his accomplishment. “I’m overwhelmed and very proud,” he says. “People at garden centers they plant Knock Out roses and usually that is their first plant they get and it becomes the beginning of a lifelong enjoyment of the garden.”
Sometimes all the accolades and attention does make him, he says, want to hide. “I feel very humbled but it is satisfying.”
Not only does he make a profit from every rose, he now is considered the George Washington Carver of roses. His invention is truly historic.
As we celebrate its 25th anniversary, there’s a sense that we may never see another plant quite like it in our lifetimes. While flower trends come and go, the Knock Out Rose remains timeless—both a horticultural milestone and a tribute to what happens when passion, patience, and partnership bloom together. As well as a humble talented researcher who never gave up.
Jill Brooke
Jill Brooke is a former CNN correspondent, Post columnist and editor-in-chief of Avenue and Travel Savvy magazine. She is an author and the editorial director of Flower Power Daily and a columnist for Florists Review magazine. She won the 2023 AIFD (American Institute of Floral Designers.) Merit Award for showing how flowers impact history, news and culture. Listen to her on WPHT-AM every Wednesday night. Her book “The Wisdom of Flowers” will be released in 2025.
