Amid the hustle and bustle of city life, there are groups of gardeners in Stockton looking to slow down and smell the roses as they provide mental health benefits in a city that's had its struggles.
Carol Burns leads the Stockton Garden Club as its president in its 100th year, committed to beautifying Stockton and educating the community on horticulture.
"I love my people," Burns said. "I have 86 members that are like my best friends. Gardeners are happy people. They're willing to share their experiences. They're willing to dig in and do any tasks that need to be done."
And digging into cultivating their marriage of 54 years, Carol and her husband, Dennis, took a horticulture class at Delta College together after becoming empty nesters. They team up with Marilyn Myrah, who leads Stockton Beautiful, a group launched more than three decades ago by Charles Lester and Gerry Dunlap, recognizing a need for more civic pride in Stockton. The rose garden at Victory Park is named after Dunlap.
"I think roses and flowers are very important to this community, and actually, this park that we're in is very important," Myrah said.
Myrah said it takes a village, with groups like Stockton Beautiful working hand-in-hand with the Stockton Garden Club, including teaming up for different projects at Victory Park, which she said has historical importance to the city, as people have a lot of memories here.
Stockton Beautiful decided to promote beautification projects and raised hundreds of thousands of dollars over the past decades for civic improvements. Amidst the struggles and issues Stockton has faced, having five rose gardens throughout their urban environment provides bountiful benefits.
"There's something about it," Burns said. "Once you get your hands into the soil, it's so relaxing. If I'm stressed, I've been working on the computer all day, I just need to go outside, get fresh air, plant something, prune something, or deadhead something."
Deadheading means clipping off parts of the rosebush so it can use all of its energy to produce new flowers. And despite a decline in production, roses are still seeing growth in California. Stephen Reid is the head gardener and assistant curator of the Huntington Library rose garden near Pasadena and is seeing this traditional flower gain popularity among millennials.
"I think roses were market, industry, and interest-wise kind of dropping off and falling out of interest, and kind of seen as an older plant," Reid said. "Once you retire, maybe you get a rose. And once I started at the Huntington, I did see, from the last 3 years, seemed to be, like, an uptick again."
Reid said it's a visceral experience that people have, including being in tears walking through the rose garden because of how beautiful it is and memories attached to it. And amidst the struggles Stockton has faced, having gardens and roses throughout urban landscapes provides visceral, bountiful benefits.
"When they see a rose garden, it fills them with a certain type of joy," Burns said. "And if it has a scented rose, when you smell it, it actually lowers your cortisol levels and it just kind of brings down that anxiety. It's just good for the soul. And then, of course, the beauty."
Reid said in areas that are more urbanized, they add beautification to that area, a beautiful smell, and a sense of community because people want to tend and take care of them.
"Especially in an urban environment, roses are really tough," Reid said. "People think they're really delicate, but they're really tough. They can handle almost any climate as long as they get sun, water, and food."
Reid says roses need food, water, and rest when they are pruned, just like humans do. So, tending to gardens is part of Burns tending to the city she loves. Every rose has its thorns, including Stockton, but that's not stopping her from smelling the roses.
"We're all looking for something beautiful and you can't fault a rose for not having something beautiful," Burns said.
Reid said people are creating new legacies with roses, including himself, as he enjoys taking his 3-year-old daughter with him to the garden.
Burns invites anyone to come to one of their monthly meetings, learning about roses and gardens in Stockton. They meet at 11:30 a.m. on the second Thursday of each month, January through October, at Quail Lake's Baptist Church Chapel Room. Myrah also invites anyone to join their membership with Stockton Beautiful.
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