Town routes

Tukums has long been known as the Town of Roses. 70–80 years ago, there were several active plant nurseries in Tukums. After World War II, they formed the basis of Tukums’ model nursery, which was renowned far and wide for its skills and expertise in growing roses and other flowering plants, as well as breeding new cultivars.

Today, Tukums is renowned as the Town of Roses due to its Rose Festival, which includes making the largest wreath of real roses in the world. Sēme Rural Territory on the outskirts of Tukums is where ArB Agro, the largest nursery of roses, as well as Rozītes, ones of the largest rose collection gardens, are located.

To make it easier to navigate the Town of Roses, we have developed this special Rose Route.

ROSE BEDS IN TUKUMS

Roses at Brīvības (Freedom)

Square Brīvības Square, Tukums

The Freedom Square has long been the main gathering spot for the citizens of Tukums. Originally, this was the town’s marketplace.
The first greenery in the square appeared in the 1930s, when it turned from a marketplace into the respectable Freedom Square. The first roses were planted during the Soviet times. Today, the rose beds at the Freedom Square bloom in a variety of colours, such as bright yellow, dark red, white, as well as multi-coloured and double-flowered. Rose cultivars: ‘Freezia’, ‘Lavaglut’, ‘Schneewitchen’,
‘Nicole’.

The rose bed of Catherine Square

Catherine Square, Tukums

Catherine Square was created in 1999 where the largest number of warehouses in Tukums were located at the turn of the 20th century. Reflected in the remnants of building walls, the evidence of that time makes for a historical and romantic atmosphere. The bed of roses was created in 2005 after the reconstruction of the square. This is when the first roses were planted. The roses growing in the bed today were planted in 2014, when the old roses were replaced with floribunda roses. These plants were grown at the ArB Agro rose nursery.
Rose cultivars: ‘Friesia’, ‘Nicole’, ‘Lavaglut’, ‘Sommerabend’, ‘Apricola’, ‘Rotkäppchen’.

The rose bed of the citizens of Tukums

Tukums Ice Hall, Stadiona St. 3, Tukums

This rose bed was created in 2009 from the rose plants gifted to the town during the first Rose Festival. Combining the 126 gifted plants with those grown at the ArB Agro rose nursery, this rose bed turned out to be 230 plants strong. Rose cultivars: ‘Charlet Austin’, ‘Leonardo da Vinci’, ‘Graham Thomas’, ‘Rokoko’, ‘Red Eden Rose’, ‘Kordes Jubilee’.

The rose bed at the Talsu Street car park

Car park, Talsu St. 4, Tukums

This rose bed was created in 2010, when the previous wild roses were replaced with the fragrant park rose cultivar ‘Lidija Freimane’. The author of this cultivar is Roberts Āboliņš, who bred it at the end of the 1960s. These park roses can reach up to 1–1.5 m in height. Their flowers are one of the biggest among park roses, reaching up to 9 cm in diameter, ranging from dark fuchsia to lilac and being especially fragrant. This bed has 40 plants with large lilac flowers. Rose cultivar: ‘Lidija Freimane’.

The Town Council rose bed

Talsu St. 4 (by entrance of the Šēseles Street) Tukums

The rose bed by the municipal government building was created in 2013. As it is slightly slanted, the choice was in favour of both ground-cover roses and English roses, which are combined with other plants. There are a total of 180 rose plants in this bed. Rose cultivars: ‘The Fairy’, ‘The Fairy Red’, ‘Golden Years’, ‘Leonardo da Vinci’.

Rose circl es on Talsu Street

Junction of Talsu and Šēseles Streets, Tukums

The eight circles of roses were planted on Talsu iela in 2012 after the renovation of the municipal government building’s car park was completed. The beds of floribunda and ground-cover roses are raised. The colourful flowers will be the perfect background for your photos. Rose cultivars: ‘Nostalgia’, ‘Europeana’, ‘Leonardo da Vinci’, ‘Gartenspass’, ‘Westerland’, ‘Innocencia’.

Baltais rose bed

By the railway crossing on Pasta Street, Tukums

Baltais rose bed was created in 2014. It was a gift to the town from AS Tukuma piens on its 100th anniversary, which it named after its most popular brand Baltais (The White One). Eleven cultivars of roses in varying degrees of white have been planted here with the total number of plants exceeding 600. Rose cultivars: ‘Innocencia’, ‘Diamant’, ‘Snow Ballet’, ‘Sea Foam’, ‘Kastelruther Spatzen
Rose’, ‘Petticoat’, ‘Alabaster’, ‘Aspirin – Rose’, ‘Winchester Catedral’, ‘Apstādījumu baltā‘, ‘Schneewitchen’.

The Bumbieri family rose bed

By the coach terminal opposite the railway crossing, Dzelzceļa Street, Tukums

This rose bed was gifted to the town in 2016 by the owners of the ArB Agro rose nursery Eva and Arvis Bumbieri, who are the biggest
rose growers not only in Latvia but also in the Baltics. They chose the hybrid tea roses of the ‘Nostalgie’ cultivar in red and white, just like their company logo. The flowers that grow in compact bushes have petals with wavy edges. This rose bed has 150 plants.
Rose cultivar: ‘Nostalgie’.

Kurzeme rose bed

By the coach terminal opposite the railway station Tukums I, Dzelzceļa Street, Tukums

This rose bed with 1200 plants was created in 2016 after the reconstruction of the Dzelzceļa iela’s section by the coach terminal. It was named after Kurzeme because of its location by the bus stop where buses coming from Riga stop before continuing on to other towns of Kurzeme. The roses are two-toned: yellow with bright pink or red edges. They have an intense fragrance. These plants can reach up to 1.20 m in height. Rose cultivar: ‘Kordes Jubilee’.

The rose bed of the citizens of Tukumson Raudas STREET

Raudas St. 6, Tukums

This rose bed was created in 2016. During the Rose Festival, the citizens and guests of Tukums participated in the campaign called
Gift a Rose to the Town. As a result, the area by the Tukums boarding school was turned into one of the biggest rose beds in the town
and, perhaps, even in Latvia. It boasts 400 rose plants. Rose cultivars: ‘Aspirin – Rose’, ‘Europeana’, ‘Gartenspass’, ‘Fresia’, ‘Heidi Klum – Rose’, ‘Lavaglut’, ‘Alabaster’, ‘China Girl’, ‘Country Girl’, ‘Golden Years’.

The churc h’s rose bed

By the Tukums Evangelical Lutheran Church, Brīvības Sq. 1, Tukums

The rose bed by the Tukums Evangelical Lutheran Church was created in 2017, when 40 English roses gifted to the church by Eva and Arvis Bumbieri were planted. These beautiful, fragrant roses were their gift to the church on its 450th anniversary. Rose cultivars: ‘Grafin Diana’, ‘Leonardo da Vinci’.

The school’s rose bed

In the yard of E. Birznieks-Upītis’ Elementary School No. 1, Lielā St. 9, Tukums

This special rose bed was created by the courtesy of Trubiņi family, which gifted this bed of flowers to the school and town. It features roses from the family’s collection garden: cultivars of English roses grown at the Rozītes rose nursery in a variety of pink shades.

Roses by the Money Spring

Square at Brīvības Sq. 9, Tukums

While the square at this location was created back in the 1950s, the fountain called Money Spring (Naudas avotiņš) was installed only in 2003. This is one of the places in the town centre where you can take a break and enjoy the beauty of the surrounding trees and flowers. The few roses in the square serve as bright accents. Rose cultivars: ‘Robustas’ , ‘The Fairy’.

Flowerbed Rose

At the junction of Krasta and Meža Streets, Tukums

The largest rose in the town is not a rose at all! Instead, it is made of begonias and ragworts in summertime and of tulips and other bulbous plants in springtime. This flowerbed is shaped like the Rose Festival logo.

Roses in the Durbe Manor park

Mazā parka St. 7, Tukums

The Durbe Manor is an example of Classicism architecture. The building’s managers have tried to replicate this style in the manor park. A large number of roses is growing outside the two auxiliary buildings, while the wonderful floribunda cultivar ‘Heimatmelodie’
fills the beds in front of the manor. This cultivar was introduced in 2000 in Germany. It is one of the cultivars with barely any fragrance but with a very striking appearance due to dark raspberry pink petals that are creamy white and matte on the outside. An
exceptionally noble cultivar of roses, which was a gift from Daila Trubiņa. Rose cultivars: ‘Heimatmelodie’ and others.

Jauntukums rose bed

The junction of Jelgavas and Alīnes Streets, Tukums

The park rose cultivar ‘Lidija Freimane’ has found its place within the town in a seemingly unassuming place – at a junction of two large streets in Jauntukums. It brightens the day of everyone heading into the heart of Tukums. Rose cultivar: ‘Lidija Freimane’.

Burnet roses on RĪGAS STREET

Rīgas St. 24, Tukums

In older times, no country estate was imaginable without a bush of white burnet roses. Nowadays, they are less widespread. The burnet rose bushes on Rīgas iela must be the biggest ones in the town. They usually bloom at the end of May or at the beginning
of June, swirling the senses of anyone who passes by with their fragrance. Rose species: Rosa pimpinellifolia.

Rose bed at Lauktehnika

Kuldīgas St. 70, 72 and 74, Tukums

The latest rose beds in the town. Here you will see the regular white burnet roses (20 bushes), purchased from the Blīdene plant nursery and symbolically reminding of this place’s original name Mācītājmuiža or Mācītājlauki, as well as park roses in various colours: light pink, pink with white centre, red and pure white. The 100 park roses came from ArB Agro. Rose species and cultivars: burnet rose Rosa pimpinellifolia, park roses ‘Ābeļzieds’, ‘Guna’, ‘Kate’, ‘Līga’, ‘Sniedze’.

Pūpoliņš’ rose bush

Brīvības Sq. 4a, Tukums

Only the most perceptive ones will notice this rose bush, which grows a little off the threaded path, opposite the Money Spring square. When it blooms in the middle of the summer, most people think: “Look at that blossoming cherry tree!” So this snowy white bush tricks quite a few passers-by… Rose species: Rosa multiflora.

Hellebores at the Town Park

Tukums Town Park, Lielā St. 36, Tukums

Want to see something wondrous? Head over to the Town Park when the ground is still covered by snow to see these roses in bloom! White as snow, pink and purple, they wake early and don’t fear frost, thus being the first flowers to bring joy to the park visitors. These hellebores, or winter roses, were purchased from SIA Stādaudzētava Blīdene. Rose species: Helleborus niger (black hellebore), Helleborus orientalis (lenten rose), Helleborus purpurascens (purple hellebore).

You can find and download The Rose Route guide here.