For me, Ralph Moore and Sequoia Nursery were in a sense a single entity; he was his work, and the roses reflected Ralph's creative mind. The nursery was a vast maze-like archive of wondrous things where living experiments thrived and blossomed around every corner; snapshots from decades ago, each one illustrating a piece of the journey from concept to completion. Athough Ralph would be the first to tell you that the job of finding perfection in the Rose was never complete. At best, all you could hope for was improvements and small innovations, one small piece at a time. But the goals weren't all-important to Ralph; the journey, the process were just as meaningful, and with that came the sharing of ideas and knowledge. Ralph would share what he knew with people; secrets had no place in the Moore philosophy. Sharing was everything, and what you gave to people came back a hundred times over. That was Ralph. And it was a two way street also, because you could tell when you talked about breeding ideas that he wanted to know what you thought and he was paying close attention when you had something to contribute. I think this helped keep him young at heart and helped sharpen his creative mind. Ralph was a unique blend of creative genius, keen observer, obsessed yet humble scientist, and cared deeply about people. In Ralph's company, you couldn't help feeling that something extraordinary was happening and time spent with him left you feeling energized, exhausted and enriched in ways that it would take you days to decipher.

My first afternoon spent with Ralph at Sequoia Nursery was in 1999. In the stifling 100F heat I was given a whirlwind tour of the aging facility by this friendly old man who practically left me gasping for air as I was shown dozens of remarkable roses, introduced to famous stud plants and toured through the new seedlings. His were unlike any other roses I had known before; so brave, new and refreshingly unlike anything else. Where the genetic palette of many of his contemporaries was fairly limited, Ralph scanned the horizon far and wide for previously unused materials and sought to unlock their traits, to see what they had to offer. Everything from 100 year old European cultivars to species from half a world away went into the Sequoia laboratory, and out came miracles for us to enjoy and love. Ralph's approach was as an experimenter: rather than forcing his will on his plants, he instead asked them "What can you do?" and then waited patiently for a reply.

Such a remarkable place has never existed before, surely, and possibly never will again. Ralph often referred to his nursery as a "wonderland of roses" and it was indeed an apt description. For those who had the privilege of touring the vast nursery as I did will treasure their memories of the experience. At least we have the memories.

Unfortunately for us, Ralph Moore's journey here is finished, but the man will live on in everyone whose life he touched, (and there were many) and his work will be a foundation for other hybridizers for decades to come. Even today, we can easily trace the pedigree of many modern hybrids of a wide variety of styles and find a Ralph Moore rose has played a pivotal role in the creation of that variety. In many cases you can find multiple Moore roses in the history of numerous modern roses, big and small alike. As it often is with historically important people, we won't really know the full breadth and depth of Ralph Moore's contributions to the Rose for decades to come, but I fully believe that his contributions to the genus will be recognized as truly groundbreaking, and breeders and appreciative gardeners will know this remarkable man through the persistence of his living legacy.

I have so much to be thankful for. Not only did Ralph share his knowledge and wisdom with me, but he shared some of his private breeding stock. Many of these roses continue to play an important role in my own work. I am humbled that this great man believed enough in my ideas and plans to share such invaluable materials with me. Thank you Ralph, for shaping my career and for your many kindnesses.