A wreath, blanket, garland – the floral arrangement for the Kentucky Derby Winner has been called all of these since
the first presentation in 1890's. One story has it that following the Kentucky Derby in 1883, roses were presented to all
of the ladies that were attending a Louisville party, given by the fashionable New York socialite and gamester E. Barry
Wall. The roses created such a sensation with the ladies that track president, Col. M. Louis Clark decided to feature the rose as the official flower of the 1884 Kentucky Derby.
Although the 1884 Derby may have been the start of the tradition, the first published account of roses draped on the winning horse came in 1896 when Ben Brush was presented with a collar of white and pink roses, tied with white and
magenta ribbon. It's not clear whether the Jockey Club at Churchill Downs sanctioned the rose garland in these early
runnings or if indeed roses have always been presented on Derby Day. One account has it that in 1898, the wife of J.
W. Schorr, owner of Lieber Karl, the 1-3 favorite, purchased the most expensive floral design in Louisville for their
horse's victory. Plaudit, however, pulled the upset that day and won by a nose and the roses went to waste. Another report states the 1902 winner, Alan-a-Dale, was adorned with carnations and ferns.
Roses became the traditional way to honor the Kentucky Derby winner during the early years of the 20th century.
Dating back to 1906 Churchill Downs has photos of the winner with the garland. In 1925 that the late Bill Corum, a New York sport columnist, dubbed the classic the "RUN FOR THE ROSES." Corum later served as president of
Churchill Downs from 1950-1958.
In 1931, Churchill Downs requested a standard pattern for the garland, and Louisville florist shop owner Mrs. Kingsley
Walker designed and produced an intricate pattern using over 500 of the darkest red roses and greenery stitched on a cloth-backed blanket. This design was first modeled by 1932 Derby winner Burgoo King. Mrs. Walker retired in 1974,
but her daughter Betty Korfhage, continued the tradition until she sold the Kingsley Walker Florist in 1984.
Since 1987 the master floral designers from Kroger, the national grocery chain, have created and continued to enhance
the spectacular winner's tribute – the garland of roses. The garland is 90 inches long (2-yards) and 14 inches wide, and
weighs approximately 35 lbs. Each of the 564 roses used for the garland are hand selected as "prime" roses. Since each
bush only contains one "prime" rose, it takes 564 rosebushes for the task. The lining of the garland is made of green
satin and features embroidery at each end. One end displays the Twin Spires logo of Churchill Downs, and the other end is represented by the great Seal of the Commonwealth of Kentucky. The center of the garland is made up of a
"Crown" of roses and features the same number of roses as horses competing in the Kentucky Derby. A single rose in the crown's center is raised above the rest and symbolizes the struggle and heart displayed by the Derby winner.
Each individual rose that makes up the garland is inserted into its own water vial, and the roses are then hand sewn to
the garland with the vials hidden inside the lining. The outer edge is trimmed with a mix of fresh foliage such as coffee leaf, boxwood, and lemon leaf as the combination has varied through the years.
The delicate operation of sewing the roses to the garland starts at exactly 4 p.m. on Friday, the day before the Derby.
The entire operation is a public event as the crew prepares the garland at a Kroger store for all to see and appreciate.
The crew works approximately 10 to 12 hours to finish the process, and then heads to the Kentucky Derby winner's
circle to dress the area with a total of 2,100 roses that were not selected for the Derby garland. In addition a "Jockey's
Bouquet" featuring 60 matching long stemmed roses, wrapped with 10 yards of red ribbon, is prepared to present to the winning rider.
