Icebergs in May

Whenever I visit a nursery or garden, my eye is drawn to the unusual. That's how the two roses above found their way into my garden. 'Brilliant Pink Iceberg' is at the top, a lovely rose that looks as though its light pink petals were hand painted with strokes of deeper pink.

'Brilliant Pink Iceberg' is a floribunda rose, a relative of the classic 'Iceberg,' aka 'Scheewittchen' (Snow White, introduced in 1958) from the house of Kordes in Germany. It's not too tall in my garden, well under 3 feet, and it blooms prolifically. It resists black spot and disease, and the blooms have a sweet, light rose scent. The buds are long and pointed and beautiful to watch as they unfurl. Best of all, it's got an unexpected knot of deep burgundy stamens at the center when the flowers fully open. That's what caught my eye when I first saw the rose--that distinctive and unusual dark center.

Last year I added 'Burgundy Iceberg' to my garden. The second rose above, 'Burgundy Iceberg' features striking, dark, wine colored blooms, and the nice size and shape, lovely pointed buds, and overall good health of its famous relatives. It surprised me with its very first blossom this spring, however. Some of the petals are pristine white--obviously flaunting its noble 'Iceberg' heritage. These Iceberg descendants show a lot of variation in their coloring, as a Google image search reveals. It will be interesting to see how 'Burgundy' performs for the rest of the season.

Notes: Gourdo's mom welcomed mama cat and the trio of kittens. We will help her neuter or spay them when the time comes. Almost all the roses in my garden bloomed this weekend. Many of the flower seeds planted in the cutting garden are up. I'm looking forward to having tomorrow off to putter about the yard and gardens. Thank a veteran! Brilliant Pink and Burgundy Iceberg photos by JulenaJo.