Plant Guide

Other Names:  Ben Ledi Sun Rose

Description:

A charming variety for the rock garden, gravel scree, alpine trough, or as edging along a sunny walkway; spectacular pink and dark pink flowers appear in late spring to summer above glossy foliage; lightly shear after blooming; must have good drainage

Ornamental Features

Ben Ledi Rock Rose is bathed in stunning pink cup-shaped flowers with shell pink overtones and yellow eyes at the ends of the stems from late spring to early summer. Its glossy narrow leaves remain dark green in color throughout the year.

Landscape Attributes

Ben Ledi Rock Rose is an herbaceous evergreen perennial with a mounded form. Its relatively fine texture sets it apart from other garden plants with less refined foliage.

This plant will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and should only be pruned after flowering to avoid removing any of the current season's flowers. It is a good choice for attracting butterflies to your yard. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Ben Ledi Rock Rose is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• Rock/Alpine Gardens
• Border Edging
• General Garden Use
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Ben Ledi Rock Rose will grow to be about 10 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 18 inches. When grown in masses or used as a bedding plant, individual plants should be spaced approximately 15 inches apart. Its foliage tends to remain low and dense right to the ground. It grows at a medium rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 7 years. As an evegreen perennial, this plant will typically keep its form and foliage year-round.

This plant should only be grown in full sunlight. It is very adaptable to both dry and moist growing conditions, but will not tolerate any standing water. It is considered to be drought-tolerant, and thus makes an ideal choice for a low-water garden or xeriscape application. It is not particular as to soil pH, but grows best in poor soils. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid. It can be propagated by division; however, as a cultivated variety, be aware that it may be subject to certain restrictions or prohibitions on propagation.

Ben Ledi Rock Rose is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. It is often used as a 'filler' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination, providing a mass of flowers against which the thriller plants stand out. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.