Rosa x persica 'Sunshine Babylon Eyes' - Miniature Rose

The 'Sunshine Babylon Eyes' Rose Bush is a small, original, hardy, drought and disease-resistant shrub requiring little maintenance. In addition to these qualities, its flowers have a vibrant colour and an excellent ability to bloom from June until the first frost. Its roses are semi-double and mischievous wild roses that change colour throughout the day, going from a red-pink to a rose-orange haloed with pale yellow towards the centre, contrasting with a wide, bright red heart  Belonging to a new line of hybrids of the Persian rose, Babylon Eyes roses, with their compact and bushy habit, can be grown in large pots or the ground, bringing a touch of exoticism to even the most modest decor.

The Rosa x persica 'Sunshine Babylon Eyes' or 'Intereybabnus' descends from a wild rose named Rosa persica, discovered in 1784 by botanist André Michaux in the Zagros Mountains, straddling Iran and Iraq  The unique feature of its two-coloured flowers with a highly contrasting centre has since inspired rose breeders to attempt hybridisation with other cosmopolitan species and varieties  After years of research and selection, new and very interesting cultivars have emerged all over Europe  'Sunshine Babylon Eyes' is one of these recent varieties with exotic charm, as beautiful as hibiscus, still relatively unknown here  It is a shrub with an upright and bushy habit, rarely exceeding 80cm (32in) in height and 70cm (28in) in spread  Its branches are moderately thorny and adorned with small foliage, a slightly shiny bright green, very healthy  The flowering occurs fairly early, in June, and regularly continues until October  The semi-double flowers with eight petals, in flat cups, measure about 5 to 8cm (2 to 3in) in diameter  The changing colour of the flowers makes this beautiful bush a bouquet where different shades of red, fuchsia pink, salmon pink, and tender yellow are highlighted by the central red macules that turn garnet at maturity.

'Sunshine Babylon Eyes', enchanting with its flowers that take on all the nuances of a sunset, is an almost "indestructible" rose bush that will seduce gardeners without gardens or those who struggle with difficult, dry soil in summer and frozen in winter It is suitable for planting in a Mediterranean garden, especially on sandy, rocky, or sloping soil, and is ideal for large rock gardens, where other 'classic' roses may not thrive.  It is also hardy enough to withstand our average winters, allowing it to be planted almost anywhere  Babylon Eyes roses can be paired with each other and with many other plants such as garden irises, lavender, rockroses, rosemary, escallonias, oregano, teucriums, sedums in dry soil  In cooler soil, it can be accompanied by yellow, pink or white foxgloves, asters with small white stars (Aster dumosus Schneekissen, Aster dumosus Kristina, Aster ericoides f. prostratus 'Snow Flurry') or the Brunnera macrophylla Alexander's Great, with its silver foliage  On the terrace or balcony, it can be surrounded by seaside cineraria, alstroemerias, white agapanthus or white sweet williams (Dianthus Mrs Sinkins).