Protea neriifolia (x) susannae Pink Ice

The Pink Ice Protea is a hybrid protea known for its resistance, vigor, and magnificent late-season flowering. This bushy plant is adorned with beautiful gray-blue foliage, its original flowers are composed of intense pink bracts around a nearly white silky heart. The flowering, which begins in summer and extends into autumn, is very long-lasting on the plant and in bouquets. It is preferable to cultivate it in large pots, outside the mildest areas of our country. This allows for control of the growing substrate composition, as well as storing the plant in an unheated greenhouse or conservatory. Its cultivation requires, like all proteas, a certain know-how.

According to some sources, the 'Pink Ice' protea is the result of cross-breeding between Protea neriifolia and P. susannae. However, the International Protea Register recorded this cultivar as a hybrid of Protea compacta and P. susannae in the 80s. Proteas are perennial shrubs exclusively native to the Cape region of South Africa. Strange in every way, they need fire to germinate their seeds.

'Pink Ice' is hardy down to -6 or -7°C and seems to tolerate heavy soils better than usual varieties. Once established, this plant tolerates summer drought well. It forms a bushy mass that reaches an average size of 1.25 m (4ft) in all directions, sometimes up to 1.50 m. Its growth is quite slow. Its foliage persists in winter. It consists of lanceolate, narrow, thick, and leathery leaves with rounded tips, 15 cm (6in) long. They are covered with a bloom, which gives them a lovely gray-blue colour. Flowering generally begins in August, and continues until October, or even November if the weather is mild. The very decorative inflorescences form at the end of the stems. They take the form of cups and are composed of tough and hairy bracts brightly coloured in pink surrounding the true flowers. The latter are intensely silky, pale pink to white in colour. The flowering attracts many pollinating insects. The thick roots of this plant also serve as a storage organ. In the event of a fire, the protea is capable of regenerating from its roots, nourished by its own ashes.

The 'Pink Ice' protea is a sensational, intensely exotic plant that will delight collectors. It is a plant suited to coastal gardens spared from severe frosts, which will be cultivated in light, poor, acidic to neutral soil. It prefers the Mediterranean coast but also adapts to sufficiently sunny Atlantic coast. Florists, as well as gardeners, appreciate the longevity of its unusual flower adorned with vibrant colours. This plant will have a lot of elegance in a large exotic rockery alongside the Canary viper's bugloss or Puya, Agaves, Dasylirion, Leucadendron, and more.