Shoeshine Rose Bergenia Seeds

Glossy Dark Leaves and Brilliant Bells!

Easy to grow in a wide range of climates and conditions!

Genus: Bergenia
Species: cordifolia
Variety: Shoeshine? Rose
Item Form: (P)Pkt of 30 seeds
Zone: 3 – 8
Bloom Start to End: Early Spring
Habit: Mound-shaped
Seeds Per Pack: 30
Plant Height: 8 in – 10 in
Plant Width: 10 in – 12 in
Bloom Size: 1 in
Additional Characteristics: Easy Care Plants,Evergreen,Fall Foliage Changes,Flower,Free Bloomer,Needs Deadheading,Pruning Recommended,Spring Foliage Changes
Bloom Color: Dark Pink,Dark Rose,Magenta
Foliage Color: Bronze,Brown,Burgundy,Dark Green,Medium Green,Olive Green,Purple
Light Requirements: Full Sun,Part Shade
Moisture Requirements: Dry,Moist, well-drained
Resistance: Cold Hardy,Deer Resistance,Disease Resistant,Drought Tolerant,Humidity Tolerant
Soil Tolerance: Clay,Normal, loamy,Poor
Uses: Border,Foliage Interest,Ground Cover,Outdoor,Wildflowers,Winter Interest

(P)?Pkt of 30 seeds

Pigsqueak steps up its game! This delightful new variety is both more colorful and compact than the species, sporting smoky dark foliage in spring and fall, as well as big clusters of bell-shaped magenta blooms. Easy to start from seed, this evergreen perennial is a must-have in any sunny to partly shaded garden.

One of the earliest perennials to bloom in spring, Shoeshine? Rose would be gorgeous even if it never set a bud. The foliage is magnificent: large, thick, leathery leaves, neatly serrated, opening a glossy, deep shade of bronze and keeping that color for several weeks before going green for summer. In fall, when the chill sets in, the leaves revert to bronze, and remain that way all winter. Wow!

But Shoeshine? Rose does bloom, and these flowers are really impressive. A vivid shade of fuchsia-rose, they are bell-shaped and carried in big clusters that hang down from sturdy, straight stems — like fantastic umbrellas above the foliage! The flowering begins in early spring in most climates, continuing for several weeks. What a show!

Shoeshine? Rose reaches just 8 to 10 inches high and no more than a foot wide, making it much more compact than the species. It’s a great choice for containers too, but is so long-lived and comfortable in the garden that you may want to site it permanently in the border.

And you may be wondering about the name Pigsqueak. It comes from the sound made when you rub the large, thick leaves. They really do snort and squeal like a pig! Who can resist such a talented plant?!

Shoeshine? Rose is easy to start from seed. Like most perennials, it begins flowering the second year, though you can cut the waiting period by starting the seeds in late summer and transplanting the seedlings in fall for blooms the following spring. (It needs a period of vernalization — a cold exposure — in order to flower.) But the foliage is so pretty that you might just have to start the seeds right away indoors in late winter, get the seedlings growing in the garden in spring, and enjoy the color changes on these huge, eye-catching leaves in fall and winter before next spring’s blooms!

Once it finds its feet in your landscape, Shoeshine? Rose will put up with a huge range of problems: it loves moist soil, for instance, but will survive periods of dryness. It can tolerate almost any light exposure. Give it a try this season, and we predict you will soon be recommending it to all your gardening friends! Packet is 30 seeds.