Charles Michael

Williams, 1951, RHS. Journal, 76(11):398: “There are two or three other really good pinks, the best is called Charles Michael and this had the largest flower of all. The petals are long and not quite so regular in size as some of the others and the flowers are not as flat until fully opened, but the quality of the flower and the clearness of the pink is the best of all. However it is not really early.” The earliest record of this cultivar is in Arnold Foster’s Shrubs for the Milder Counties, 1948, p.202 where he used the abbreviation ‘C. Michael’, but this was not acceptable to the raiser. Further confusion was caused by the cultivar being listed by Hilliers as ‘Michael’, when this name had previously been applied to a Cornish Snow hybrid at Caerhays. Originated by Mr. Julian Williams, Caerhays Castle, Cornwall, England and named for his head gardener. Received the RHS., “Award of Merit”, 21 April 1987. Plant, vigor­ous, fairly erect, spreading, free flowering. Leaves 8.2 cm x 3.5 cm, slightly glossy, fairly dark green. Flower 8 cm across, single with 2 rows of petals; inner petals very pale pink, outer lightly flushed with RHS Red Group 56A.