Plant Patent #14,596. Cultivar name: 'DICwisp.'No cut flower lover should be without this splendid hybrid tea, which offers enormous blooms of winter white on sturdy stems up to 18 inches long. A fine variety for the vase not only for its own beauty and form but because it complements all other colors, Whisper™ is an award winner that will gratify you with its performance for many years.
The fully double blooms are 5 inches across, packed with up to 35 whorled petals of creamy ivory. Exuding a faint musk scent, they swirl open from pointed ovoid buds and present the classic high-centered form for which hybrid teas are renowned. A perfect Rose, worthy of the local flower show or national exhibition.
The flowers are carried on straight, strong 16- to 18-inch stems that hold up well in the vase and on the plant. Although Whisper™ is primarily used for cutting, the shrub is quite well-branched and vigorous, making a fine impact in the sunny garden. 5 1/2 feet tall and about 4 feet wide, it is a larger hybrid tea with semi-glossy dark green foliage.
Whisper™ was bred by British rosarian Colin Dickson in 2002 from a cross of R. 'Solitaire' x R. 'Elina.' It promptly won an All America Rose Selection and has become a mainstay of fine cutting gardens, particularly in warm climates, where it is more disease resistant and healthy than many others. Highly recommended. Zones 6-9.
