A New Irish Rhododendron named at Mount Congreve Gardens, Waterford.
Tánaiste, Joan Burton, with Michael White, Curator of Mount Congreve Gardens and Tony Kelly, Administrator at Mount Congreve. Michael has presented the Tánaiste with a rhododendron which he had bred, selected and named Rhododendron ‘Tánaiste Joan Burton’ to mark Ms. Burton’s visit to the gardens on Saturday, 29th August, to support a fund-raising event in aid of Oasis House, a women’s refuge in Waterford. There was an attendance of approximately 200, the weather was wonderful for guided tours of the garden, a champagne reception in the Pleasure Garden with a jazz band playing and dinner afterwards in the courtyard of the house.
The rhododendron is a selection from seedlings Michael raised from a cross between ‘Actress’ and ‘Michael’s Choice’ both of which have ‘Lady Alice Fitzwilliam’ in their breeding background so, as might be expected, the new cultivar has an excellent fragrance.
Paddy Tobin
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