Rainbow roses sport Pride colours

The rainbow colours of Pride are well-known, and on display all over the Island during Pride Week.

Now, there's a special flower that's sporting the colours, and is becoming a hit for Pride PEI 2016.

They are called rainbow roses, and instead of a single colour, feature a spectacular multi-coloured mix of petals.

Rainbow roses aren't new, and Flower Buds Florists of Charlottetown has had them for sale for awhile, but co-owner Vikki Sweeney thought it might be a good idea to promote them for Pride Week.

"We have a Facebook page, we put a picture on Facebook, and then the calls started coming in," said Sweeney.

The flowers come from a farm in South America, where they are created usinga time-consuming process.

"The cool thing about them is they're split," explained Sweeney. "The stems are split and cut three ways and then dropped into vials of dye. Sothe flower uses the stem as a straw, sips up the dye, and then it individually colours all the petals."

Expensive but 'spectacular'

Because of the complexity of the colouring, the flowers do cost more than the average rose, selling for $7 each.

They are a long-lasting rose, living anywhere from seven to 10 days.

The novelty and timing has been right for Pride Week, as Sweeney has seen demand increase well beyond the usual dozen or two she might sell a week.

So far, she's had to bring in two fresh orders, eight dozen and counting.

"I'm glad to be part of it," she said. "This is a Pride-friendly shop."

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