Usually, brown isn’t a color that gardeners want to see on their roses. In most cases, brown spots appearing on petals and leaves can be a sign of blight or other plant diseases. But in the past year, ‘Toffee’ roses—a new garden rose variety that comes from Brown Breeding, in commercial agreement with Schreurs, and introduced in late 2018—have skyrocketed in popularity almost instantly thanks to their neutral, eye-catching color. (#toffeerose has more than 2,000 posts on Instagram.)
Part of their popularity also comes from their rarity—only five growers located in Ecuador have permission from the breeder, Schreurs, to commercially grow the roses. Because of this, not all florists will have them in stock all year, and they can be pricey to order online. Potomac Floral currently offers 25 stems of ‘Toffee’ roses for $66.95 (for comparison, 25 plain red roses from the same florist will only cost you $37.50).
The price hasn’t made them any less popular, though. Choice Farms, a wholesale florist located in Seattle, Washington, called ‘Toffee’ roses “the most requested rose on planet Earth”.
