New Bedding Plants and Annuals
Friday, 18 December 2009 11:23
When choosing plants for retail sale, trial gardens can help growers decide which plants to grow and provide information to customers.
Dr. Douglas Cox, University of Massachusetts reported some observations on some new and recent introductions made on plants growing in a small trial garden run by Durfee Conservatory at UMass, trial gardens at Elm Bank, Dover, MA and plantings of his own in Sunderland, MA.
Here are excerpts from the article:
Alyssum ‘Snow Princess’ (Vegetative)
The heat tolerance was hard to evaluate the summer, but ‘Snow Princess’ did indeed have a long flowering season starting at planting in mid-May through to October. We cut our plants back once and they quickly recovered to rebloom very well. Plants are compact (4-6” tall) and are excellent spreaders.
Angelonia ‘Serena’ (Seed)
‘Serena is not a new plant but it remains the principal seed-propagated Angelonia. In my opinion, the two best characteristics of Angelonias are the vigorous and continuous blooming once the plants are established and the long life of each flower stalk which can extend many weeks. Based on my experience it’s clear that success with ‘Serena’ starts with seeding. Germination temperature should be 68-70°F and irrigation should be carefully managed to avoid overwatering. Seed should not be covered. Angelonias are often thought of as heat-loving plants. Over the years I have found that cool temperatures at planting outdoors do slow development of ‘Serena’, but by the middle or end of June, the plants really take off.
Gomphrena ‘Fireworks’ (Seed)
I think Gomphrenas are very useful garden plants because they require very little maintenance, minimal deadheading, and the individual flowers last for may weeks. ‘Fireworks’ is a much larger plant and has larger flowers than the familiar Gomphrenas. This plant may be a tough sell to the average consumer because these plants in packs and small containers may be too small to flower, so some promotion with pictures may be necessary.
Read more about trial results with photos in the complete article including Cuphea ‘Matchmaker’, Ipomoea ‘Illusion Emeral Lace’ and ‘Midnight Lace’, Petunia ‘Pretty Much Picasso’, Zinnia ‘Solcito’ and Zinnia ‘Zahara’. Note that the companies in the article are the sources of plant material for the trials and are not necessarily that of the breeder.
Elm Bank Trial Gardens: David Fiske is the trial garden manager at Elm Bank.
