We started out on what was a very sunny day two of the 2011 California Spring Trials at Ball Horticultural’s Santa Paula location.
With the increasing consumer interest in 3D movies, TVs and video games, Selecta has launched its 3D series of osteospermum (which were actually shown with 3D glasses). Available in Pink, Purple and Silver, the flowers stay open 24 hours so consumers can get the maximum effect. The good thing for growers – they can be produced just like any other osteo variety without any different cultural requirements.
Presto is Ball FloraPlant’s new compact, dark-leafed zonal geranium series. What’s magical about these plants? The 13 colors send up three to four flowers in the first flush, they finish together enabling growers to bench run the crop and they don’t need any growth regulators.
Later in the day, we made a quick trip to Oxnard to visit GroLink and Green Fuse Botanicals. GroLink has expanded its family of dahlias with the Happy series. The six varieties in this series have a medium habit with dark bronze foliage. The color intensifies under higher light levels. The bright colorful flowers really stand out against the dark foliage.
The new Ladyslippers streptocarpus series from Green Fuse isn’t like the old varieties with a lot of strap-like leaves and a few flowers. Available in six colors, the plants are produced from tissue culture and are covered in flowers. These shade plants can be used as specimen plants or in mixed combinations. And there are more unique flower colors in the works.
Finally, we backtracked to Santa Paula to spend some time with Fides, which also hosted Flamingo Holland. Roselily Belonica Oriental lily from Flamingo Holland is a true double flower lily with 20 petals per flower. The lightly scented flowers don’t produce pollen and last up to two weeks longer than single flowers. A 14/16 size bulb produces an average of two to four flowers per plant.
“Fides Goes Hollywood” was the theme of this year’s trials at Fides North America. Although the company had plenty of new varieties lining the red carpet, it was the plants in the back room that got as much attention. Fides displayed the new garden mums it’s working on for the North American market. Expect to see several new series from the plants currently being trialed and selected. Growers have the opportunity to trial the plants this year with a formal launch planned in 2012.