While the snow was falling outside, Mid-Am Horticultural Trade Show attendees beat the cold Chicago weather with a number of educational sessions and an informative trade show inside the McCormick Place Convention Center last week. Among the sessions covering everything from the retail trade to landscaping and lawn care was Jim Nau’s presentation “Hortus Mustus: The Plants You Gotta Get for 2005.” With introductions to a number of beautiful new blooms, attendees stayed warm while envisioning this spring and summer’s growing season.
“The varieties we’re showcasing come from a number of seed and plant companies around the world,” Nau said, adding that 2005 mark’s Ball’s 100th anniversary in the seed business. “They’ve all been tried and tested in either container trials, landscape trials or both, to get a true idea of how they’ll perform for you.”
Nau noted that the No. 1 garden trend in North America now is mixed combination container gardening. His presentation touched on a number of varieties that can be used well in containers, and others that thrive in landscape beds. Here’s a sampling of the 65 varieties Nau covered. More hot plants for 2005 can be found on the Ball Seed Web site at www.ballhort.com
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Coleus ‘Kong’ Series. Bred by a Japanese company called Sakata, the Kong series of coleus comes in a variety of color variations, including Green, Rose, Scarlet, Red, Cream and Mosaic. “The tones in these varieties make them great for combination containers and shady mass plantings,” Nau says. “In our trials, Mosaic and Rose seemed to work best. The green version looks great in a greenhouse, but outside we lost a lot of central coloring.” Best with morning sun and afternoon shade, these coleus show the most intense color in full shade and can grow 18 to 22 inches in the garden.
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Delphinium ‘Guardian Blue.’ “There’s been a resurgence of Delphinium in the perennial and landscape market,” Nau notes, and it matches well with hollyhock.”
According to Magnolia Gardeners Nursery, Delphiniums are bi-annuals that are normally planted in the fall and bloom the following spring in colder climates. The Guardian series of Delphinium is an F1 hybrid that will bloom the first year allowing them to be grown as an annual in milder southern climates. This F1 produces more uniform growth and faster flowers than most open pollinated Delphinium varieties. The low-mounding clumps of deeply lobed foliage sends up showy 4- to 6-foot flower spikes of double, bright blue flowers with white centers. ‘Guardian Blue’ is an excellent cut flower and makes an exceptional specimen in any perennial border.
Old flower stalks should be cut back to encourage a second bloom. Nau also reminds users to cut back the plants when they flower and go to seed. “If you don’t have a secondary crown developing, all the energy goes to seed and they don’t overwinter at all,” he explains. “Also, wet mulch can rot Delphinium at overwintering.”
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Alcea ‘Queeny Purple.’ “Alcea ‘Queeny Purple’ is a new Hollyhock variety, but we didn’t find it to be a perennial,” Nau says. “The bloom has a flare with a small pom pom in the center and the plant will grow 24 to 30 inches in the garden. In a pot container, don’t let it dry down too much or you’ll get a necrosis or drying around the edge.” Nau also noted that hollyhock should not be overfed, as more buds will develop and the flowers will get lost in the foliage.
‘Queeny Purple’ is an All-American Selections winner and is the shortest Alcea rosea and first purple hollyhock available as a single color and not part of a mixture. The frilly edged blooms measure 3 to 4 incheas and are produced abundantly on the compact-branching plants, according to www.all-americanselections.com. The plant will flower prolifically the first year from a February or March sowing.
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Impatiens. The new Impatiens auricoma ‘Jungle Gold’ variety lets growers and retailers offer the “new and different.” According to a Ball Seed fact sheet, ‘Jungle Gold’ F1 novelty impatiens boast a good flower show of golden yellow, orchidlike blooms held above dark, glossy green foliage. The free-flowering plants are very vigorous and ‘Jungle Gold’ combines well with other large, vigorous container plants. Recommended for container use, ‘Jungle Gold’ performs better in mixed containers than in the ground, with the drier conditions in containers resulting in more flowers and better show. Plants grow 15 to 18 inches tall, with a similar spread and require full shade for cooler growing conditions. Full sun reduces flowering, especially in high heat.
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Zinnia ‘Magellan Coral.’ Another All-American Selections winner, Zinnia ‘Magellan Coral’ blooms are radiant. The fully double, dahlia-flowered 5- to 6-inch blooms gleam with brilliant coral petals. The flower quality and color are superior to other Zinnia elegans. In addition to the color, ‘Magellan Coral’ plants are brimming with luminous blooms. Consistent flower production is an improved quality. Earliness to bloom is another exceptional trait. From sowing seed to first bloom requires only 6 to 9 weeks. Mature zinnia plants will reach about 15 to 17 inches tall and spread 15 to 19 inches, depending upon growing conditions. Like all zinnias, ‘Magellan Coral’ will perform best in a full-sun growing location. This All-American Selections winner is adaptable to container culture. In the garden, ‘Magellan Coral’ is undemanding, needing little maintenance.
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Vinca ‘First Kiss Blueberry.’ The first blue-flowered Catharanthus rosea is another All-American Selections winner that contractors can look forward to using this year. The large 2-inch single blooms have a darker eye, which accentuates the violet blue color. For decades, breeders have been diligently working towards a blue Vinca. Now ‘First Kiss Blueberry’ fills the color void. Proven to be heat and drought tolerant, mature plants will be about 11 inches tall and spread 16 inches, given adequate growing conditions. Easy to grow from plants, ‘First Kiss Blueberry’ can be grown in patio containers or combination planters.