Armitage's Top 6 Petunias

There are probably more than 150 petunias in the Trial Gardens at UGA, and Allan Armitage has his slew of favorites. Among the top-performing petunias in Georgia are:

- Ball FloraPlant's 'Suncatcher Pink Lemonade'
- Danziger's 'Purple Vein Ray'
- Dömmen's 'Surprise Black Jack'
- Dömmen's 'Potunia Yellow'
- Proven Winners' 'Supertunia Vista Bubblegum'; and
- Syngenta Flowers' 'Whispers Red'

Armitage has always enjoyed 'Sun Ray,' but he's also impressed with 'Purple Vein Ray' - especially as a container combination like the one UGA planted with Floranova's 'Field of Dreams' ornamental corn.

"How can you not love petunias in the Ray series by Danziger," Armitage says.

'Supertunia Vista Bubblegum' works well with other plants in containers, too. In the trial gardens, Armitage tried Vista Bubblegum with 'Twisted Dart' juncus this year and he's pleased with its performance.

Syngenta's Whispers series has a number of fine petunias, as well.

"The more I walk around, the more I notice 'Whispers Red,'" Armitage says. "But there are many other fine selections in the series."

Armitage speculates that the black petunia phase may be nearing a close, but he is still impressed with the newest black petunia on the market: 'Surprise Black Jack.' Without a doubt, Armitage says Black Jack has been the best black petunia this spring.

"We have all been most impressed with its performance in the garden so far this year," he says.

Dömmen's Potunias have been a hit this year, as well.

"They're turning a lot of heads," Armitage says. "Papaya and Yellow are both outstanding. The bright flowers are perfect with other combinations in containers."

But perhaps the most spectacular petunia in the Trial Gardens at UGA has been 'Suncatcher Pink Lemonade.'

"It's looking beautiful here in combination with 'Black Pearl' pepper," Armitage says. "Everyone looks at it."

Learn more about the plants in the Trial Gardens at UGA online at http://ugatrial.hort.uga.edu.