The annual Season Premier at Costa Farms in Miami, Fla., is the industry’s very first peek at new varieties for debut the following year, even before the California Spring Trials, heralded widely as the jumping off point for new varieties. This year’s event revealed breeders’ best and brightest new varieties for 2016, shown in field trials, landscape trials and containers at Costa Farms’ tropical trial gardens.
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Costa Farms highlights some of the new variety introductions it showcases at Season Premier in combinations.
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Costa Farms presents garden lifestyle vignettes in its trial gardens.
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Throughout the landscape, Costa Farms provided placards highlighting the health, environmental and economic benefits of plants, gardening and landscaping.
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Retail displays were set up near trial gardens to exhibit different ways of selling plants
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Display gardens were set near tables with cross-merchandised hard goods and plant material, to show how garden centers can use merchandising to provide consumers with take-home ideas.
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
This display garden highlights the new "It's A Cinch" retail concept at The Home Depot, showcasing how to lay out plants in a deer-resistant garden.
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
"It's A Cinch" allows consumers to easily carry away a grouping of plants and take them home to make their own garden.
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Cactus, succulents and nearly every other type of plant imaginable were on display in the gardens.
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Breeders' new varieties are displayed in landscape beds, as well as trial beds.
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Costa's Trial Gardens are a treat to walk through, perfectly landscaped and manicured.
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Celosia 'Dragon's Breath' is truly breathtaking in the landscape.
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Retail displays set up at the trials simulate a real big box store.
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Showing how to successfully combine ornamentals and edibles is a highlight of Costa Farms' Season Premier.
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Coleus 'Campfire' shows off its gorgeous color in combinations.
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Petunia 'Surprise Plus Moonlight Bay' from Dummen
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Petunia 'Surprise Plus Purple Vein' from Dummen
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Petunia 'Crazytunia Razzmatazz' from Westflowers
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Coleus 'Campfire' from Ball
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Costa Farms is famous for combining unique plants together for attractive combo gardens.
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Costa Farms is well-known for its incredible combination gardens.
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Zantedeschia (calla lily) 'Hot Flashes' from Shepperd West
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Salvia 'Salute Deep Blue' from Dummen
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Celosia 'Dragon's Breath' from Sakata
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Coleus 'Party Time Pink Berry' from Sakata
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Ocimum 'Balsamic Blooms' from EuroAmerican Propagators
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Catharanthus 'Soiree Kawaii Coral Pink' from EuroAmerican Propagators
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Fenestraria 'Baby Toes' from EuroAmerican Propagators
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Petunia 'Surprise Cherry Cheesecake' from Dummen
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Petunia 'Fortunia Purple Rim' from Dummen
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Costa Farms' Season Premier 2015
Petunia 'Perfectunia Blackberry Cheesecake' from Westflowers
Plant breeders presented their new varieties to buyers and members of Lowe’s grower panel. Growers, brokers and other allied industry members, including Home Depot growers and buyers, were also able to peruse the grounds to see how the new varieties fared in the winter trials. Later this season, the hot and humid conditions at Costa’s summer trials will help identify the true performers.
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Some of the highlights were Sakata’s ‘Dragon’s Breath’ celosia, which provides a vast swath of color in the landscape. Party Time coleus also livens up containers and landscape beds.
Ball’s ‘Campfire’ coleus provides instant impact with its colorful foliage that truly emulates a cozy campfire, in the landscape and containers.
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Suntory’s BeeDance bidens was a hit with its striking bicolors and manageable growth habit. Painted Red won the innovation award for bedding plants/balcony plants at IPM Essen in Germany last week.
EuroAmerican’s new Soiree vinca and ‘Balsamic Blooms’ basil were favorites, as well….. With double flowers, the catharanthus offers a new edge to vinca varieties, and the large flowers and continuous production after flowering makes the basil double-functional as an attractive, ornamental edible.
Petunia genetics are getting even more exciting with the plethora of interesting colors available, from a variety of breeders.
Costa Farms highlighted several of the health and economic benefits of plants and landscaping on placards throughout the trial grounds, reminding attendees of important ways to market their products.
Retail displays were set up, simulating real-life benches one might see at a big box retailer. A new effort, showcasing benches of material next to display gardens, to provide ideas to consumers and hopefully instant sales for retailers, highlighted The Home Depot’s new “It’s A Cinch” campaign, featuring easy-carry, 3-packs of plants that couldn’t be easier for consumers to take, and make their own gardens.
Driving through the back roads between citrus groves in the warm, tropical climate of Miami, Florida, to visit Costa Farms’ annual Season Premier, is a refreshing way to spend a day in late January. It is especially so for someone who hails from the frozen Midwest, like this editor. Check out the slideshow to see trial highlights.
015Costa Farms' 2015 Season Premier Reveals Newest Varieties