Quick Thoughts From Allan Armitage on CAST 2022
April 5, 2022 Another year, another journey — but who am I kidding? The last two years have been so stressful and lonely, this was anything but another year. People were ecstatic just to see their colleagues, their customers, and their friends at the 2022 California Spring Trials (CAST) after such a long absence.
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Usually, the plants are the showstoppers at CAST, but this year, the people were as well. Praise be to normal.
What Did We See?
As I traveled down the California coast with Greenhouse Grower Editor Janeen Wright and our friend and plant lover Robin Siktberg, there were a few plants that captured our eyes and imaginations, but truth be told, this was a down year for the wow factor, but a good year for circling the wagons and filling in program gaps. Having said that, I will mention one or two Wow-Plants in a later column.
While it seems like trends just pop up, this is not so. The breeders and growers have been working on these for some time — they were obvious this year.
Cut Flowers
At least half of the breeder firms displayed a robust interest in improved genetics for cut flowers. As a trend, one only has to pay attention to organizations like the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers (ASCFG) to see that membership and actual production has skyrocketed over the last two years. While many of these growers are new and relatively small, it bodes great things to see the breeders pay attention and offer new excitement to everyone.
Houseplants
This is another trend that has been rising for years (perhaps nudged along by COVID-19). A significant number of presenters not only displayed new and different foliage houseplants (not your normal pothos) but full programs with point-of-purchase (POP) and other useful materials to carry the plants through the distribution chain. I was surely impressed with the diversity; there is something for everyone. There were not only houseplants for foliage, but also programs for new pot plant interest like cyclamen, dwarf hydrangeas, and the like that greeted us along the route.
Miscellaneous Material
Where once we called these minor crops or novelty items, their importance is being more recognized every year. We came across major improvements in cool-season plants like nasturtium, primula, and cineraria, while improvements in alstroemeria and patio veggies were extraordinary. As always, petunias, begonias, and calibrachoa were wonderful, but the obvious push of some of these less obvious crops was refreshing.
Check out more highlights from 2022 California Spring Trials here.
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