By Janeen Wright|April 12, 2022

The first day of California Spring Trials 2022 was a busy one for the Greenhouse Grower team of Editor Janeen Wright and Contributing Editor Allan Armitage, with stops at Danziger, Syngenta Flowers, Ernst Benary of America, and Suncrest Nurseries. Each stop was buzzing with attendees sizing up the new plant introductions and catching up with old connections they haven’t seen in a while. 

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  1. Ptilotus 'Matilda' (Ernst Benary of America)

  

  Meet Ptilotus ‘Joey’s’ beautiful and sassy sister. ‘Matilda’ is a heat- and sun-loving beauty that reflects more of Ptilotus’ natural habit. It has a long vase life, which makes it a good candidate for the cut flower market. 
  

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  2. Zydeco Zinnia Series (Syngenta Flowers)

  

  A new series for Syngenta, Zydeco is a double-flowered zinnia series with built-in disease resistance and heat- and drought-tolerance. The series includes Fire, Cherry, Deep Yellow (pictured), and White.

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  3. Petunia ‘Rimarkable’ (Danziger)

  

  Just as its name suggests, ‘Rimarkable’ has a large, distinct rim on each bloom that is sure to stand out in premium baskets and combinations. This petunia is a stand-alone product with a mounding and trailing habit that blooms early enough for any market. 

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  4. Salvia farinacea ‘Sallyfun Blue Lagoon’ (Danziger)

  

  Blue Lagoon has strong radial branching and early and uniform bloom. Its large blooms and summer-long bloom period make it a good option for attracting pollinators. 
  

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  5. Lantana Bandolista Series (Syngenta Flowers)

  

  Bandolista is a new lantana series bred for hanging basket applications and mixed container programs. It has a well-branched, slightly trailing habit and outstanding vigor and color coverage. The series includes Coconut, Mango, Pineapple, and Red Chili (pictured). Bandolista is a sterile series except for Coconut.

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  6. Mantra Geranium Series (Syngenta Flowers)

  

  Mantra geraniums combine interspecific breeding with dark-green foliage, big blooms, excellent branching, and a vigorous upright, mounding growth habit. The series includes Magenta, Pink (pictured), and Bright Red. 
  

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  7. Cats Pansy Plus Series (Ernst Benary of America)

  

  Cats Plus is a reintroduced series from two years ago that Benary wants to bring to growers' attention again. It has a distinctive whiskers pattern and features an improved habit, early flowering, and strong branching. The series includes five colors. Pictured is 'Cats Plus Purple and White'.
  

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  8. Jamesbrittania ‘Stardom White Fusion’ (Danziger)

  

  White Fusion is a new addition to the series joining Pink, Purple, and Goldstar. It starts with an upright habit to create a small footprint for growers, then develops into large trailing baskets for the end consumer. 
  

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  9. Sedum ‘Gold Dust’ (Jaldety)

  

  ‘Gold Dust’ is not a new introduction, but it still caught our eye this year with its look-at-me bright-yellow succulent foliage. It is a compact grower with a dense mounding habit. Heat and drought tolerance also make it a good choice for a low-maintenance ground cover. 
  

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  10. Kale ‘Candy Crush Pink’ (Prudac)

  

  ‘Candy Crush Pink’ is both ornamental and edible. Unlike other kale on the market, it doesn’t lose its color when you cook it. 

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1. Ptilotus 'Matilda' (Ernst Benary of America)

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2. Zydeco Zinnia Series (Syngenta Flowers)

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3. Petunia ‘Rimarkable’ (Danziger)

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4. Salvia farinacea ‘Sallyfun Blue Lagoon’ (Danziger)

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5. Lantana Bandolista Series (Syngenta Flowers)

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6. Mantra Geranium Series (Syngenta Flowers)

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7. Cats Pansy Plus Series (Ernst Benary of America)

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8. Jamesbrittania ‘Stardom White Fusion’ (Danziger)

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9. Sedum ‘Gold Dust’ (Jaldety)

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10. Kale ‘Candy Crush Pink’ (Prudac)

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Here are a few highlights from each stop during day one of California Spring Trials, and check out the slideshow for our top 10 plant picks from the displays we saw on Day One of spring trials.

Danziger
One standout at Danziger was the DuraBella display with a small sampling of what the line has to offer. It now has more than 70 combos available, with more in the works for the future. Creating great combos for hanging baskets and containers in Danziger’s view is all about long-lasting inputs. Durabella recipes include a maximum of three liners. Finishing times for these combos stay the same as traditional plantings with six to nine combos. Less liners also means there is more room for the roots to grow and expand, which results in less dense root balls and overall healthier plants that require less water. 

Ernst Benary of America
Benary’s outdoor displays on benches harked back to the original pack trials when it was easier to compare sizes and uniformity across a series. Indoors, attendees got a closer look at Benary’s Be Green seed technology, which is part of its initiative, launched in 2019, to create eco-friendly solutions for sustainability. Be Green seed priming and coating methods ensure seeds are free of chemicals and microplastics and produced neonicotinoid-free. Benary also offers chemical-free ApeX treatment for the seed of key perennials to help overcome their natural dormancy for proper germination. 

Syngenta Flowers
As always, Syngenta’s displays were well thought out with over-the-top design that showcased its range of products and their many possibilities for growers. One display of note was the flower shop area. Syngenta has dusted off some of its old genetics in snaps and dahlias and other crops to reemphasize their possibilities as specialty cut flowers. Other genetics displayed, such as lavender and sunflowers, offered new ideas for adding to this category.  

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Syngenta Flowers also made sure growers knew about a peculiarity with its Funhouse Potpourri Petunia and plant growth regulator use.  

When managing growth during finish, sprays of B-Nine WSG will turn the flowers completely yellow. The number of B-Nine WSG applications and higher concentrations used will affect how long flowers remain a clear yellow and will delay expression of the bicolor flower pattern. Under average growing conditions, the change to bicolor can happen approximately nine weeks after the last B-Nine WSG application. To get a true bicolor pattern, use Bonzi drenches to control growth in finished production and grow consistently at low night temperatures below 62°F. Night temperatures above 66°F will result in nearly all rose flowers. Day light integrals (DLI) of 10 mols/day will cause flowers that are more muted in color while higher DLIs will cause more vibrant and bright colors. The flower pattern of Potpourri is not influenced by photoperiod. 

Syngenta says it is investigating the effects of other PGR active ingredients on Potpourri. 

Suncrest Nurseries
The Suncrest Nurseries stop featured Cohen, Hishtil, Jaldety, Karmel, Prudac, Nir Nursery, and PureLine Seeds. The stop had everything from unusual herbs and succulents to down-under natives and snack-size veggies. 

Hishtil wants to be 100% organic in the future and is starting with transitioning its herb lines to organic. For now, annuals and perennials will take a backseat to Hishtil’s focus on its herb lines. Hishtil now offers an organic lavender, Lavandula stoechas ‘Kew Red’, in addition to a new Spanish lavender LavLov series (not organic yet) with five colors. 

You can always see some good succulent and combo selections at Jaldety during spring trials and this year was no exception. One succulent that caught our eye was a heat- and drought-tolerant intro from last year. Sedum ‘Gold Dust’ has attractive miniaturized, bright yellow foliage that would stand out as a ground cover or in a rock garden. 

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