National Plant Trials Database Tops 50,000 Plant Ratings
November 14, 2016 
The National Plant Trials Database has announced there are now more than 50,000 plant ratings in its online repository of trial data. The announcement comes in the wake of the 2016 trialing season coming to a close in many parts of the U.S.
With trialing data and ratings on a large number of varieties, brokers, growers, and garden retailers should find the information valuable when making purchasing decisions. The data can be accessed by going to PlantTrials.org, clicking on “Register to View,” and filling out a short application form. Almost immediately, applicants will be notified of their user information.
The site includes the following trialing details by year:
• 2012: 1,655 varieties with more than 5,600 ratings from eight trial grounds
• 2013: 2,463 varieties with more than 9,400 ratings from 12 trial grounds
• 2014: 3,651 varieties with more than 15,500 ratings from 19 trial grounds
• 2015: 2,928 varieties with more than 9,800 ratings from 20 trial grounds
• 2016: 2,806 varieties with more than 11,600 ratings from 20 trial grounds
The initial idea for an online repository of trialing data came out of a collaboration between All-America Selections, the University of Georgia, and several breeding companies. After identifying and establishing standardized trialing protocols and scoring, the system was built in 2012 and is supported by the following breeding companies:
• Danziger “Dan” Flower Farm
• Dümmen Group
• Ernst Benary of America
• Floranova Ltd.
• PanAmerican Seed/Ball Horticultural
• Proven Winners
• Sakata Ornamentals
• The Suntory Collection
• Syngenta Flowers
The 2016 participating trial grounds that have entered data thus far include:
• Boerner Botanical Gardens
• Colorado State University
• Cornell Long Island
• Cornell University Ithaca
• Jardin Daniel A. Sequin
• JC Raulston Arboretum – North Carolina State University
• Kansas State University
• Louisiana State University Ag Center – Hammond Research Station
• Mast Young Plants
• McCrory Gardens at South Dakota State University
• Mississippi State University – South Mississippi Branch Experiment Station
• Mississippi State University – Truck Crops Branch Experiment Station
• Ohio State University Cultivar Trials
• Raker Trial Gardens
• University of Guelph
• University of Minnesota West Central Research and Outreach Center
• University of Tennessee Jackson
• University of Tennessee Trial Gardens
• University of Wisconsin West Madison Ag Research Station
• Walt Disney’s Horticulture Bedding Plant Trials
• William Dam Seeds
National Trials Database users will see significant upgrades to the system that have recently been completed:
• The ability to view data for a given variety over multiple years
• The ability to select multiple trial gardens to create a personalized “region” and then see trial results only from the trial gardens in that region
• The addition of statistical summary data for each variety
Additional functionality, including a mobile friendly version of the site, will be completed in early 2017.
For more information, contact Diane Blazek of All-America Selections at 630-963-0770 or Timothy Howard of Clarity Connect, Inc. at 919-577-9901.
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