Varieties top 2008-09 honor rolls

Pictures related to variety descriptions may be accessed by viewing the PDF files of the pages that originally appeared in GMPRO magazine:

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All-America Selections

Viola F₁ -‘Rain Blue and Purple’

Cool Season Bedding Plant Award Winner

‘Rain Blue and Purple’ viola flowers change from purple and white to purple and blue as they mature. This results in a spreading pool of cool blue shades. ‘Rain Blue and Purple,’ bred by Tokita Seed Co. Ltd., spreads 10-14 inches, which is perfect for container plantings or spaces between stepping stones. This cultivar exhibited heat and cold tolerance in trials. In winter Southern trials, it produced color all season. In Northern trials, ‘Rain Blue and Purple’ showed heat tolerance. Flowering 3- to 4-inch pots can be produced in 70-75 days from sowing seed.

Eggplant F₁ -hybrid ‘Gretel’

Vegetable Award Winner

‘Gretel’ is the earliest white eggplant. Glossy, pure-white fruit are produced in clusters and can be harvested in 55 days. Mature plants reach 3 feet tall and wide. Young green plants can be produced for sale in eight to 10 weeks. ‘Gretel’ was bred by Seminis Vegetable Seeds.

Melon F₁ -hybrid ‘Lambkin’

Vegetable Award Winner

‘Lambkin’ was bred as a gourmet breakfast or dessert for people who love melon. It is a specialty Piel de Sapo (Christmas-type) melon. Its distinctive visual feature is the smooth yellow skin with green mottling. The oval-shaped melon matures early, 67-75 days from transplanting. Plants are easily grown in four to six weeks under warm greenhouse conditions. It was bred by Known-You Seed Company Ltd.

Squash F₁ -hybrid ‘Honey Bear’

Vegetable Award Winner

‘Honey Bear’ squash is a compact bushy plant that has powdery mildew tolerance. These traits enable gardeners to grow this winter acorn squash in smaller-space gardens and expect high yields. The mildew tolerance allows the late-season fruit on the plant to mature, increasing the overall harvest. Plants produce three to five dark-green squash weighing about a pound each. ‘Honey Bear’ was bred by University of New Hampshire.

To order AAS winners, contact your favorite seed or plug supplier.

All-America Rose Selections

Carefree Spirit

With a mounding habit and deep-red flowers with white accents, Carefree Spirit thrived in All-America Rose Selections test gardens for two years without any fungicide applications. It was hybridized by Jacques Mouchotte, director of research at Meilland International. Carefree Spirit was introduced by Conard-Pyle Co.

Pink Promise

Pink Promise is a highly fragrant hybrid tea with large pink flowers and dark-green foliage. A percentage of sales from this rose will be donated to the National Breast Cancer Foundation. Pink Promise was hybridized by Jim Coiner and introduced by Coiner Nursery.

Cinco de Mayo

A floribunda with lavender flowers and a hint of rusty red-orange accents, Cinco de Mayo is ideal for use as a hedge or in a border with mixed perennials. Cinco de Mayo was hybridized by Tom Carruth and introduced by Weeks Roses.

For more: All-America Rose Selections, rose@rose.org; www.rose.org.

Fleuroselect Gold Medal winners

‘Ballerina Red’ and ‘Ballerina White’

Armeria pseudarmeria ‘Ballerina Red’ and ‘Ballerina White,’ bred by Kieft Seeds Holland, are early and produce an abundance of ball-shaped flower heads on short, strong stems from June to September. The Ballerina series is suitable for year-round production. The first-year-flowering armerias are heat-tolerant.

‘Freelander Blue’

Prunella grandiflora ‘Freelander Blue,’ from Clause of France, is compact and uniform, flowering profusely from May to October. ‘Freelander Blue’ flowers the first year and returns year after year. Plants thrive in many types of soils and climates.

For more: Fleuroselect, http://www.fleuroselect.com.

Ivy of the Year

Hedera helix 'Gold Child'

The American Ivy Society selected Hedera helix ‘Gold Child’ as Ivy of the Year for 2008. ‘Gold Child’ leaves have three to five lobes with rounded tips. The variegation is a bright-gold margin with a green to gray-green center. This ivy makes a great houseplant, and has also proven to be a valuable outdoor ivy in USDA Hardiness Zone 5 (minus-10°F to minus-20°F). The color is not as intense if plants are grown under shade, but the variegation is still prominent.

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For more: American Ivy Society, (845) 688-5318; www.ivy.org.

June 2008