Plant Preview


Welcome to Plant Preview, a blog dedicated to helping gardeners learn about gardening techniques and preview new plant cultivars. Read about new plants here first and hear how your "comrades in compost" are making use of new plant introductions in their gardens and landscapes. Blog author Geri Laufer is a life-long dirt gardener, degreed horticulturist, author and former County Extension Agent. Plant Preview is copyrighted by Geri Laufer.

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Enjoy 24/7(TM) Daylilies from Renown Daylily Breeder Dr. Ted L Petit


Ted Petit was born near New Orleans and completed his Bachelor and Masters degrees at L.S.U. before moving to the University of Florida to get his Ph.D. in Psychology and Neuroscience.  He joined the faculty at the University of Toronto where he continues to work as a Professor.  His conducts research on how the brain changes to store memories, and has written two books about the brain. 

Ted and his wife, Susan, purchased 25 acres of land near Gainesville, Florida, where they raised their son, Gavin, with Ted commuting between Canada and Florida.  Ted had always been an avid gardener, so he soon created a large garden at his Florida home.  He soon met Bill Munson, arguably the foremost daylily hybridizer of his time, who lived nearby in Gainesville.  Ted fell in love with daylilies, and Bill became his mentor, teaching him everything about breeding them. 

Soon, Ted’s garden was filled with daylilies, and his love for the daylily turned into a passion.  It has now been 25 years since he first started breeding daylilies, and the gardens have transformed into a major undertaking, including two 30 x 100 feet greenhouses used for hybridizing.  Ted has also co-authored 3 books on daylilies, The Color Encyclopedia of Daylilies,  Daylilies: A Guide for Gardeners, and The New Encyclopedia of Daylilies, all published by Timber Press.  He has also written articles for gardening magazines as well as appearing on House and Garden TV. Read Ted's Blog at http://petitdaylilies.blogspot.com/

             
His first hybrids were introduced into commerce in 1994 through his daylily nursery, Le Petit Jardin.  To date, he has introduced 492 hybrids into commerce, which he sells through his web page (http://www.petitdaylilies.com/) and full-color catalog. His plants have won numerous awards from the American Hemerocallis Society, including 20 Honorable Mentions and 1 Award of Merit.  Some of Ted’s most popular daylilies have included Ferengi Gold, Bill Munson, Gavin Petit, Larry’s Obsession, Gary Colby, April LaQuinta, Ted's Tribute to Linda and Blue Eden.

The Enjoy 24/7(TM) Daylilies (three pictured here) are introduced and marketed through Garden Debut(R) and excel in the size and beauty of the flowers, length of bloom season which begins in April and blooms until frost, resistance to rust and short scapes with grassy foliage on plants in the collection. Find out more about this collection on this blog and at the Garden Debut(R) website.

Ted has broken the world record for the most expensive daylily sold at auction three times.  Prior to 2002, the most expensive daylily sold at auction for $2,300.  In 2002, Ted’s “Lady Betty Fretz” broke this record by selling at auction for $4,200 at the Canadian-American Daylily Meeting.  In 2004, he broke his own world record with “Larry’s Obsession” selling for $6,300 at the Canadian-American Daylily Meeting.  Ted again broke his own world record in 2008 with “Ted’s Tribute to Linda” selling at auction for $7,500 at the Lake Tahoe International Daylily Symposium. His latest record has yet to be broken. (http://www.petitdaylilies.com/index.php/world-record-breakers)

                       
Photos from top: Dr. Ted L. Petit, Bahama Pink Sky(TM), Key Largo Moon(TM) and Bermuda Peach(TM)

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Jamaica Sunrise™ Daylily Awakens Landscapes


Continuous blooms from spring through fall provide added value for gardeners and landscapers.

Far and away superior to older long-blooming daylilies, Garden Debut®’s new introduction Jamaica Sunrise™ Daylily adds an eye-catching lavender-rose flower color to the daylily palette, while delivering both disease resistance and an extended season of bloom. Daylilies in the Enjoy 24/7™ “the no work plant collection” share valuable characteristics that appeal to gardeners, homeowners, landscape designers and contractors.

Extraordinary flowers of Jamaica Sunrise™ Daylily are an unusual, clear lavender-rose or light burgundy color with a contrasting lemon-yellow and chartreuse throat. Flowers have a darker burgundy or grape-maroon eye zone with a thin maroon-red halo toward the flower center. Wide, overlapping petals have a light ruffle and heavy substance, creating a round flower shape on this outstanding cultivar. 

This out-of-the-ordinary lavender-rose daylily is one of the Garden Debut® Tetraploid daylilies in the Enjoy 24/7™ series that features three seasons of continuous bloom on short plants with large, brightly-colored flowers. Originator Ted Petit named the series for the luminous, soft purple dawns and tropical island colors of the Beach Boys’ classic song, Kokomo.

Jamaica Sunrise™ Daylily is a 2011 introduction in the Tetraploid series Enjoy 24/7™ “the no work plant collection” from Garden Debut® that features shorter plants with large, brightly-colored flowers. Flowering begins six to eight weeks earlier than standard daylilies and buds develop into flowers even during cooler weather and cold spring nights, a big plus for retailers whose customers will be captivated by the colorful display on their springtime shopping trips.  Blooming continues throughout the summer and fall until cut down by hard frost (as late as Thanksgiving in Zone 7).

What’s more, Jamaica Sunrise™ Daylily is resistant to Daylily Rust that blights previous long-blooming daylilies. Short, grassy foliage, clean shedding of old blooms, prolonged reblooming that extends the season, and rapid increase of divisions adds up to an extraordinary daylily. Compact plants with short flower scapes and foliage eliminate blow-over in garden centers common to taller daylilies sold in gallon pots.  [Photo at left was taken 4/28/11 after -12 degree F. winter lows; 6 budded scapes in evidence on plant! ]  

The culmination of seven years of targeted plant modification by renowned daylily breeder and author Dr. Ted Petit of Le Petit Jardin, McIntosh, Fla., Garden Debut® is pleased to provide the green industry with outstanding plants through this partnership. Jamaica Sunrise™ Daylily is available in summer 2011.

For more information on Enjoy 24/7 “the no work plant collection” and other superior plant introductions brought to gardeners by Garden Debut®, visit GardenDebut.com. To set-up an interview with daylily breeder Dr. Ted Petit, contact Jim Thompson toll-free at 877-663-5053 or jim_thompson@greenleafnursery.com.               

 Jamaica Sunrise™ Daylily, Hemerocallis ‘SPd 06-12’ PPAF
(Hybrid 2011 introduction of the Enjoy 24/7™ “the no work plant collection”)
Plant Category:
 Perennial
Mature Height:
18 inches, shorter plants won’t blow over in gallon pots
Mature Spread:
12 inches
Mature Form:
 Grass-like foliage, short mounds (like cushion mums)
Growth Rate:
Vigorous; rapid increase in landscape or garden quickly forming large plants
Disease Resistance:
 Very rust resistant, “No Work Plant Collection”
Sun Exposure:
 Full sun to partial shade
Soil Moisture:
 Wide range, tolerant of dry to damp soils
Soil Type:
 Loam, Sand, Clay, tolerant of all soil types 
pH Level:
 Wide range, tolerant of soil reaction
Flower Genetics:
 Tetraploid. More flowers with heavier substance, yet the series are shorter with narrow leaves that will not blow over in gallon nursery pots.
Intensity:
 Brightly colored red blooms
Flower Color:
Superior flowers of Jamaica Sunrise™ Daylily are an unusual, clear lavender-rose or light burgundy color with a contrasting lemon yellow/chartreuse throat. Flowers have a darker burgundy or grape-maroon eye zone with a thin maroon-red halo. Wide, overlapping petals with heavy substance have a light ruffle, and unusual lavender-rose daylily petals are gently recurved, creating a round form on medium size flowers.
Flower Size:
 4 inches
Bloom Time:
 Continuous bloom spring through summer.
 Starts blooming 6 to 8 weeks earlier than standard commercial varieties, blooms during spring retail rush.
Weather:
 Flowers even in cool weather and cold nights
Repeat bloomer:
 Good re-bloomer with multitude of flowers on well- branched scapes
Self-cleaning:
 Clean shedding of old blooms
Season:
 Flowers extremely early (with Azaleas and Redbud) and throughout  summer
Landscape Value:
 Improved of garden mainstay; popular perennial now fits into retail racks and has greater landscape application
Zones: 
 5 – 9
Heredity:
 U.S., Dr. Ted Petit, McIntosh, FL
                                                           
                        When performance counts, use Garden Debut® introductions
#     #     #







Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Compelling Caribbean Coral™ Daylily Delights Gardeners


Continuous blooms from spring through fall add value to the landscape.

Light-years ahead of previous long-blooming daylilies, Garden Debut®’s new introduction Caribbean Coral™ Daylily delivers compelling flower color, long blooming season and disease resistance.  Plants in the Enjoy 24/7™ “the no work plant collection” share outstanding characteristics that appeal to gardeners, homeowners, landscape designers and contractors.

Flowers of Caribbean Coral™ Daylily are a glowing, captivating coral color sometimes described as a blend of orange overlain with raspberry pink, and anchored by a rich golden-yellow heart. Wide, overlapping petals with heavy substance have a gentle ruffling, which can range from piecrust ruffles to tightly crimped ruffles. The coral/light tomato red petals are gently recurved, creating a round form on medium size flowers.

This irresistibly compelling coral daylily is one of the Garden Debut® Tetraploid daylilies in the Enjoy 24/7™ series that features three seasons of continuous bloom on short plants with large, brightly-colored flowers. The series is named for the luscious, soft pink dawns and tropical island colors evoked by the Beach Boys’ classic song, Kokomo.

Caribbean Coral™ Daylily is a 2011 introduction in the Tetraploid series Enjoy 24/7™ “the no work plant collection” from Garden Debut® that features shorter plants with large, brightly-colored flowers. Flowering begins six to eight weeks earlier than standard daylilies and flowers develop even during cooler weather and cold spring nights, a big plus for retailers whose customers will be captivated by the colorful display on their springtime trips to local garden centers.  Blooming continues throughout the summer and fall until cut down by hard frost (as late as Thanksgiving in Zone 7).

What’s more, Caribbean Coral™ Daylily is resistant to Daylily Rust that blights previous long-blooming daylilies. Short, grassy foliage, clean shedding of old blooms, prolonged reblooming that extends the season, and rapid increase of divisions adds up to high customer demand. Compact plants with short flower scapes and foliage of this daylily eliminate blow-over in garden centers common to taller daylilies sold in gallon pots.    

The culmination of seven years of targeted plant modification by renowned daylily breeder and author Dr. Ted Petit of Le Petit Jardin, McIntosh, Fla., Garden Debut® is pleased to provide the green industry with superior plants through this new partnership. Caribbean Coral™ Daylily is available in summer 2011. Future introductions in this daylily collection will continue with enjoyable names derived from the Beach Boys hit, Kokomo, and the flowers will evoke a tropical feel of freedom and fun. 

Caribbean Coral™ Daylily, Hemerocallis ‘SPd 06-14’ PPAF
(2011 introduction of the Enjoy 24/7™ “the no work plant collection”)
Plant Category:
 Perennial
Mature Height:
18 inches, shorter plants won’t blow over in gallon pots
Mature Spread:
12 inches
Mature Form:
 Grass-like foliage, short mounds (like cushion mums)
Growth Rate:
Vigorous; rapid increase in landscape or garden quickly forming large plants
Disease Resistance:
 Very rust resistant, “No Work Plant Collection”
Sun Exposure:
 Full sun to partial shade
Soil Moisture:
 Wide range, tolerant of dry to damp soils
Soil Type:
 Loam, Sand, Clay, tolerant of all soil types 
pH Level:
 Wide range, tolerant of soil reaction
Flower Genetics:
 Tetraploid. More flowers with heavier substance, yet the series are shorter with narrow leaves that will not blow over in gallon nursery pots.
Intensity:
 Brightly colored red blooms
Flower Color:
Caribbean Coral™ Daylily flowers are a glowing coral color sometimes described as a blend of orange overlain with raspberry pink, and anchored by a rich golden-yellow heart. Wide, overlapping petals with heavy substance have a gentle ruffling, which can range from piecrust ruffles to tightly crimped ruffles. The coral/light tomato red petals are gently recurved, creating a round form on medium size flowers
Flower Size:
 4 inches
Bloom Time:
 Continuous bloom spring through summer.
 Starts blooming 6 to 8 weeks earlier than standard commercial varieties, blooms during spring retail rush.
Weather:
 Flowers even in cool weather and cold nights
Repeat bloomer:
 Good re-bloomer with multitude of flowers on well- branched scapes
Self-cleaning:
 Clean shedding of old blooms
Season:
 Flowers extremely early (with Azaleas and Redbud) and throughout   summer
Landscape Value:
 Improved of garden mainstay; popular perennial now fits into retail racks and has greater landscape application
Zones:
 5 – 9
Heredity:
 U.S., Dr. Ted Petit, McIntosh, FL
                                                           
                        When performance counts, use Garden Debut® introductions
#     #     #



Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Bermuda Peach™ Daylily Never Stops Blooming


Continuous blooms from spring through fall add value to the landscape.

It’s a win-win for gardeners and the landscape industry with the new three-season Bermuda Peach™ Daylily. The enchantingly beautiful, continuously re-blooming, care-free daylily delivers brightly colored, four inch, intensely ruffled clear peach flowers on a non-stop basis spring through autumn. 
This strong growing, early-blooming daylily blooms continuously throughout three seasons. Big (4 inch), showy peach flowers with pleated petals of heavy substance and remarkable large, looping ruffles descending into the flower’s throat on round flowers, are held on short scapes. Bermuda Peach™ is a vigorous grower producing compact plants with grassy foliage, and double or triple the number of flower stalks and offsets each year.  Enjoy 24/7™ Daylilies are a garden mainstay used in perennial borders, massed, for erosion control on slopes, or as a color accent.
Excellent re-blooming extends the season and promotes development of new offsets, producing vigorous increases annually. Bloom starts 6 to 8 weeks earlier than regular daylilies, during cool spring nights, a plus for retailers whose customers will be captivated by the colorful display on their springtime shopping trips.

Compact plants fit on retail racks and flower during the spring rush continuing through fall. Rust resistant; flowers are self-cleaning and old blooms are cleanly shed. Compact plants and shorter flower scapes eliminate blow over in retail outlets. This Bermuda Peach™ Daylily is Cold Hardy to -10 to -20° F. (Zone 5 - 9); enjoys full sun exposure and has wide tolerance of soil types and moisture levels, and may be grown in loam, sand or clay on a wide pH of 5 – 8. A long bloom-season, and multiple flowering cycles are perfect for mass plantings and perennial beds.

Bermuda Peach™ Daylily is a 2011 introduction in the Tetraploid series Enjoy 24/7™ “the no work plant collection” from Garden Debut® that features shorter plants with large, brightly-colored flowers. Look for all eight daylilies in the Enjoy 24/7™ “no work plant collection“ line-up that continue with enjoyable names derived from The Beach Boys hits.  These flowers evoke a tropical feel of freedom and fun.

What’s more, Bermuda Peach™ Daylily is resistant to Daylily Rust, the scourge of previous long-blooming daylilies. Short, grassy foliage, clean shedding of old blooms, prolonged reblooming that extends the season, and rapid increases of divisions add up to a finer and more saleable daylily. Compact plants with short flower scapes and foliage of this daylily eliminate blow-over in garden centers common to taller daylilies sold in gallon pots,     


The culmination of seven years of targeted plant modification by renowned daylily breeder and author Dr. Ted Petit of Le Petit Jardin, McIntosh, Fla., Garden Debut® is pleased to provide the green industry with superior plants through this new partnership. Bermuda Peach™ Daylily is available in summer 2011. The series is named for the luscious, soft dawns and tropical island colors of the Beach Boys’ classic song, Kokomo. Look for the other seven introductions in this daylily collection with enjoyable names derived from this hit recording.


Bermuda Peach™ Daylily, Hemerocallis ‘SPd 06-08’ PPAF
(Hybrid 2011 introduction of the Enjoy 24/7™ “the no work plant collection”)
Plant Category:
 Perennial
Mature Height:
18 inches, shorter plants won’t blow over in gallon pots
Mature Spread:
12 inches
Mature Form:
 Grass-like foliage, short mounds (like cushion mums)
Growth Rate:
Vigorous; rapid increase in landscape or garden quickly forming large plants
Disease Resistance:
 Very Rust resistant, “No Work Plant Collection”
Sun Exposure:
 Full sun to partial shade
Soil Moisture:
 Wide range, tolerant of dry to damp soils
Soil Type:
 Loam, Sand, Clay, tolerant of all soil types 
pH Level:
 Wide range, tolerant of soil reaction
Flower Genetics:
 Tetraploid. More flowers with heavier substance, yet the series are shorter with narrow leaves that will not blow over in gallon nursery pots
Intensity:
Light-colored butter cream yellow blooms
Flower Color:
Bright, cheerful Bermuda Peach™ Daylily flowers are a clear peach color.  The wide petals are sculpted with heavy substance, and recurve to form a very round flower. Large, looping ruffles extend into the throat area. Delightfully wide, overlapping, peach petals recurve, creating a round flower form
Flower Size:
 4 inches
Bloom Time:
 Continuous bloom spring through summer
 Starts blooming 6 to 8 weeks earlier than standard commercial varieties, blooms during spring retail rush. Branched flower scapes have dozens of flower buds, enhancing the display.
Weather:
 Flowers even in cool weather and cold nights
Repeat bloomer:
 Outstanding re-bloomer or continual-bloomer with multitudes of buds and flowers on well- branched scapes
Self-cleaning:
 Clean shedding of old blooms
Season:
 Flowers extremely early (with Azaleas and Redbud) and throughout  summer and fall, until hard frost
Landscape Value:
 Improved garden mainstay; popular perennial now blooms earlier, fits into retail racks and has greater landscape application
Zones: 
 5 – 9
Heredity:
 U.S., Dr. Ted Petit, McIntosh, FL
                                                           
                        When performance counts, use Garden Debut® introductions
#     #     #

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Bahama Pink Sky™ Daylily Enjoys Uninterrupted Bloom All Season Long


Enjoy 24/7 “the no work plant collection” adds landscape value.

Better than other long-blooming daylilies, Garden Debut®’s new introduction Bahama Pink Sky™ Daylily delivers fabulous color, a long bloom season and desirable disease resistance.  Daylilies in the Enjoy 24/7 “the no work plant collection” share outstanding characteristics that appeal to gardeners, homeowners, landscape designers and contractors.

Sophisticated flowers of Bahama Pink Sky™ Daylily have wide, medium flesh-pink petals accented by a wide, rosy red eye-zone and a contrasting yellow throat; the combination evokes soft pink tropical sunsets. Wide, overlapping petals are lightly ruffled with the barest hint of a faint rose picotee outlining some edges. The rosy-red eye covers nearly half of the rich and clear pink petal surface, creating a dramatic two-tone effect in the landscape.  In warm weather, the medium size flowers recurve, presenting a chic, round shape.

This luscious pink daylily is one of the new Garden Debut® Tetraploid daylilies offered in the Enjoy 24/7™ series that features three seasons of continuous bloom on short, disease-resistant plants with large, brightly-colored flowers. The series is named for the lush, tropical colors of the Beach Boys’ classic song, Kokomo.

Bahama Pink Sky™ Daylily is a 2011 introduction in the Tetraploid series Enjoy 24/7™ “the no work plant collection” from Garden Debut® that features shorter plants with large, brightly-colored flowers. Flowering begins six to eight weeks earlier than standard daylilies and flowers develop even during cooler spring weather and cold nights, a big plus for retailers whose customers will be captivated by the colorful display on their springtime garden center trips.  Blooming continues on branched flower scapes throughout summer and fall, until cut down by hard frost (as late as Thanksgiving in Zone 7).

What’s more, Bahama Pink Sky™ Daylily is resistant to Daylily Rust that afflicts all previous long-blooming daylilies. Short, grassy foliage, clean shedding of old blooms, prolonged reblooming that extends the season, and a rapid increase of divisions adds up to a fine, desireable daylily. Compact plants of this daylily with short flower scapes and foliage eliminate blow-over in garden centers common to taller daylilies sold in gallon pots.    

The culmination of seven years of targeted plant modification by renowned daylily breeder and author Dr. Ted Petit of Le Petit Jardin, McIntosh, Fla., Garden Debut® is pleased to provide the green industry with superior plants through this partnership. Bahama Pink Sky™ Daylily is available in summer 2011. Future introductions in this daylily collection will continue with enjoyable names derived from the Beach Boys hit, Kokomo, and the flowers will evoke a tropical feel of freedom and fun.           
 Bahama Pink Sky™ Daylily, Hemerocallis ‘SPd 06-01’ PPAF
(2011 introduction of the Enjoy 24/7™ “the no work plant collection”)
Plant Category:
 Perennial
Mature Height:
18 inches, shorter plants won’t blow over in gallon pots
Mature Spread:
12 inches
Mature Form:
 Grass-like foliage, short mounds
Growth Rate:
Vigorous; rapid increase in landscape or garden quickly forming large clumps
Disease Resistance:
 Very Rust resistant, Enjoy 24/7 “the no work plant collection”
Sun Exposure:
 Full sun to partial shade, very resilient
Soil Moisture:
 Wide range, tolerant of dry to damp soils
Soil Type:
 Loam, Sand, Clay, tolerant of all soil types 
pH Level:
 Wide range, tolerant of soil reaction
Flower Genetics:
 Tetraploid. More flowers with heavier substance, yet overall, plants in the series are shorter with narrow leaves that will not blow over in gallon nursery pots.
Intensity:
 Bright colored, luscious, two-toned pink blooms
Flower Color:
 Bahama Pink Sky™ Daylily have wide, flesh-pink petals accented by a wide, rosy red eye-zone and a contrasting yellow throat; overlapping petals are lightly ruffled with the barest hint of a faint rose picotee outlining some edges. The rosy-red eye covers nearly half of the rich and clear pink petal surface, creating a dramatic two-toned effect in the landscape.  Recurved petals yield a round flower shape.
Flower Size:
 4 inches
Bloom Time:
 Continuous bloom spring through summer.
 Starts blooming 6 to 8 weeks earlier than standard commercial varieties, blooms during spring retail rush.
Weather:
 Flowers even in cool weather and cold nights
Repeat bloomer:
 Good re-bloomer with multitude of flowers on well- branched scapes
Self-cleaning:
 Clean shedding of old blooms
Season:
 Flowers extremely early (with Azaleas and Redbud) and throughout  summer
Landscape Value:
 Improved of garden mainstay; popular perennial now fits into retail racks and has greater landscape application
Zones:
 5 – 9
Heredity:
 U.S., Dr. Ted Petit, McIntosh, FL
                                                           
                        When performance counts, use Garden Debut® introductions
#     #     #