Page 5 - Griffin Gazette Spring 2016
P. 5
By Jeanne Svob, Seed Business Manager; Take another look at Candy Showers WonderFall Yellow with Blotch pansy
and Dennis Meisch, Assistant Product snapdragon. A trailing snapdragon, Candy
Business Manager Showers will spill over a mixed combo. Or WonderFall Blue with Blotch pansy
It’s April. In some regions, spring is already use it alone or with trailing pansies to create
in full swing. In other areas, the ramp-up is colorful hanging baskets. These fancy snaps Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa) reign
at a fever pitch. You can’t possibly think of are irresistible to consumers! supreme, generating more than $600 billion
anything else right now, except maybe the in total retail sales. Feedback indicates that
next sales season. Get on board with trailing pansies. Cool the 2015 poinsettia season was largely
Yes, now is the time to firm up your summer Wave and WonderFall are fantastic “spillers” successful. In looking ahead to this winter,
production plans. What new items and ideas in combo planters, but I especially like them we have more than 20 new poinsettia options
will entice that late summer and autumn in hanging baskets to replace those summer to consider from the three major poinsettia
shopper? Read on! baskets that have succumbed to vacation breeders – Dümmen Orange, Selecta and
While mums, pansies and violas for fall sales neglect. Get started with three WonderFall Syngenta Flowers – including eight Confetti
isn’t a new concept, these favorites remain mixes available only from SHS Griffin – Cool Gardens poinsettia mixes from Dümmen
fall staples for good reason. These tried-and- Water, Tricolor and ProFormula – for an Orange. Poinsettias are also trending for fall
true crops offer dozens of gorgeous color effortless designer look. promotions, such as campaigns for Breast
options for every use. They make perfect Cancer Awareness Month (in October). Your
packs and pots for the avid gardener who’s Add my favorite, Endurio viola, for spreading- SHS Griffin sales representative has the
ready and willing to swap their summer mounding color in bowls, baskets and even details on these and other varieties to fit your
plantings for fresh fall color. They work for grow-bags. Available in nine colors and one production needs and sales windows.
the casual yard decorator, too, who wants SHS Griffin-exclusive designer mix, Endurio Fall holds significant sales potential for those
instant décor for her front step. is nearly day-neutral, providing loads of color who are willing to get creative. Start planning
But what else can we do to drive sales until the first hard freeze. now, add some imagination and see the
among even garden-shy consumers? positive difference in your cool-season sales!
Make it easy. Make it pretty. Igloo Mums, Dendranthema hybrids, are
Baskets, bowls and combination planters an excellent addition to your product SimplySalad
are the easiest way to freshen up a tired mix, alongside your current garden mum Kale Storm Mix
landscape and decorate our homes for the programs. Igloo Mums look and grow
fall season. They’re grab-and-go color for like traditional garden mums, but the big Griffin Gazette Spring 2016
the impulse shopper. Keep it simple with difference is that Igloos are true Zone 5
beautiful color mixes or get adventurous perennials. They’re first-year flowering with
with your combos. Inclusion of ornamental a mounded habit and uniform flowering with
peppers, snapdragons, kale, grasses, asters up to 2" blooms. Choose from 11 colors in
or dianthus adds height, texture and interest this series from Blooms of Bressingham,
for a more upscale look. available as unrooted cuttings or liners.
Make it fresh.
Jolt dianthus, a new interspecific series Make it edible.
for 2016, will add color and height to A bowl of the new SimplySalad Kale Storm
combinations. These heat-tolerant plants is trendy, tasty, nutritious—and pretty! Kale
need fewer growth regulators and are Storm Precision multi-pellets create a mix of
quick and easy to produce in summer for textures and colors, including purple, green
September and October flowering. Use Jolt and blue. Longer-lasting in the container
as an accent plant in a combo or as a hardy than lettuce, Kale Storm won’t bolt. A
garden annual capable of over-wintering and vigorous mixture that can also be planted in
re-flowering the following spring. the ground for all-season harvest, its height/
spread may reach up to 24 inches. Its quick
Jolt Pink dianthus crop time means Kale Storm can be sown
in August for mid-September finish when
cooler night temperatures will enhance the
colors in the mix. For the fastest finish, direct-
sow four multi-pellets in an 8" color bowl and
sell in 5-6 weeks.
Make it festive. Make it fun.
Halloween isn’t just for kids anymore;
it’s serious business. The National Retail
Federation ranks Halloween as the fourth-
largest shopping holiday, with estimated
sales of $6.9 billion! Turning combos into
Halloween-themed planters is simple and
quick with the addition of small pumpkins
(with or without a face), gourds and the
occasional kitschy mini scarecrow, witch,
goblin or bat. While the sales window for
Halloween is relatively brief, props can be
easily removed to revert a combo back
to a traditional autumn look for extended
sales life.
When it comes to retail potential, though,
the winter holidays (the combination of
5
