Page 10 - 2015 Summer Gazette

New Varieties for the New Season:

Introducing the
Class of 2016

10 Image: Jolt Pink dianthus By Jeanne Svob, SHS Griffin Seed Business Manager; and
Dennis Meisch, SHS Griffin Assistant Product Business Manager

It’s been another very busy year for flower breeders! The breeding
companies have rolled out hundreds of new and improved varieties for
the 2015-16 season, including more than 400 introductions just among
seed crops! That kind of quantity is enough to overwhelm even seasoned
plant geeks. Which new varieties truly warrant your consideration? Which
have the greatest potential to dazzle consumers and drive sales for
your operation?

Thankfully, the SHS Griffin team has seen and heard it all—so you don’t have
to. We’ve listened to the breeders’ pitches, pored over their presentations
and literature, and seen many of the new and improved varieties in action
at the California Spring Trials. With an eye toward quality, reliability and
consumer appeal, here are our picks for Most Likely to Succeed:

Gerbera Bengal series
Big brother to the popular Jaguar seed series, Bengal has a more vigorous
habit and larger flowers for best performance in 6" pots or gallons. Uniform
flowering across all six colors makes production and shipping easy. Sturdy
stems hold the flowers upright for the best color presentation at retail.