2015 Season Premier Midseason Top Performers
About Our Trials Every
Evaluation Period Some 35 varieties scored as top performers in our evaluation period, which stretched from Week 5 to Week 13. Transplanting into the Trial Garden occurred Week 51; plants were grown in 6-inch pots to finished stage.
controls, biologicals— such as predatory mites— were used.
Fertilization A 100-day and 140-day slow-release fertilizer was applied at Week 51 Our team assesses the and a 20-10-20 drench plants via a variety of was applied at Week 1. factors, including: Abundance of bloom Pesticides Crop uniformity Chemical controls for Overall performance insects and disease were including factors such applied on an as-needed as clean foliage, little basis to individual plants to no pest damage, and through the evaluation the plants’ overall habits process. In addition to and appearances. the traditional chemical
About this Report From the first-time gardeners to folks who have been growing plants for their entire lives, there’s one thing pretty much everyone who shops has in mind when they step into a garden center: color. So we’ve divided this report by color. From sizzling hot shades to cool, soothing hues, everyone has a favorite color.
spring the Costa Farms research and development team trials some 500 varieties of annuals, perennials, and tropical plants from plant breeders around the world. We tested all of these hot new varieties in our 2-acre Season Premier Trial Garden located in Miami, Florida.
Miami Climate The graphs below detail temperature, relative humidity, and rainfall levels during the fiveweek evaluation period.
Gold, Yellow, and Chartreuse 1
1. Coleus Spiced Curry by Ball heats up outdoor spaces with its warm, golden-green foliage. 2. Calibrachoa Volcano Vanilla 90 by Dummen shows off creamy flowers with orange and red undertones. 3. Coreopsis Leading Lady Sophia by Dummen is an outstanding North American native perennial with luscious lemon-yellow blooms. 4. Calibrachoa Aloha Yellow 92 by Dummen bears a bounty of blooms that cover the plant like a golden sheet.
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5 5. Gerbera Garvinea Sweet Smile by Florist shows off sunny-yellow blooms on durable plants that hold up well in landscapes or containers. 6. Argyranthemum Beauty Yellow by Westflowers is a proven performer in our Trial Garden and continues to shine with its display of lemon-yellow flowers.
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7. Agastache Sun by Takii has it all: good heat and drought tolerance; it attracts butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds; and it offers delightfully fragrant flowers and foliage.
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Orange 1. Gerbera Garvinea Sweet Honey by Florist bears adorable orange-yellow blooms. It looks perfect in terra-cotta pots. 2. Impatiens SunPatiens Spreading Hot Coral by Sakata shows off attractive coral-orange blooms that
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practically smother the vigorous plant all summer. 3. Impatiens Harmony Apricot Cream by Danziger offers apricot-and-white in the shade. It’s ideal for both colorful containers and landscape plantings.
4. Coleus Campfire by Ball adds drama and excitement in the garden with its bold rusty-orange foliage that pairs well with just about any other color. It’s an excellent accent plant or garden focal point. Plus, it has nice garden vigor.
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5. Impatiens Harmony Radiance Scarlet by Danziger elegantly blends scarlet-orange edges around the white flowers. 6. Impatiens SunPatiens Spreading Tropical Orange by Sakata won’t go unnoticed in the garden thanks to its impressive bright orange blooms and variegated foliage. 7. Impatiens SunPatiens Clear Orange by Sakata shows off bright flowers that look good even from a distance. 8. Cuphea Vermillionaire by Proven Winners is a butterfly magnet and produces an outstanding number of tubular bright orange flowers.
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Red 1
1. Begonia Big Red Green Leaf by Benary thrives in sun or shade and impresses with its lustrous foliage and florific nature. 2. Salvia Grandstand Red by Greenfuse has rich, saturated color and attracts butterflies in sunny sites 3. Impatiens SunPatiens Compact Red by Sakata does well in sun or shade and is perfect for containers or landscapes.
4. Begonia Big Red Bronze Leaf by Benary is as easy as its siblings, but offers bronzygreen foliage and red blooms. It’s ideal for first-time gardeners. 5. Gerbera Garvinea Sweet Glow by Florist blooms in a lovely shade of orange red and lasts a long time in the garden or as cut flowers. Home gardeners are sure to gravitate to this cheery, easy-to-grow variety.
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8 Why Color Matters
One study from the University of Winnipeg showed up to 90 percent of snap judgments made on a consumer product can be based solely on color.
6. Pelargonium Timeless Fire by Proven Winners bears bold, dark red flowers and holds up well to a variety of conditions. Home gardeners can’t go wrong with it! 7. Salvia Grandstand Tall Red by Greenfuse is an attention-grabbing plant that provides 55-mile-perhour color in garden beds and large containers. 8. Impatiens Tamarinda Dark Red by Dummen adds a big pop of color to shaded spots with its profusion of deep, rich-red blooms, compact mounded shape, and floriferous nature.
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Pink
1. Calibrachoa Hula Strawberry 90 by Dummen bears bright pink flowers with a rich red-pink center and a cherry chartreuse throat. 2. Begonia Big Pink Green Leaf by Benary has soft pink flowers, green foliage, and an unstoppable nature in both sun and shade. 3. Begonia Big Rose Green Leaf by Benary shows off darker rosepink flowers that accent its shiny foliage. It thrives in sun and shade. 4. Begonia Big Rose Bronze Leaf by Benary is an easy-to-grow beauty for sun or shade with bronze-tinted leaves and simple rose-pink blooms.
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5. Petunia 12-6257 by Danziger dazzles with its pink-and-white striped flowers, floriferousness, and mounding habit.
7. Petunia 12-6271 by Danziger shows off dramatically striped blooms in hot pink and crisp, bright white. It’s a showstopper!
6. Calibrachoa Hula White 93 by Dummen offers a wealth of soft pink (not quite white in our Trial Garden) flowers with a hot pink center and yellow throat.
8. Calibrachoa Kona Aloha Hot Pink 96 by Dummen bears blooms in a gardener-friendly shade of bright lavender-pink. It’s a color that mixes well with others.
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Pink 9
9. Vinca Vitesse Apricot Improved by Floranova is a summertime stunner with a profusion of apricot-pink flowers. 10. Calibrachoa Aloha Cherry Cartwheel by Dummen is sure to look great in containers thanks to its tidy habit and hot pink flowers.
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11. Vinca Vitesse Exp. Dark Red by Floranova shows off intensely saturated cerise-pink flowers. 12. Veronica 13-1321 by Danziger is a hardy perennial with textural spikes of lavender-pink flowers. It’s perfect for landscapes and containers.
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Three Hot Colors for 2015!
13. Petunia Supertunia Sangria Charm by Proven Winners essentially creates a carpet of color with its dense display of bright blooms.
Color experts at Pantone announced their hot color for 2015 is Marsala, a warm terracotta red shade.
14. Gerbera Garvinea Sweet Dreams by Florist is a delightful daisy that has great landscape performance and bright pink flowers. 15. Gerbera Garvinea Sweet Heart by Florist is a long-lasting cut flower and good landscape pink with bold coral-pink flowers.
Similarly, Sherwin Williams went with Coral Reef, a blend of red, orange, and pink hues.
16. Gerbera Garvinea Sweet Sixteen by Florist is another topnotch gerber daisy that holds up in the garden and has attractive pink flowers.
Paint manufacturer Benjamin Moore has given the award to Guilford Green, a soft, silvery green that plays well in the home and garden.
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Pink
17. Petunia Hells Bells Orange by Westflowers has intensely saturated pink flowers with an orange undertone. The color is great for Millennials!
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18. Impatiens Tamarinda Pink by Dummen adds a pop of pink to shaded spots. It’s elegant both containers and landscapes. 19. Petunia Hells Bells Fruit Punch by Westflowers is an eye-catcher with bright pink flowers that have a tropical orange sheen.
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20. Impatiens SunPatiens Compact Coral Pink by Sakata is a winner for sun or shade thanks to its easycare nature and exceptional floral display. 21. Impatiens SunPatiens Compact Royal Magenta by Sakata is SunPatiens variety consumers can’t go wrong with. Its bold, magentapink flowers stand out at a distance, making it perfect for gardeners and landscapers who want to create big impact.
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22. Impatiens SunPatiens Spreading Pink Flash by Sakata has warm, coral-pink flowers in abundance. Like other SunPatiens varieties, it thrives in full sun or shade, making it a perfect pick for practically every gardener.
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Purple 1
1. Celosia Kelos Magenta by Beekenkamp shows off an outstanding spiky texture, purple foliage, and beautiful magenta-purple blooms. 2. Vinca Vitesse Lavender Morn by Floranova is a lovely selection with lots of flowers and a mounding habit perfect for containers and landscapes.
3. Ipomoea Solar Power Black by Ball offers great color and is compact, so you can plant it with other plants in combination without it eating them. 4. Petunia 12-5288 by Danziger is an easy-to-please shade that blends with practically every other color.
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5. Gerbera Garvinea Sweet Surprise by Florist has attractive lavender-purple daisy-shaped flowers that attract bees and butterflies to the garden. 6. Gerbera Garvinea 09TO235 by Florist is perfect for pots or garden beds thanks to its heat tolerance and good-looking lavender-purple flowers.
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7. Coleus Trailing Pandora by Dummen adds texture and color to outdoor spaces with its toothed red-purple foliage and spreading habit. 8. Calibrachoa Blue Sky 96 by Dummen graces gardens with soft lavender-colored flowers that practically smother the plant—making it a sure bet for home gardeners.
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Purple
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9. Salvia Grandstand Blue Bicolor by Greenfuse is a favorite of bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. Plus it’s textural! 10. Salvia Grandstand Purple by Greenfuse shows off tall, dark purple flower spikes that tower over other plants in the garden.
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11. Petunia Colorworks Violet Star by Sakata displays delightful purple-andwhite pinwheel blooms. 12. Petunia Supertunia Orchid Charm by Proven Winners bears a ton of soft lavender-purple blooms on vigorous plants that add big impact to the garden.
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13. Impatiens SunPatiens Spreading Lavender by Sakata stands out from the crowd because of its profusion of violetlavender blooms. 14. Salvia Ablazin Purple by Proven Winners is an eye-catching, dramatic plant that holds up to a wide variety of conditions. Plus, it’s a hummingbird, bee, and butterfly magnet. 15. Petunia Crazytunia Kermit Purple by Westflowers is a variety for folks who like fun in the garden. The small, intense violet blooms have a contrasting green edge that lends the distinctive plant a decidedly whimsical note. 16. Impatiens SunPatiens Compact Neon Pink by Sakata was more of a neon lavender for us, but either way a top performer thanks to its bushy habit and the wealth of brightly colored violetpurple blooms it produced.
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White 1. Vinca Vitesse Peppermint by Floranova shows off pure white flowers (decorated with a red eye) on mounding, flower-filled plants that take the summer heat.
2 Euphorbia Glamour White by PanAmerican is a hardto-beat option for gardeners who want to add texture to plantings with an easy-togrow plant.
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3. Impatiens SunPatiens Compact White Improved by Sakata thrives in sun, shade, and everything in between. It bears a nonstop show of white flowers.
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4. Kwik Kombo Summer to Remember by Syngenta blends a mix of no-fail summer plants to ensure success for busy gardeners. 5. Kwik Kombo Spring Decorations by Syngenta uses lush white verbena to accent red petunias and blue lobelia. 6. Impatiens Tamarinda White by Dummen brings sparkling white color to shaded gardens and containers with its pristine white flowers. 7. Caladium Classic Radiance by Classic Caladiums has lovely green and white leaves with pink veins. It’s a stunner in the shade (try it with white New Guinea impatiens!).
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