Best performers of the Penn State trial gardens
Many Pennsylvania residents may not realize the amount of investment and revenue that is generated by flower growing (floriculture) in Pennsylvania.
According to the United States Department of Agriculture in 2021, the total crop value for all floriculture growers in Pennsylvania with $10,000 or more in sales is estimated at $188 million, and the number of growers is expanding; there were 783 growers in Pennsylvania in 2021.
To help commercial seed producers, plant growers and the public find the best performing flowering plants, Penn State University operates the Southeast Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Lancaster County. Companies provide PSU with seeds of varieties they hope will be commercially successful. The Research Center evaluates the performance of flower varieties in garden environments around the commonwealth so that those companies can offer the most favorable ones.
At Penn State’s research center, the plants are evaluated and data are collected by Penn State Certified Master Gardeners and Penn State horticulture experts throughout the summer.
Each variety in the trials is rated on a scale from one to five for specific characteristics: uniformity, flower quality, foliage and overall growth while being grown in our weather and climate conditions. In early September, the results are tallied and published online.
For the 2022 summer trials, more than 1,600 plant varieties were tested including 660 container and 949 in-ground evaluations. Each species had a “best performer,” and five received perfect to near perfect scores.
The top three “Best in Show” were:
Sedum tetractinum “Coral Reef” (Score 5.0) is a low growing (3-inch to 6-inch) perennial succulent that forms a creeping mat spreading to 12 inches or more. Small, white to pale pink flowers bloom July to August.
Two ornamental grasses had near perfect scores. Pennisetum alopecuroides “Love Rockets PP#33,035” (Score 4.97) is a fountain grass that grows to a height of nearly 40 inches and forms a clump up to 39 inches wide in full sun.
Juncus inflexus “Blue Mohawk” (Score 4.96) is a narrow, upright cultivar of a native rush with blue-green leaves and stems. This variety grows in clumps and spreads by rhizomes. It prefers consistently wet soils growing to 24 to 36 inches in height in full sun and is perennial.
There were two other high scoring flower plants in these trials.
Cyperus profiler Graceful Grasses “Queen Tut” (Score 4.91) is a dwarf papyrus that reaches only 18 to 24 inches in height and is perfect for containers placed in full to part sun. Because it prefers wet soils, “Queen Tut” is perfect in a container near water gardens or ponds and is an excellent in ground choice for rain or water gardens. It adds the “thriller” component to a container of mixed plantings. Bloom time is between July and September.
Scaevola aemula Surdiva White Improved (Score 4.91) is an annual and a white variety of fanflower that is also excellent as a container or in ground annual bedding plant in full to part sun. It grows from 9 inches to 18 inches in height in full sun to part shade.
Other varieties that were represented and scored well included: Begonia Big “Red Bronze Leaf,” Begonia Rex “Jurassic Pink Splash,” Caladium “Crystal Moon,” Calabrachoa Bumble Bee “Blue,” Coleus (Solenostemon) “Dragon Heart,” Geranium Falcon F1 “Salmon,” Heuchera “Steel City,” Impatiens (SunPatiens Compact White) “Classic White” and New Guinea Impatiens “Power Orange 23,” Heliotropium Hinto “Amethyst,” Lantana Bandolista “Pineapple,” Petunia “Bees Knees” and Petunia Supertunia Mini Vista “Yellow,” Rudbeckia Minibeckia “Flame,” Verbena Endurascape “Blue,” Vinca (Catharanthus) Soiree Double “White,” and Zinnia Double Profusion “Fire IMP.” For Dahlia lovers, Dahlia “Venti Mango” was the highest scoring entry.
Many other flowering plant varieties performed well, so if you have a favorite flowering plant, consider reviewing the Flowering Plant Trials reports at Penn State’s College of Agricultural Science at agsci.psu.edu/flower-trials/trial-results.
Better yet, make a trip to the flower trials gardens, which are free of charge and open to the public between June 1 and Aug. 31.
The Flower Trials Field Day will be held on July 27 at 1446 Auction Road, Manheim, PA 17545.
If you have questions about growing annuals and flowering plants, call the Master Gardeners of Butler County Garden Hotline at 724-287 4761, ext. 7, or email the Master Gardeners at butlermg@psu.edu.
Mary Alice Koeneke is a Penn State Extension Butler County Master Gardener.
