Plantpeddler, located in Cresco, Iowa, conducted a trial of over 120 commercial and pre?release Poinsettia varieties. Variety Day was hosted the week of Dec. 4 with representatives of all major breeders from Europe to Asia, broker representatives, and growers in attendance. The trial was produced under natural season commercial production protocol. Mike Gooder, president of Plantpeddler said “It’s important to do a Poinsettia production trial as a way for the industry and our growers to see how varieties perform in real world greenhouse conditions.”
Genetics represented were submitted by Beekenkamp, Dummen Orange ? Ecke and Red Fox, Rinehart Poinsettias, Selecta, Suntory, Syngenta, and Vivero. Plantpeddler is licensed by all the represented breeders and prides itself on being a one?stop shop for premier Poinsettia liners. “We have a real commitment to trialing as part of our leadership position in Poinsettias, and this represents the leading northern USA trial,” said Mike as to why Plantpeddler conducts their Poinsettia trial.
The trial was in peak condition for the evaluation, but did face weather challenges during production including extremely warm temperatures from mid?September through initiation, followed by 22 of 25 days with no sun during bract development in late October to mid?November. As a true production trial, the tested varieties were grown within a block of benchmark commercial varieties with the same treatments and environmental conditions.
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