Keep growing

The saying, “All good things must come to an end,” does not have to be the case when it comes to the selling season. Whether your customers are looking for more after the chaos of spring or you’re looking to bring in a little extra revenue, here are 10 plants that will help you extend your sales.

Roses
The poster child for Valentine’s Day, roses were once limited to sales between late winter to spring, as well as Mother’s Day and Easter. But nowadays roses are able to be grown and sold all year long. Inputs are available for any size container and can be marketed for additional holidays, such as Independence Day. Depending on location, rose liners can be purchased as a lower input cost, then put in pots and sheared back several times throughout the summer and fall. Roses are then overwintered and forced for spring sales. Miniature roses can also help extend by using them in a miniature floral or garden product for fall sales and winter holidays. With a rose’s versatility and a little creativity, the selling season can be pushed to new limits.

For more: Greenheart Farms, www.greenheartfarms.com

Gaillardia Commotion ‘Moxie’
Winner of the Best New Perennial award at the 2010 Farwest Show, the gaillardia has a very long bloom season, lasting from May through October. With its bright yellow petals and orange center, it can be used in beds, borders and containers, or as cut flowers. Its height is between 18 and 24 inches, and it has a spread of 24 inches. While it may be part of Skagit Gardens’ Summer Sizzlers series, with its bloom time, it can be sold throughout the summer and into the fall.

For more: Skagit Gardens, www.skagitgardens.com

Primula Blue Zebra
Possessing the intricate details of an artist’s work, this eye-catching primula fits well into Hort Couture’s Spring Bling collection. Blue Zebra is one of the high-quality, early blooming plant genetics of the Spring Bling program that’s designed to stand out on the independent garden retailer’s bench early in the season and give growers a jump on competition. Its blotchy yellow center and inky blue stripes will certainly catch the consumer’s attention. This Primula acaulis has similar cultural requirements to other P. acaulis varieties.

For more: Hort Couture, www.hortcoutureplants.com

Ornamental pepper
Popular for fall decorating, ornamental peppers can provide season-extending color to meet the four- to 10-plus weeks after purchase until frost. Varieties from PanAmerican Seed are easy and relatively inexpensive to grow. Purple Flash, Sangria, Black Pearl, Calico and others bring those oranges, yellows, reds and purples consumers are looking for when the days get cooler and the trees change colors.

For more: PanAmerican Seed, www.panamseed.com

Salvia Amistad
Now that it’s featured in the Sunset Western Garden Collection, consumers may be asking for the vibrant purple salvia from Pacific Plug & Liner. This free-flowering hybrid blooms from spring until frost, and cutting back can encourage repeated bloom. With its tubular flowers and black calyx, it can be the centerpiece of mixed containers. Those living in mild climates will find it will overwinter as a perennial.

For more: Pacific Plug & Liner, www.ppandl.com

Helleborus Gold collection
In areas where snowfall is plenty and sunshine is not, the Helleborus Gold collection by Skagit Gardens adds a touch of color during the dreary winter months. These deer-resistant varieties have burgundy-colored stems and clean white flowers, turning pink as the weather turns cooler. With an early bloom, it makes for a good indoor decoration during the winter holidays or for a shady border. The six varieties in the collection can help boost winter sales.

For more: Skagit Gardens, www.skagitgardens.com

Iberis Pink Ice
The Iberis is soft and feminine to begin with, but add a touch of pink and you’ve got a real beauty. Pacific Plug & Liner’s Pink Ice is the first deep pink perennial available to commercial growers. Noted for its compact, densely branched habit, it blooms from spring to summer. Pink Ice works as a nice compliment for white colored iberis such as Iberis Masterpiece.

For more: Pacific Plug & Liner, www.ppandl.com

Dianthus EverLast
Combining the hardiness of a perennial with continuous flower, Dianthus EverLast from Selecta North America will give gardeners many days of color. Ideally suited for extremely low-temp regimes, this Zone 4 plant won’t die in the heat. It blooms in short and long days, and can be a low-maintenance premium annual or perennial offering.

For more: Selecta North America, www.selectanorthamerica.com

Cool Wave pansy
The name says it all. Cool Wave pansies are spreading pansies that can handle the winter, spring and fall. Great for hanging baskets and garden beds, Cool Wave is vigorous, overwinters to Zone 5 and is the earliest pansy to return in the spring. Part of the consumer-recognizable Wave brand by PanAmerican Seed, growers can purchase Cool Wave Pansy packaging and POP.

For more: PanAmerican Seed, www.panamseed.com

Wallflower Sugar Rush
Consumers are used to seeing pansies during autumn, but this year you can take them by surprise. Floranova’s Wallflower Sugar Rush does not require vernalization and can be grown in as little as 10 weeks. It looks best in containers, window boxes or the center of a hanging basket. This sweetly scented variety has a flower size of an inch and grows up to 12 inches in height and 10 inches in spread. It comes in three colors and a formula mix.

For more: Floranova, www.floranova.co.uk