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.jpg) 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 some plants that will help you extend your season and sales.
PanAmerican Seed
www.panamseed.com
Cool Wave pansies
Cool Wave pansies from PanAmerican Seed offer a great way to add color to fall landscapes (winter landscapes in the South). They have the color, spread and cold tolerance needed for those seasons. With such solid overwintering hardiness, Cool Wave is the earliest pansy to come back in spring. This F1 spreading pansy features a plug crop time of five to five-and-a-half weeks (summer/fall) and five-and-a-half to six weeks (winter/spring).
SimplySalad
Here’s a simple way for growers to capitalize on the growing demand for vegetables year-round. The SimplySalad multi-species, multi-pellet (three or more seedlings per pellet) brand offers a quick crop time that is perfect for early spring and autumn programs. Multi-pellets can be sown in plugs or direct to the final containers. SimplySalad performs best in full sun in cool weather or partial shade as temperatures warm up. Check out PanAmerican Seed’s SimplyHerbs single-species, multi-seed pellets for a year-round growing option as well.
Dianthus Dash
Compact, uniform and basally branched, Dianthus Dash is the best D. barbatus for premium quarts and gallons. Dash varieties need fewer to no PGRs for container production and require no vernalization for flowering. This low-energy crop can be grown cool for cost savings. Flowers early. Height: 15 to 20 inches; width: 12 to 14 inches.
Nemesia Poetry
This is seed nemesia with colors as bright as their vegetative counterparts! With Poetry, you also get improved series uniformity, plus more reliable delivery and seed quality. Nemesia Poetry branches very well without pinching to produce bushy plants, which fill out fast and full. Ideal for spring and autumn premium pack and four-inch pot programs. Winter flowering will occur in milder temperatures; Nemesia Poetry will also flower lightly in warmer conditions in partial shade. Height: 12 to 14 inches; width: 12 to 14 inches.
Zinnia Zahara | Zinnia Double Zahara
The Zahara zinnia series has unique color choices, including the first Yellow and Scarlet and the first well-balanced Mixture in this type of zinnia. Outstanding performance in sunny, hot and dry conditions and very low water needs make this an ideal crop for areas with water restrictions. Double Zahara is the only true double zinnia series on the market and makes bigger, fully double flowers for more color show, bigger retail impact and greater sell-through. Both the single and double varieties are award-winning series that offer outstanding disease tolerance, low water needs and superior all-season performance in beds and planters.
Chilly Chili Ornamental Pepper
This child-safe variety bears non-pungent fruit, making it ideal for indoor and outdoor use in both public and residential areas. Its vigor makes it excellent for large containers and landscape use where larger plants are preferred. The ornamental fruit holds extremely well, starting out greenish yellow and gradually changing to orange then maturing to dark red. Each fruit is 2 to 2.5 inches long. Recommended for production in 4.5- to 6-inch pots.
Purple Flash Ornamental Pepper
This unique newcomer combines striking coloration with an interesting plant architecture and great heat tolerance to enhance in-ground plantings and mixed containers through even the toughest conditions. Purple Flash grows with a layered, scaffolding habit to create an exotic look. Leaves are almost black with flashes of bright purple. The plants are topped with small, round, glossy black fruits. (Note: fruit is extremely hot and not recommended for eating.) Lasts well into fall and complements mixed-container plantings.
 Proven Winners
www.provenwinners.com
Sundaze Blaze
Proven Winners’ Sundaze Blaze bracteantha features very desirable fall color and will do well when the temperature cools down. This strawflower series blooms early and is covered with flowers all season. It is also incredibly sun and heat tolerant. Sundaze Blaze bracteantha has deep red-orange blooms with yellow centers and a mounded habit, and it has the same distinctive narrow foliage as the other varieties in the Sundaze series. It will reach a height of 10 to 14 inches and will spread 10 to 14 inches in full sun.
Superbells Calibrachoa
Superbells calibrachoa offers superb color, heat tolerance, disease resistance and large blooms. With growth habits that range from small and compact to the cascading, Superbells offers myriad possibilities in containers. Superbells Spicy calibrachoa has unique, ever-changing, warm-toned blooms perfect for fall season sales as well as a mounding, trailing habit. This variety will reach a height of 8 to 12 inches and will spread 14 to 18 inches.
 Pacific Plug & Liner
www.ppandl.net
Anemone Fantasy
This series comes from the same breeder as the Pretty Lady series only with a few improvements. The Fantasy series is still great fall-blooming perennials, but it comes into bloom a little earlier than the previous series. The Fantasy series is also more compact, reaching only 12 to 18 inches in height. There are two varieties to choose from, both pink in color: Cinderella has a single flower and Pocahontas has a double flower.
Delphinium Delft Blue
Delft Blue is belladonna hybrid with blue flowers trimmed with white edges that resemble the famous Dutch pottery. The flowering habit of Delft Blue is upright, reaching 40 inches with a 24-inch spread at maturity. The stems are very sturdy, which make it great for use as cut flowers. The natural bloom time is late spring through the summer, a great item to promote for fourth of July sales.
Digiplexis Illumination Flame
It’s not hard to see why the new Digiplexis Illumination Flame won the Plant of the Year at the 2012 Chelsea Flower Show. This cross between Digitalis and Isoplexis brings tropical blood into Digitalis for more hues in the orange and reddish tones. Non-stop flowering can be enjoyed from late spring through autumn, since these beauties are sterile.
Helianthus Double Whammy
Loads of impact is served straight to the garden with this medium-sized perennial Helianthus which is hardy to Zone 5. Gardeners will be surprised with double, bright yellow flowers that are nearly pincushion in appearance. Double Whammy is great as cut flowers and the habit is well-branched, reaching around 36 inches tall with a 24-inch spread.
Iberis Masterpiece
This is a breakthrough selection of Candytuft with very large white flowers and an upright habit. Masterpiece starts to flower in early March and can continue into early summer. Growers can choose between fall planting or spring planting as Masterpiece does not require vernalization for bloom.
Iberis Pink Ice
Pink Ice is a unique pink flowered Iberis selection that flowers from late spring and into the summer. The habit is more mounding compared to Masterpiece, reaching 8 inches tall with a 12-inch spread. Growers can choose between fall planting or spring planting, as Pink Ice does not require vernalization for bloom.
Salvia Amistad
Amistad is a beacon for hummingbirds, bringing loads of activity into the garden. Amistad has deep purple flowers with a black calyx. This is a sterile cultivar and day-length neutral so blooms can be seen any time of the year when there is not frost. While not a petite Salvia, Amistad is not the monster that some other varieties can be; it only reaches 36 inches x 36 inches in maturity.
Schizostylis Major
It’s a funny name for a plant that means serious business when it comes to flower power. Schizostylis is the definition of season extender, starting to bloom in late August and holding that bloom until Christmas. Schizostylis is a great plant to add to production for sales after Crocosmia.
 Kieft Seed
www.kieftseed.com
Echinacea Cheyenne Spirit
Excellent overwinter performance and a great display in the first year, Echinacea Cheyenne Spirit provides brilliant color from seed. Excellent branching puts more flowers on every plant, making it ideal for high-impact landscapes and fuller-looking containers. Cheyenne Spirit brings opportunities to offer product at various price points for different market and retailer needs. It is also suitable for traditional perennial production, making it easy for programmable production based upon grower conditions and methods. A Fleuroselect Gold Medal Winner, 2013 European and Rest of World Introduction, 2014 North America introduction, and All-America Selections winner 2013.
Echinacea PowWow
This plant looks great in the first year and provides many seasons of color thereafter. Low to no maintenance, PowWow puts more flowers on every plant than any other seed Echinacea, whether grown for first-year spring sales or as a traditional overwintered perennial. Very well-matched for habit and timing, the color-packed duo is also faster to flower and genetically shorter than the competition, making it easy to grow and ship on racks. No PGRs are needed to maintain controlled height in quart or gallon programs. These very drought-tolerant, easy-care plants stay tidy at retail with long holdability.
Gaillardia Mesa Peach
Very drought tolerant once established, Mesa shows intense, non-fading color all season on upright, well-branched plants that perform well in landscapes and mixed containers. This first F1 gaillardia from seed puts out lots of fast color on “no-flop” plants. Strong, early-flowering, well-branched plants fill gallon containers quickly and maintain a controlled height without flopping over. Uniform habit and flowering time make Mesa easy to schedule and ship.
Dümmen
www.dummenusa.com
Dixieland Interspecific Geranium
Dixieland is a new series of interspecific geraniums from Oglevee. There are three colors in the series: Deep Red, Dark Pink and Orange. Dixieland is a dark leaf series with mounded habit, making them ideal for hanging basket production. This plant is responsive to PGR’s, and its vigor is easily controlled, making it great for use in gallons as well. The brightly colored, large umbels are held above the foliage in the center of the plants. The flowers are resistant to shatter, and the series is well matched in flower timing and habit, allowing growers to bench run the series. Dixieland has excellent heat tolerance and vigor for garden use.
Raspberry Tart Coleus
Raspberry Tart is a compact to medium-vigor upright coleus for the sun. The leaves are ovate with a reddish bronze center and chartreuse margins. Raspberry Tart is slow to flower and maintains habit throughout the season. It has excellent heat and drought performance, and the leaves do not scorch or bleach out in full sun. Leaf color is best in the sun, but Raspberry Tart can also be utilized in the shade. A controllable habit makes Raspberry Tart an excellent choice for quarts, gallons and combination planters. In the garden, Raspberry Tart can be used in containers and ground beds.
 SunPatiens Spreading Pink Flash
SunPatiens Spreading Pink Flash is a new color in the spreading series. The flower is a two-tone pink. Spreading Pink Flash is vigorous and is best suited for use in hanging baskets or gallon containers. In the landscape, Spreading Pink Flash is best utilized in large containers or ground beds. Performance is best in the full sun, but SunPatiens Spreading Pink Flash will also perform well in a partial shade setting. SunPatiens are extremely heat tolerant and an excellent choice as a season extender, offering three seasons of color.
Portulaca Cupcake
Cupcakes are consumer favorites in hot regional trials. With new Grape Jelly, they are now offered in five vivid colors. They’re easy to grow, heat tolerant and stand up to droughts. Cupcakes were selected for good branching and controlled growth, and they are simple to grow in anything from a single plant in a 4-inch pot to a hanging basket with four to five plants. They are good trailers, making them an excellent choice for landscapes and baskets. Pot production is quick, with a 4-inch finished in just five to seven weeks with a rooted liner in early season. Baskets finish in eight to 10 weeks. PGR’s should not be needed.
Phloxy Lady Phlox
Phloxy Lady phlox creates superlative groundcover, spreading into a thick carpet of color, yet excels in baskets and containers as well. Adding new Denim Blue to the series brings the color count to eight. Phloxy Lady is perfect for production during the late spring and summer because it tends to dry down quickly, making water management a lot easier. This is a nice summer sale product. And in the garden, Phloxy Lady is heat and drought tolerant, providing a very positive experience for the consumer.
Confetti Garden Fall
Confetti Garden is the most recognized brand of mixed genera combinations in the market. With autumnal color schemes and cool-weather-friendly, day-length-neutral varieties, these are a great option for shorter days of production in late summer and for fall sales, especially in southern markets that might enjoy a little autumn color. With close to a dozen fall-friendly mixes and seasonal point-of-sale items available, these are proving to be a strong sales extender into August and September.
 Suntory Flowers
www.suntorycollection.com
Sun Parasol Mandevillas
Nothing says summer more than the tropical Sun Parasol mandevillas bred by Suntory Flowers. These superior hybrids have revolutionized this category, creating new colors and forms while demonstrating unprecedented vigor and performance. Choose from four different types: Original group – offers the widest color range, including Crimson, Dark Red, White, Pink, Cream Pink, Burgundy and the novel Stars & Stripes; Giant group – classic mandevillas with large flowers, vigor and heat tolerance, colors include Giant Crimson, Carmine King, Giant Pink, Giant White and the new Red Emperor; Pretty group – Superior branching, highest flower count, trailing habit, more cold tolerant than other dipladenia types, and colors include Pretty Crimson, Pretty Pink and the new Pretty Deep Pink and Pretty Deep Red, which won Favorite New Flowering Plant at the Tropical Plant Industry Exhibition this year; and Garden Crimson – the first bedding plant mandevilla, bred for 4-inch pots – smaller plants, low breaks, large flowers.
Surdiva scaevolas
You can’t beat Surdiva scaevolas for summer performance. This award-winning series bred by Suntory features the most compact and branching scaevolas on the market in three colors: Blue, Light Blue and White. Native to Australia, fan flowers are naturally heat and drought tolerant. Suntory has reined in their wild habit by breeding plants with short internodes. Plants are covered with the pretty fan flowers, easy to grow and maintain and self-cleaning. Surdivas shine in university trials in all regions, including Texas, Georgia, Kansas and Pennsylvania. Use in landscape beds, baskets, patio planters, combination plantings and window boxes.
 Skagit Gardens
www.skagitgardens.com
Helenium ‘Short ‘n’ Sassy’
‘Short ’n’ Sassy,’ a shorter, compact version of the stately Helenium, features bright gold and orange flowers, each with a chocolate-brown center. It starts blooming earlier than most Heleniums and continues without pausing through summer and fall. New blossoms open above the spent flowers, so the plant looks tidy all season, even without deadheading. An excellent cut flower, ‘Short ‘n’ Sassy’ attracts bees and butterflies. Not fussy about most soil types, it’s easy to grow, even in containers. Height: 12 to 18 inches; spread: 24 inches.
Helleborus Gold
Collection Merlin Before winter slides into spring, Helleborus Merlin sports masses of light pink to pink blossoms that deepen to cranberry. By May, the flowers are a deep ebony purple color. From the trendsetting Gold Collection, Merlin’s large, forward-facing blooms stand up to inclement weather with long-lasting color during a time of the year when not much else is stirring. Complemented by dark stems, the flowers are set off by deep green, disease- and deer-resistant foliage that stays handsome all year long. Height: 12–15 inches; spread: 24 inches. Hybridized by Heuger.
 Syngenta Flowers
www.syngentaflowersinc.com
Sriracha Cuphea
Sriracha is an all-new, heat-loving series from seed that offers season-extending opportunities for growers and retailers. Available in three colors — Pink, Rose and Violet — Sriracha provides vibrant color from spring through the heat of summer. Easy to program, Sriracha is a faster, cost-effective alternative to specialty vegetative varieties. Sriracha has quick crop timing of three to four weeks for 288-cell plugs and six to seven weeks to finish a quart with one pot per plant. Compact, well-branched plants offer excellent series uniformity suitable for six-inch or gallon containers.
 Abbott-IPCO
www.abbott-ipco.com
Caladium combination planters
These caladiums are one of the most versatile foliage selections for landscape, patio and home gardens and are available in a wide range of colors and patterns. They are inexpensive, require relatively low maintenance (just keep them evenly moist), and have very few pest issues. Caladiums last all summer and into the fall with proper care. Combination plantings featuring Caladiums are striking when paired with blooming annuals, coleus or ornamental grasses. Vining plants such as Ipomoea (Sweet Potato Vine) create an additional layer of visual interest.
 Sakata
www.sakata.com
Profusion zinnias
New this spring is Profusion Double Deep Salmon, Profusion Double Yellow and Profusion Double Hot Cherry. All offer multi-layer blooms that stand out in the landscape and in large containers. Profusion zinnias are heat and drought tolerant with an excellent habit and performance that works in all climates. Profusion does not require deadheading — new flower canopies cover spent blooms with fresh flushes of color. Profusion zinnias are upright and will reach a height of 14 inches and will spread to 16 inches in the landscape. Profusion Double Deep Salmon and Profusion Double Hot Cherry were just announced as All-American Selections winners for 2013. These varieties were recognized by judges for their ability to hold color throughout the season, their tight growth habit and strong disease resistance.
All photos courtesy of respective companies
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