Titan Poinsettia Series and Calibrachoa Kabloom

Titan Poinsettia Series

Titan poinsettias, bred by Syngenta, are available in white, pink and red, and are good for early holiday sales since they flower in mid-November. The Titan series is known for its strong roots and stems, large bracts and an upright V-shaped habit that works for all pot sizes. Its post-harvest performance is excellent, and as a result of its habit and strong stems, Titan poinsettias can be produced without rings for six-inch pots. These poinsettias are also suitable for growing and finishing cool.

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Production:

• Apply plant growth regulators (PGR) early to prevent stretched first internodes.
• Ideally spray Florel plant growth regulator at 500 ppm three to five days before and five to seven days after pinching for a rounder and more compact finished plant. Florel should not be applied in September to avoid delay of flower induction.
• Titan Red and Titan Pink should receive one more PGR spray (ideally Florel) than Titan White at two weeks after the pinch.
• Keep liquid feed constant at 200 to 225 ppm Nitrogen.
• Keep temperature at 68° to 75°F during the day and 66° to 68°F at night until two to three weeks prior to shipping.
• Towards the end of the crop, slowly drop night temperatures to 62° to 63°F.
• If needed, Bonzi ornamental growth regulator should be applied to moderately moist pots two to three weeks before finishing.
• Reduce fertilization to 50 to 80 ppm Nitrogen approximately three weeks before finishing.
• Check the roots frequently and apply a fungicide drench, such as Subdue MAXX fungicide in rotation with other fungicides, to avoid Pythium, if necessary.
• Maintain good air movement and low humidity, especially at the end of the crop, to minimize Botrytis infections.
  
   

Did you know?
The Titan family can handle high temperatures well and will show only little heat delay under hot conditions. Titan Red and Titan Pink are very well suited for cool growing and finishing. Titan White gets a creamy color if finished cool. The Titan series ships very well and has excellent post-harvest characteristics.

Calibrachoa Kabloom

With its season-long performance and myriad colors available, calibrachoa is quickly becoming one of the most popular plant classes. This year’s breeding breakthrough of Kabloom — the first commercially available calibrachoa from seed — means growers have much more flexibility as they manage their production. Calibrachoa Kabloom offers the same amount of color as mid-vigor vegetative calibrachoa, and is ideal for both mono containers and mixed combos. Here are some culture guidelines, developed after trialing globally and extensively across North America.

For more: www.panamseed.com

Production:

• Seed can germinate in light or dark, covering is not required. Keep moisture at level 5. The optimum media temperature is 73 °F (22.5 °C) for germination. At this temperature, radicle emergence occurs in 5-7 days.
   

• Moisture to level 4 and begin to decrease temperature to 68 °F (20 °C). Light requirements of ≥10 moles•m−2•d−1 will help to minimize stretch. Growth regulators can be administered in stage 2: Flurprimidol (Topflor): 2 to 3ppm spray day on 7-10, then every 10 to 14 days as needed.
• Paclobutrazol: 3ppm spray on day 7-10, then every 10-14 days as needed. Daminozide: 2500ppm spray on day 7-10, then every 10-14 days as needed. Note: Daminozide can cause chlorotic stippling on Kabloom Red and to a lesser degree on Kabloom Yellow. No stippling with paclobutrazol or flurprimidol.
• Cycle moisture levels between 2 and 4; do not allow to wilt. Decrease temperature to 64 °F (18 °C) and maintain a DLI of ≥10 moles•m−2•d−1.
• Cycle moisture levels between 2 and 4; do not allow to wilt. Decrease temperature to 55 to 64 °F (13-18 °C), no less than 55 °F (13 °C). A morning DIP/Drop of -5 °F for height control is also effective. Maintain a DLI of ≥10 moles•m−2•d−1.
• Finish culture is similar to vegetative calibrachoas. Maintain pH of 5.5 to 5.8 with the same nutrition program as vegetative calibrachoas. Pinch or shear if pullable plugs are stretched, overgrown or spindly.
• Drench paclobutrazol at 1to 3ppm 7 to 10 days from transplant, reapply as needed. Note: Kabloom White is more sensitive to paclobutrazol drenches.