April 2021 - 40

VAUGHN'S VIEW
density. It is hardy to Zone 6, matures
at 18 to 24 inches, and has multiple
applications in mixed containers and
landscape beds. It is exclusive to
Pacific Plug and Liner, and liners are
available for 2021 and beyond.
5. LEUCANTHEMUM 'SWEET
DAISY REBECCA'
Dümmen Orange
The Sweet Daisy collection of
seven leucanthemum varieties offers
a wide assortment of flower forms
including singles, doubles, fluted and
recurved. Birdy was introduced last
year and is an All-America Selections
winner. Dümmen Orange, not resting
on their breeding laurels, has
introduced Rebecca for 2021. This
double-fringed flowering variety is
comparable to the rest of the series in
features and benefits. It is day length
neutral, uniform, first-year flowering,
programmable, has no vernalization
requirement, and flowers in 14
weeks from an unrooted cutting. The
collection has been well represented
in summer trials the last few years,
and the performance evaluations
have been excellent. Rebecca was
in multiple trials last summer and
manifested extended flowering from
late spring in the South to midSeptember
in the northern trials.
The flowering duration, habit and
durability set it apart from many other
leucanthemums in the summer trials.
6. ECHINACEA 'ARTISAN SOFT
ORANGE'
PanAmerican Seed
There has been extensive
coverage regarding this new F1
echinacea collection from seed, and
the accolades are justifiable. This
collection is composed of Red Ombre
and Soft Orange. Both varieties were
ubiquitous in last year's summer
trials and performed consistently
from late spring in the southern trials
to early September in the northern
trials. The collection manifested
uniform flowering, heavily branched
architecture and excellent flower
size. The flowers transitioned during
the season, opening with deep red
and orange flowers that transitioned
to softer colors by late summer.
The varieties are hardy to Zone 4
and mature at 16 to 24 inches. This
38 APRIL 2021 GPNMAG.COM
is a first-year flowering series and
programmable in spring and summer
production programs.
7. SALVIA 'COLOR SPIRES
BACK TO THE FUCHSIA'
Walters Gardens
There are now five varieties in the
collection including the new Back to
the Fuchsia for 2021. This variety is
a Proven Winners Premier Selection
and was trialed throughout the
country last year. This is the darkest
pink variety in the collection and
bloomed continually in trials from
early summer through September
last year. The fuchsia-pink flowers
on long flower spikes were profuse
and were positioned above the
foliage on strong, charcoal-colored
stems. This collection is a cross
between nemorosa and pratensis
and demonstrated outstanding
heat tolerance, basal branching, a
mounded habit, and foliage that is
rugose and aromatic. This series
is impactful in a retail setting with
exceptional uniformity and prolific,
eye-catching flowers. The series
matures at 20 to 24 inches and is
hardy to Zone 3.
8. EUPATORIUM 'EUPHORIA
RUBY'
Darwin Perennials
We are all familiar with eupatorium
'Baby Joe', which continues to be a
worthy variety for summer gardens.
The new 'Euphoria Ruby', however,
offers many advantages over
'Baby Joe' and other eupatoriums
currently in the market. This variety
was conspicuous in the Penn State
perennial trial. It is one of the
first compact and also one of the
earliest flowering eupatoriums for
the market and has application
in both containers and perennial
beds. Ruby will begin flowering in
mid-July and flower through fall. It
is first-year flowering, requiring no
PGRs under high light conditions,
and can be produced in 2.5 and
gallon containers. It will mature
at 24 to 30 inches in the garden
and is hardy to Zone 5a. This new
introduction is Florensis breeding
but is represented by Darwin Plants
in the North American market. It
is available in unrooted form from
5
6
9
7
Darwin and numerous perennial
liner suppliers.
9. ECHINACEA 'KISMET
WHITE'
Terra Nova Nurseries
This echinacea variety needs
no introduction to the industry. It
won numerous awards last year
including the Plant of Distinction
award at the University of Georgia
trial, and it was one of the most
colorful echinaceas in multiple
trials that I visited. There are five
colors in the series, and since
their introduction in 2017 many
of the varieties have won top
performer recognition throughout
the country. I highlighted the
exceptional performance of
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April 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of April 2021
