Trial: Annual

Year Trialed: 2009

Good Qualities

Great color (4); The only difference I could see between the two was that the stem on ‘Opus Red’ was a dark red color while the stem on ‘Opus Bright Red’ was green, ‘Opus Bright Red’ was the first to bloom at the beginning of July - perfect for July 4 bouquets!; Healthy, productive plants; Tall, strong stems, attractive dark red florets; Good stem length; I thought they were both great colors but they did not sell well for me, not sure why; Great for late summer planting, uniform growth, vigorous grower, good stem quality, vibrant color.

Problems

Tip breaks more easily than other varieties; Stems not as strong as some 'Opus' varieties that I have bought as plugs, but that may be because of my handling rather than a cultivar defect; Not a great difference in color to the others; Minor rust susceptibility.

Similar Cultivars

Other Opus varieties.

Comments

Good spike shape, slightly more open and spiral than most, good buds and strong stem; Relatively early for a Group II/IV: started flowering 82 days from sowing compared to 99 days for Rocket White; 'Opus' does better for me than any other snap I have tried; I would try them again just to make sure my customers haven't changed their mind, my customers seem to like pink, yellow and orange the best, maybe the red it just too dark for them, not sure; Pinched plants.

Postharvest

None (2); Cut into hydrator and store in holding; Water.

Trial Data

¹1 to 5 scale, with 5 being the best. Market ratings are based on sales to wholesalers, retailers, or final consumers direct.

Supplier

Goldsmith Seeds P.O. Box 1349 Gilroy, CA 95021