Trial Started: 2005
Year of Trial: First (from 2005 report)
Good Qualities
Great color (4); Tall stems; Soft blue, turgid stems; Seeded in February for June bloom; Fast, uniform color, reasonable stem size; Good first year bloom, lasting well into early October (Zone 2); Stem length and strength.
Problems
Some stems were only long enough for market bouquets; Sheds petals, stalks thinner, more gaps between blooms on the stalk; Okay - I just can't grow delphinium from seed, it just withers away in the plug tray; The delphiniums just do better for us when sown and planted in the fall but it was a little early and too hot when we did this; Root disease wiped out this variety by early September in field and tunnel.
Comments
Similar to 'Guardian' (2); Similar to 'Aurora' far superior; I probably won't grow again until I have a high tunnel in place; General comments on trial (Zone 5): Plants were transplanted unto shallow beds covered with plastic mulch and with trickle irrigation, there were 2 replications in a high tunnel, and 2 outside, plants were arranged in a 12 x 12 inch spacing in 3 rows on each bed. Plant death due to root disease was the dominant feature of this trial - With the exception of the bellamosum types, all other varieties were essentially dead by early September, the unusually warm growing season may have contributed to this mortality.
Trial Data
| Yield (stems/plant) | Stem Length (inches) | Market Appreciation Rating¹ | Repeat Again Rating¹ | Ease of Cultivation Rating¹ | Average Spacing (in2) | Average Postharvest Life (days) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wholesale | Retail | Consumer | |||||||
| Average | 2.7 | 25.6 | 4.3 | 3.7 | 3.8 | 3.1 | 3.4 | 132 | 6.1 |
| Range of Responses | 1-6 | 16-38 | 4-5 | 3-4 | 3-4 | 1-5 | 2-5 | 36-324 | 5-7 |
¹1 to 5 scale, with 5 being the best. Market ratings are based on sales to wholesalers, retailers, or final consumers direct.
Supplier
Sakata Seed America 18095 Serene Drive Morgan Hill, CA 95037
