Trial: Annual
Years Trialed: 2001Good Qualities
Great color (6); Good color range (5); Flowered first year from seed (2); Light sweet scent, bloom over long period of time; Long bloom time 7 weeks!; Strong stems - Great accent colors for mixed bouquets, mixes very well; Vigorous, healthy plants grew well out of normal season (zone 9-10); Quick from seed, uniform; Blooms last a long time cut. It seems really hardy still blooming strong even though we have had several frosts, I will over winter it to see how it does in the spring; Got the seed a little late for these before the heat set in. 'Bouquet Purple' and 'Cinderella Mix' were the best and my customers loved them both. The white wasn't as popular; I believe this is a biennial, so should be more productive next year.Problems
Too short (3); Late Spring customers would not purchase since the bi-annual type grows so well. Lots of this type are marketed at this time, July-August. 'Cinderella' sold well later, not in June; Mildew on leaves, yellowing of leaves; Sometimes whole flower head isn't open by the time the earlier bloomers start to fade; Need a lot to make a bunch (15-20 stems); The hot pink was a bit strong for my liking, but other colors were nice; Plants didn't make enough growth before flowering to be very productive, or have good head size (zone 7a). Probably because I didn't start the seed early enough. Should be started earlier in the spring or even in the fall; I would like more blooms at one time - more like biennials produce; Flower heads not self-cleaning, few flowers; Flower uneven in opening.Trial Data
| Yield (stems/plant) | Stem Length (inches) | Market Appreciation Rating¹ | Repeat Again Rating¹ | Ease of Cultivation Rating¹ | Average Spacing (in2) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wholesale | Retail | Consumer | ||||||
| Average | 5.0 | 13.6 | 2.7 | 3.8 | 3.9 | 3.7 | 4.2 | 116 |
| Range of Responses | 0-10 | 9-24 | 2-3 | 2-5 | 3-5 | 1-5 | 1-5 | 36-324 |
¹1 to 5 scale, with 5 being the best. Market ratings are based on sales to wholesalers, retailers, or final consumers direct.
Comments
Similar to 'Hollandia Mix', 'Heritage', and 'Noverna'; Early marketing, May-June, is a problem in our region, later no problem; Annual Sweet Williams just do not produce for us like biennials. The flower colors are not as good and I personally do not care for the flower shape which is more like a ball of florets. Side by side biennials sell much better; The non-vernalization varieties seem to lack the stem length and vigor that the others have.