Trial: Annual
Years Trialed: 2000Good Qualities
Fragrant (3); Prolific flowering (2); Easy to establish, early bloom, extended harvest; Very pretty early flower, looks good in mixed bouquets (when stems were long enough); Uniform, easy, good vase life, first to bloom in the Melody series; Dianthus’ are durable; held up well in arrangements and wedding work; Excellent flowering all season, of this group Pink was the best while White is weaker and not worthy of an award, customers loved the blushing color of Blush Pink; White is a very clean white.Problems
Short (4); Flowers get pretty ragged looking after rain, need to be harvested/deadheaded regularly; If planted earlier (Zone 6B), may have had more marketable stems; No customer interest, lot of cutting for a filler; None; Difficult to find the right time to pick; some were gone by by the time the stem was ready to pick.Trial Data
| Yield (stems/plant) | Stem Length (inches) | Market Appreciation Rating¹ | Repeat Again Rating¹ | Ease of Cultivation Rating¹ | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wholesale | Retail | Consumer | |||||
| Average | 8.2 | 12.8 | 2.3 | 4.3 | 3.2 | 3.2 | 4.4 |
¹1 to 5 scale, with 5 being the best. Market ratings are based on sales to wholesalers, retailers, or final consumers direct.
Comments
Good filler, small vase work; Pretreated seeds at 45°F for one week - great percent germination; Useful only if mixed 2 or 3 stems in bouquets; Customers like Biennual Sweet William best; No support needed; My customers loved it; It would make an excellent bedding plant.