Eryngium 'White Glitter'

Trial: Annual

Year Trialed: 2009

Good Qualities

Good plant stand, productive; Unique blooms, sturdy stem; Very distinctive silvery form, a nice contrast to the brighter/bolder colors in season; Has a unique characteristic, interesting shape of flowers, would add a really cool trait to a bouquet.

Problems

Very low seed germination (2); White color not clear, more greenish, at the spacing used, got a much-branched central stem that was too bushy for arrangements, should have pinched early, or crowded the plants more to get less branching, flowers smelled bad when first starting to flower, but the odor faded on later harvests; Blooms brown quickly in our humid climate, More stems per plant would be nice; It is very prickly so it is hard to harvest and handle in general; We seeded too late to get blooms first year.

Similar Cultivars

None listed by participants.

Comments

I liked it and it was useful in centerpiece work but did not sell by the bunch; I tried a new compost mix which was too heavy with manure and destroyed all of the seedlings of these plants. I won't make that mistake again!; Was very late to bloom. I did not harvest until 8/26/09 and still only 2 of 12 plants were blooming (planted in field 5/27, Zone 4/5).

Postharvest

Water.


Trial Data

Eryngium 'White Glitter'
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 2.6 19.5 3.0 4.0 2.3 2.5 3.6 118 9.3
Range of Responses 1-6 15-30 3 4 2-4 1-4 2-5 81-144 7-12


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


Supplier

Ernst Benary of America Inc. 2759 Wagner Court, Suite C DeKalb, IL 60115