Trial: Annual

Years Trialed: 2002

Good Qualities

Bright yellow/orange with dark center (6); Very large heads, double, nice flower form; They look a lot better in real life than they do in the pictures - Quite popular with customers - These were my personal favorite form this series - Favorite of all helianthus we trialed; Early, small headed double sunflower - Customers chose this over my old standards, when available; Medium height; Strong stems, healthy leaves; Great for mass bouquets or mixing in bouquets - Heads not too large, very pretty flower; Sturdy stems, big flowers, a classic looking sunflower that market customers like to buy; Lots of stems, good lengths; Nice, unusual; Unusual ruffled flowers, early; Good plant height.

Problems

Huge flowers, long petals - Flower too big, axillary buds; Heads were occasionally prone to bent-neck; After the first cut was taken off, the top the side branches were short (11 inches average) - If I cut the center bud early, I got 25-inch side stems averaging 12 per plant; Misshapen flowers, almost two-headed, deformity seen on at least 2 plants; Head form can get trashy - Heat greater than 100F may have been reason for such short stems on 2nd and 3rd planting date - Not really impressed with this one; Some customers (farmers market) thought flowers were wilted because of ruffled appearance; Everything (centers and laterals) seemed to bloom at once; Multi-branching.

Comments

Very big, sold okay - Second buds better size - Looks messy compared to 'Brilliance' (less formal?); I would grow again; Matured in 61 days with 5-inch flowers; Similar to 'Lemon Eclar'; Direct sowing would produce a better crop - Good for something different to add to other sunflowers.

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

Seedsense Ltd. 7, Bradfield Close North Walsham Norfolk NR28 oHL England