ELSEWHERE IN THE NEWS 



Ranunculus Report 



Dr. Meriam Karlsson of the Uni- 

 versity of Alaska has completed a 

 research report, "Temperature and 

 Light Requirements for Flowering 

 and Development of Ranunculus," 

 funded by Bedding Plants Founda- 

 tion, Inc. (BPFI). 



Ranunculus is considered a low- 

 temperature crop. How much can 

 growers increase temperature to 

 speed flowering without adversely 

 affecting quality? What effect does 

 day length have on the tempera- 

 ture/light equation? These are 

 some of the questions addressed. 



To request a copy of this report 

 or a listing of other reports avail- 

 able, contact BPFI at PO Box 

 27241, Lansing, MI 48909; the 

 phone number is 517-694-8537; 

 fax: 517-694-9561; e-mail is 

 .com>. 



Valleybrook 



Greenhouse Grower, November, 1998 



Valleybrook Gardens, Ltd., Canada's 

 perennial giant and key partner in 

 Blooms of Bressingham North Ame- 

 rica, will open a growing and distribu- 

 tion nursery in the United States. 



Construction began in October 

 in Cecilton, Maryland. The com- 

 pany will begin selling a limited 

 range of product in spring, 1999. 

 Valleybrook nurseries are currently 

 in Abbotsford, British Columbia, 

 and Niagara Falls, Ontario. 



Be a Friend 



Growing ME Green, October, 1 998 



The Lyle Littlefield Trial Gardens 

 at the University of Maine in 

 Orono is extremely important as a 

 place to test cold hardiness of 

 plants and to display plants that 

 can grow in northern New England. 



Dr. Reeser Manley, Assistant Pro- 

 fessor of Horticulture at the Univer- 

 sity of Maine, and the Maine Land- 

 scape and Nursery Association 

 (MeLNA) are attempting to establish 

 an endowment, to be named 

 "Friends of the Garden Association." 



Letters of support can be sent to 

 Dean Bruce Wiersma, Department of 

 Natural Resources, Forestry and Agri- 

 culture, 5782 Winslow Hall, Room 

 105, Orono, ME 04469-5782. 



Perennial Plant of the Year 



The Perennial Plant Association is 

 ending this turbulent century with 

 an international favorite. Bright, 

 adaptable, easy-to-grow, and often 

 seen as the best of the many culti- 

 vars, Rudheckia fulgida var. sulli- 

 vantii 'Goldsturm' is their 1999 

 Plant of the Year. 



Its story can claim to have been 

 affected by larger events. In 1937, 

 Heinrich Hagemann noticed a 

 stand of R. fulgida var. sullivantii 

 in Gebrueder Schuetz's nursery in 

 the Czech Republic. Recognizing 

 its superiority, he convinced his 

 employer, Karl Foerster of Potsdam, 



Germany, to propagate his discovery. 

 World War II intervened, but in 

 1949, the plant was introduced and 

 began its climb to its present popu- 

 larity. 



A color slide can be obtained by 

 contacting the Perennial Plant As- 

 sociation, 3383 Schirtzinger Road, 

 HiUiard, Ohio 43026. The phone 

 number is 614-771-8431; fax, 614- 

 876-5238. 



The 1999 Gary Awards 



The Worcester County Horticultural 

 Society, in cooperation with the 

 Massachusetts Nursery and Land- 

 scape Association, continues its pro- 

 gram to highlight woody plants es- 

 pecially appropriate to New En- 

 gland. Criteria include hardiness 

 within two of New England's four 

 growing zones and appropriateness 

 for landscape use. Choices must also 

 be exceptional, season-extending, 

 and available. 



There are five 1999 winners. 

 (Quotes are from Dirr.) 



Arctostaphylos uva-ursi (Bear- 

 berry). This hardy (to zone 2) New 

 England native makes a fine ever- 

 green ground cover. Growth is slow, 

 but its flowers ("perfect, white- 

 tinged pink, small urn-shaped, born 

 on nodding racemes April to May"), 

 fruit ("lustrous bright red, persist- 

 ing"), and foliage (glossy dark green 

 in summer, bronze to reddish in fall 

 and winter) make it worth the wait. 



It's difficult to transplant and 



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1998. JANUARY 1999 



