Whafs New? 



How New Plants Originate 



Carol Lorenz 



^^TT That's ne 

 I /I / frequent 

 r r to keep u 



ew.-- in sales, that question is heard 

 tly. Garden centers and growers want 

 up with new introductions in order to 

 keep their customer base supplied with diversity and to 

 remain one step ahead of the competition. But where 

 do these new varieties/selections originate? 



At Bailey Nurseries, inc., new introductions have 

 been identified through several channels. Our long-term 

 relationships with other wholesale growers, universities, 

 research stations, arboraeta, and botanical gardens have 

 always provided us with new selections. We have our 

 own rose breeding program which is so new that most 

 choices are still being evaluated. Plus we are blessed 

 with some very observant employees who have made 

 numerous selections from our seedling and production 

 blocks. 



Essentially, new plants/selections originate through three 

 methods: (1) formal hybridizing/breeding programs, (2) 

 seedling selection, and (3) genetic mutation/plant sports. 



FORMAL HYBRIDIZING/BREEDINGPROGRAMS 



Breeding programs usually have their own list of cri- 

 teria upon which selections are made. The choices 

 seem endless and include goals such as exceptional 

 cold hardiness, heat tolerance, fragrance, repeat or 

 everblooming ability, disease resistance, unusual forms, 

 variations in foliage type or color, growth rate, etc.. 



Working with the University of Minnesota Landscape 

 Arboretum provided some excellent introductions. The 

 popular Northern Lights series of azaleas is an on-going 

 program. These deciduous azaleas can withstand bit- 

 terly cold temperature as low as -35F to -45F without 

 significant damage. The series includes 'Golden Lights,' 

 'Northern Hi-lights',' 'Northern Lights,' 'Orchid Lights,' 

 'Rosy Lights,' 'Spicy Lights,' and 'White Lights.' These 

 varieties provide outstanding color and extreme hardi- 

 ness; some are fragrant. All are rated to zone four. 



The university also has a fruit breeding program and 

 one of their recent releases was Honeycrisp (PP7197) 

 apple. This variety resulted from a cross between 

 Macoun and Honeygold and exhibits exceptional crisp- 

 ness and juiciness and is very sweet. Its ability to store 



well for up to five months has made this variety an ex- 

 cellent choice for both commercial growers and home 

 owners. Fruit ripens late September to early October. It 

 is rated zone four. Another successful release from the 

 fruit program is Summercrisp pear. Considered to be the 

 hardiest pear at the University of Minnesota Research 

 Station, this pear bears fruit annually that measures 2 1/ 

 2" diameter by 3-3 1/2" long. Fruit harvested mid-August, 

 when it is crisp and green, can be stored up to two 

 months. Summercrisp is rated zone four. 



Blueberries referred to as "half-highs" are also being 

 released by the University of Minnesota Research Sta- 

 tion. These are taller than the Maine low-bush blueber- 

 ries, staying between I l/2'-4' tall by 2'-4' wide. Varieties 

 include 'Chippewa,' 'Northblue,' 'Polaris,' 'North Country,' 

 and 'St. Cloud.' These make wonderful landscape plants, 

 due to their flowering/fruiting/fall color and compact 

 habit. All are hardy for zone four. 



Bailey Nurseries, Inc., has worked closely with the 

 Morden Research Station at Morden, Manitoba, and the 

 L'Assomption Experimental Station at L'Assomption, 

 Ouebec (now closed). This alliance has allowed us to in- 

 troduce many new varieties of hardy shrub roses. In par- 

 ticular, the Explorer series. This series, well adapted to 

 New England weather conditions, consists of ground cov- 

 ers, climbers, and shrub types, many hardy through zone 

 three. Many of the early Explorer roses were rugosa hy- 

 brids that were repeat bloomers, salt-tolerant, and ex- 

 tremely hardy. The more recent releases are complex 

 hybrids which combine disease resistance with good 

 cold-hardiness. Ground cover selections are Charles 

 Albanel' (magenta) and 'Henry Hudson' (white). Shrub 

 types include 'David Thompson' (deep pink), ') P 

 Conneir (pale yellow), lens Munk' (pink), "Champlain' 

 (red), and 'Martin Frobisher' (soft pink). Climbers are 

 generally a complex hybrid with Rosa kordesn and include 

 'Henry Kelsey' (red), '|ohn Cabot' (magenta), ')ohn Davis' 

 (soft pink), and 'William Baffin' (deep pink). 



Lake County Nursery (Perry, Ohio), another wholesale 

 grower, has been selecting crabapples for natural genetic 

 compactness. Their Round Table Series™ of flowering 

 crabapples is the result. The varieties are Camzam' 



DECEMBER 1996 ♦ (ANOARV 1997 



