Chuck Pavlich at the California Spring Trials 2018 holding DAKOTA™ ‘Verde’.
Penstemon DAKOTA
The Penstemon DAKOTA series is bred from Penstemon digitalis and 2018 is the first year of introduction of the Penstemon DAKOTA. The series currently consists of two varieties. According to Pavlich, both are characterized by glossy foliage, large flowers for this species and dense crowns that form in the spring and fill containers quickly. "DAKOTA ‘Burgundy’ has deep burgundy-purple foliage with light purple flowers and DAKOTA ‘Verde’ has glossy, deep emerald-green foliage that is tinged purple at the edges plus light pink flowers. As summer approaches, the fat flower spikes expand and add value to this uber hardy series."
Penstemon DAKOTA™ Verde
Ramping up production
Before introducing the variety, Terra Nova Nurseries has trialed the series for several years and not only the performance of the varieties made them realize the potential of the series, the reactions of the growers did too. "Due to the positive feedback, we knew we had a hit on our hands. We had orders that exceeded our possible first year production on the first day. We have our own tissue culture lab and we had to ramp up our production as cutting farms have ordered extraordinary quantities for a new introduction."
Penstemon DAKOTA™ Burgundy
Advantages for the grower?
Beauty is not the only characteristic that determines a variety's success, the ease of growing is equally important. According to Pavlich, one of the key features of this new series that grabs the attention of many growers is the rack height at shipping time. "Clearly this is the shortest Penstemon digitalis group on the market." But there are more advantages. "The cuttings seem to root at an exceptionally high rate, crowns form quickly, and liners have very well developed root systems. Add this to the zone 3 hardiness rating and we think that we’ve ticked all the boxes for a nearly foolproof hit", says Pavlich. On top of that, no PGRs are required to control height, nor labor to pinch to get a “can full” plant.
For more information
Terra Nova Nurseries
sales@terranovanurseries.com
www.terranovanurseries.com