Trends
At the CAST, a broad range of varieties are being showcased. Even though every breeder has their own novelties and varieties, one can notice some general trends. One of them: fragrant flowers. It's not just for the cut roses that scent is becoming important; for the balcony, bedding and potted plants as well.
Another trend is pollinator friendliness. Due to the extinction of bees, many breeders invest a lot of time and effort in developing and introducing pollinator friendly varieties. These plants attract more bees, and it really has become a trend in the US.
Bi-colored varieties are hot as well. Breeders are introducing bi-colored types in a range that used to consist of single color types only, or are adding more bi-colored types to their existing range of bi-colors. Then, when adding new bi-colors to a range of bi-colors, breeders really want to stand out with their striking and more unusual color combinations.
Next to the color of the flower, the size is important too. US consumerd are fond of big flowers and therefore many new and improved varieties with a larger flower size are on display as well.
"It works great in combinations." This is an often heard quote at the Trials. Mixing several plant varieties in one container is, just like in Europe, very popular. Breeders are increasingly supplying pre-made cutting mixes, seed combinations or options of cuttings and seeds that can grow well together.
Visitors
Individually, with colleagues, clients or in large organized groups. In different settings growers, brokers, retailers, plant buyers (and more) travel to California to visit the trials. It leads to a good flow of visitors with peaks during the day. However, every company has to deal with busy and slow days, depending on the location. Many visitors work their way south or north, so the companies exhibiting at these ends have had a busy weekend and expect busy final day(s). In turn, the days in between have been very busy for the ones located in the middle of the route.
FloralDaily.com
The FloralDaily team is also at the event and will make a full photo report of the show. This report will be published next week, but below, we already give you a preview.
Leo Lievaart, Nico Grootendorst and Luit Mazereeuw of Evanthia presenting the eucalyptus pulverulenta, Cyperus Zumala (Cat grass) and Sunsation.
Steve Rinehart and Andreas Kientzler of Kientzler North America presenting two new varieties to the NGI Paradise line; Magenta Eye and Dark Lavender.
The team of Terra Nova Nurseries. This year, they are presenting their 20 new varieties in a playful way. The display features a “Join us for a Picnic in the Park” theme, which includes custom-built displays based on playground structures
Pieter van der Lans of 2Plant, a new CAST participant presenting one of their Asiatic lilies that is part of their Bloom Extension Program. In this program, they put two different lilies with a different flowering time in one pot to extend the blooming period of the plant in general.