Pugster Amethyst Buddleia was recently named Japan's 2024 Flower of the Year by the Japan Flower Selections Association (JFA). The compact butterfly bush is based on plants first developed in the lab of UConn horticulture professor Mark Brand.
"This [Plant of the Year] award is the most famous and prestigious one in Japan," says Masashi Fujiwara, marketing director at Hakusan, the company that manages Proven Winners ColorChoice shrubs in Japan, on behalf of Spring Meadow. "A New Standard for Good Flowers is the motto of JFA, and it expresses their confidence in Pugster Amethyst as the best new garden plant introduction in Japan this year."
A variety of butterfly bush with stunning blooms and compact stature, Pugster Amethyst was cultivated from germplasm developed by Mark Brand, professor of horticulture in the College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources, and his former doctoral student, William Smith in 2008.
"Our UConn butterfly bush germplasm was quite unique and allowed the nursery industry to take a big step forward in improving what was available on the market," says Brand.
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