Asian Tray Garden --- A new type of Miniature Garden.

Asian Tray Garden 

Story # 144,

            Miniature Gardens with several plants and accessories have been difficult to standardize for wholesale customers because of the high input costs.

            With Asian Tray Gardens, an interesting new design is evolving by planting a low bonsai ceramic pot with three plants and one accessory.  We need a tree-form, a low shrub and a ground cover.  With a small Buddha replica the scene is set.

            One combination that looks nice is to use variegated Ming Aralia, variegated Peperomia ‘Pixie’ and Peperomia prostrata.

10 Things I learned about Primulinas at MAAVS

Primulina 'Loki' (Shalit)

Story # 143,

            The Mid-Atlantic African Violet Society (MAAVS) convention and sale brought together many advanced hobbyists devoted to African Violets and other Gesneriads and several specialized plant vendors.

            Primulinas were exhibited in the judged show and many varieties were sold by the vendors.  The experts were there.  I asked these knowledgeable growers what they think about the prospect of Primulinas becoming more popular.

1.  Primulinas are a very minor category with mail order sales either steady or going down.

2.   Flowering takes a long time and then the individual flowers are short-lived.

3.  For a young plant to set buds, the plantlet should be kept in a small pot (2” - 2 ½”).  Repotting too soon may prevent buds and delay the buds from progressing to come up and flower.

4.  Propagation by leaves is variable in the number of plantlets that you get.  Multiple ways to cut the leaves are possible and trials are needed to discover which way works best.

5.  The descriptive term: ‘Patterned leaves’ may be more accurate than ‘Variegated leaves’.  ‘Patterned’ is stable and ‘variegated’ is variable.

6.  There are many species in cultivation and many named hybrids that are interesting enough to test the commercial market as foliage plants.

7.  Primulinas are very durable and tolerant of drought and neglect, making them acceptable houseplants

.

8.  Very few hybridizers are working with Primulinas.  Tremendous patience is needed to tolerate the long flowering delays.

9.  It is unlikely the Primulina will be sold in flower as a commercial plant.  Small foliage plants are its only chance.  The yellow flowered--- P. ‘Aiko’ may be an exception.

 10.   Whether Primulina can grow into the common name ---‘Asian Violet’ is uncertain.  The purists among hobbyists want the common name to be ‘Primulina’.

I'm World Famous.... Again!

Sinningia 'Li'l Georgie' - The Breakthrough 'Mini'

I’m World famous….. Again!

My story about Sinningia ‘Li’l Georgie’, originally published in the Gesneriads journal and then shown in Gleanings is picked up by New Plantsand Flowers.  This plant news collector in the Netherlands has international circulation with stories about progress in the floricultural industry.

My previous story about Codonanthe was  reprinted as well.

MAAVS Flower Show & Convention

Mid-Atlantic African Violet Show & Convention

Coming to Claymont, DE,

Crowne Plaza Hotel, Rt. 92 & I-95 (across from Home Depot)

November 13-15, 2014

Diamonds are Forever is the show theme.

Unusual African violets and other gesneriads for sale

Don't miss this opportunity to visit the Show Room
of winning
   African violet plants and designs
using America's favorite houseplant.etc.

Call  610-485-0211 for further information

How to Become the Leading Regional Supplier for 'Mini' Plants?

Peperomia prostrata - 'Mini' Plant

Story # 141,

            How does any business become the dominate player in their field?

            An amazing book, Zero to One, by Peter Thiel, co-founder of PayPal has insight into this question.  He advises how to escape competition. You should have some combination of several characteristics:  proprietary technology, network effects, economies of scale and branding.

            Proprietary technology applies to hardware and software, usually protected by patents.  The technology must be at least 10 times better than its closest substitute in some important dimension.

            Can this happen with plants?

            The clearest way to make a 1000 % improvement is to invent something completely new.  Or you can radically improve an existing solution.  Once you’re 10X better, you can escape competition.

            Having the best plant product is the price of admission.  A lot of growers can grow good plants.  How to be 10X better?

           

            By having New plants that no one has like Primulina, Hemizygia ‘Candy Kisses’ and upright Selaginella should help, but is it 10X better?

            With truck delivery, orders can arrive in good condition without the problems of unpacking scrambled plants with cold damage.  Is this 10X better?

            I have custom plant tags with common name, botanical name, brief description and ‘Grown by Gary’s Specialty Plants’.  Established customers will have their business name as well.

            A recent order for 300 ‘Mini’ plants had an assortment of 50 different foliage and succulent plants.

            Are all of these features enough to be 10X better and be the leading regional supplier for ‘Mini’ Plants’?

            The true test is if Garden Centers try them and they sell.  Most of my customers never leave.

Fill 'er up and buy a plant!

Buy a plant!

Story # 140, O. T.

              Fill ‘er up and buy a plant.

              Macroeconomics is hard to understand when you are the main one that you care about. 

The $0.62 drop in gas price over the last 6 months will save consumers $85 million over the next year collectively.  What’s that do for me?

Fill up your 10 gal tank and you will have $6.20 left in your pocket.

Go buy a plant.

Primulina progress --- Where will it come from?

Primulina 'Aiko'

Story # 140,

            Maybe a few thousand people in the World know what a Primulina is.  Hobbyists who may be growing this obscure Genus from Asia have their own opinions about the worth of this African Violet relative.  Even the Gesneriad flower shows have had to compensate for the long delay in flowering by having judged classes both for in flower and not in flower.

            Because they can be grown as attractive foliage plants gives hope that Primulinas could be a commercial crop. 

            But where will the new varieties come from?  Who will champion the plants to develop the market, improve the variegation, shorten the flowering time, add new flower colors or develop faster production techniques?

            In the computer tech business, venture capital bets on the next Big Thing.  No such thing in horticulture.  The rewards are too small.  No horticulture company can be cashed in with an IPO.

            Progress will have to come from curious hobbyists who like to create something new.   That’s where the existing hybrids have come from.