Landisville Flower Trials --- My Groupies

Interns at Landisville Flower Trials

 

Here are my Groupies at the Landisville Flower Trials Field Day.

 

Penn State University Extension has its annual flower trials at the farm in Landisville PA.  National seed companies and propagators of vegetative annuals enter their best and newest varieties to be grown in big pots in the field for comparison.

 

This event is held for commercial growers and garden center managers to meet to evaluate new varieties for next Spring sales.

 

I was there as a vender looking for new customers for our Mini Houseplants.

 

I was giving out pots of Vietnamese Violets and these Trial Garden Interns stopped by.  They are to report back to me of their success with my new category of plants.

Where are your Vietnamese Violets?

Metapetrocosmea tamiana - Gesneriad Convention 2023

 

Where are your Vietnamese Violets?

 

Vietnamese Violets are new and a different category of houseplants.

 

Metapetrocosmea tamiana is the first and only member of the group.

 

When and where will there be more?

 

There are two possibilities.

 

First, there are descriptions of 5 species in the genius Metapetrocosmea.  M. tamiana is the only one in cultivation in the United States.  Attempts are being made to establish the other rare species.  Hybrids among these species are unknown, but the potential is there.

 

Second, a newly introduced plant, Michaelmoelleria vietnamensis qualifies as a Vietnamese Violet.  The plant grows like an African Violet and is native to South Vietnam.  The leaf markings are variable so different clones can be named.  A project has been started to select and purify distinctive clones.  There is potential for hybrids between Metapetrocosmea and Primulina.  If that is successful, many interesting plants will join as Vietnamese Violets.

 

Vietnamese Violets are coming.