FlowerTrials 2024 – Chapter 4

FlowerTrials, the annual open days for the global bedding plant industry, was back in bloom from 11-14 June 2024, attracting 5,300 green professionals. Interest in the event is stable, with this year’s attendance five per cent up from 2023. The final chapter of FCI’s FlowerTrials coverage takes us to Syngenta and Schoneveld.

From young plant producers and growers over wholesalers and retailers to green marketing experts and suppliers, industry professionals working with pot and bedding plants from over 80 countries gathered to seek inspiration for future assortments and discover the latest trends in what is Europe’s biggest pre-summer bedding plants showcase.

FlowerTrials members are already looking forward to opening their doors again next year in week 24 to meet with all those interested in ornamental horticulture. Mark 10th to 13th June 2025 in your diary now.

Syngenta

This year marks the 15th anniversary of Syngenta Flowers’ Rio Dipladenia series, sold under the ‘Relax its Rio’ tagline, which references the hassle-free production of a compact plant that transports well.

The Rio family comprises four sub-series. Rio Petite is for cultivation in 9-13cm pots and reaching heights between 15-30cm.

Standing 20-60cm tall, Rio is mid-compact and suited for 10-14cm pots.

Rio Elegant is ideal for 10-15cm pots and reaches a height between 10 to 15 cm, while Rio Grande is grown in 14cm pots or bigger, with vigorous plants quickly reaching 25-70 cm.

In the mid-compact Rio range, Syngenta Flowers introduced Hot Pink Improved, Deep Red Improved and White Improved, all three more heat and drought-tolerant. Hot Pink Improved features a more vibrant, non-fading shade of pink, even under the sun’s relentless rays. The retooled colours are early flowering and feature short internodes and, as such, a relatively short stature.

All Rio Dipladenias start their journey in Ethiopia, where Syngenta Flowers’ cuttings farm harvests cuttings that are subsequently shipped to the Netherlands to be rooted in reusable XCarrier trays. Rooting Dipladenia cuttings is notoriously tricky, as rooting time can be very long.

Growers who use 10.5-15cm pots will place three or two cuttings per pot and grow them into finished pots ready for retail within 35-37 weeks.

Dipladenia cultivation is frequently done in threes, with a two-week interval starting in week 2 and the last production round beginning in week 6.

The colour yellow is missing in Syngenta Flowers’ Dipladenia portfolio. Years ago, the French company Lannes made waves in the industry with the introduction of the first-ever yellow Diamantina dipladenia, a groundbreaking achievement that captured widespread attention. In reality, this was an Allamanda vining plant that requires temperatures above 23 to bloom. It did not bring Lannes the anticipated success. Today, the best yellow can be found in Sundaville Lemon from MNP Flowers.

Syngenta Flowers says it is somewhat far-fetched to tout yellow as the holy grail, stressing that 40 per cent of the dipladenia market is occupied by red, 15-20 per cent by pink and 10-15 per cent by white.

Dipladenia is a tropical vine originating from South and Central America. Therefore, it is no wonder that Italy and Spain, with production between 18-22 million plants per year each, are the hotbeds of dipladenia production. The Netherlands ranks third in European production, with a yearly output of seven and ten million plants.

The photogenetic Petunia ‘Painted Love’, an artisan and, therefore, standalone and standout variety, is a new arrival for the 2024-2025 catalogue.

As if painted by a master artist’s brush, ‘Painted Love’ features a deep purple and soft pink star pattern that radiates from its centre to the petals edged with white. It is a plant of choice for adorning hanging baskets, gracing patio containers, or as a specimen spectacle.

The cutting-raised and rain-tolerant Dekko petunias create a wow factor in hanging baskets, containers, and combos, and they also make a great feature in the landscape, producing a sea of flowers.

Another new cutting-raised petunia hybrid series is Itsy, which includes four colours: Magenta, White, Purple and Light Pink. It is a small-flowered petunia that should not be confused with calibrachoa. In extremely sunny and hot weather, it outperforms bacopa (Sutera) when planted in hanging baskets. While the latter will turn brown from intense sunlight and stop flowering altogether, the compact Itsy will continue to produce masses of self-cleaning flowers.

Schoneveld Breeding

Arguably, one of our biggest takeaways from this year’s FlowerTrials was Schoneveld’s ‘Illusia’ , the cyclamen that does not look like a cyclamen. It won top honours at the Japanese Flower Trials while also wowing the crowds at the European FlowerTrials.

In the Japanese contest, ‘Illusia’ earned top honours, with a panel of expert judges offering the following praise: “‘Illusia’ features upward-facing flowers. This characteristic differentiates it from traditional varieties [FCI editorial board: a significant understatement!]. The blooms, reminiscent of cherry blossoms, showcase originality with distinctive protrusions on the inner petals. The plant exudes a luxurious and innovative appeal, is highly floriferous, and offers an impressive shelf life.”

Botanically speaking, Cyclamen is a tuberous perennial. Cyclamen is a staple houseplant or patio plant on the global ornamental plant market. The genus of this perennial belongs to the Primulaceae family. ‘Illusia’ cannot easily hide its ancestry as its flowers are more or less similar to those of the Primula flowers but without strikingly patterned and leathery foliage.

The new variety results from eight years of in-house breeding at Schoneveld Breeding in Wilp.

It is not the first time that Schoneveld Breeding has created a stir in the Cyclamen industry. Cyclamen professionals will remember how the double-flowered ‘Masako’ made the headlines in 2018 or, much earlier, ‘Petticoat’ with recognisable umbrella-shaped petals.

‘Illusia’ is a seed-raised, non-fragrant F1 variety, which guarantees true to type, quality, efficient cropping, and good yields. It is recommended that the plant be grown in a 12cm pot, resulting in beefy plants with a genuine wow factor.

For now, pink will be the primary ‘Illusia’ colour for the next 2-3 years while additional colours are already a work in progress. Eventually, the idea is to create a complete ‘Illusia’ series.

‘Illusia’ is in its introduction phase, with currently not more than 50,000 Dutch grown plants available. Seeds are already entirely sold out. So, the biggest challenge for Illusia is not to become the victim of its success – that its rise in popularity will lead to seed availability constraints and disappointed customers.

Gerbera jamesonii Joybera F1 for pot cultivation in 12-15cm pots are available in eight colours. Schoneveld created this seed gerbera to offer the market a cheaper alternative to Garvinea from tissue culture. Joybera will continue to thrive through the seasons. The first flush will produce a minimum of three flowers, while at that stage there are three new flowers in the making and ready to emerge from the base.