Caltraelbu

Calibrachoa

Variety Description

Varieties used for comparison: 'KLEC01055' (MiniFamous Cherry Pink) and 'USCALI17' (Superbells Cherry Red)

Summary: The plants of 'Caltraelbu' have a trailing growth habit while those of 'USCALI17' are upright. 'Caltraelbu' has taller plants than 'KLEC01055'. The sepals of 'Caltraelbu' are shorter than those of both reference varieties. 'Caltraelbu' has weak degree of lobing of the corolla while 'USCALI17' has very weak degree of lobing. The veins on the corolla of 'Caltraelbu' are red while those of 'USCALI17' are purple. 'Caltraelbu' has no marking on the upper side of the corolla while both reference varieties have a dark ring at the transition to the corolla tube. The apex of the corolla lobes of 'Caltraelbu' are cuspidate while those of both reference varieties are truncate. 'Caltraelbu' has weak conspicuousness of the veins on the inner side of the corolla tube while 'KLEC01055' has very weak conspicuousness and 'USCALI17' has medium to strong conspicuousness.

Description:

PLANT: trailing growth habit, short to medium height, narrow to medium width

LEAF BLADE: medium length, ovate, narrow acute apex, no variegation, medium green on upper side, no blistering
PETIOLE: short to medium length

SEPAL: very short to short, medium width, rhombic, no anthocyanin colouration
FLOWER: single, medium diameter, salverform, short pedicel
COROLLA: weak degree of lobing, one coloured on upper side
COROLLA LOBE: purple red (RHS N66A-N74A) on upper side, red veins, very weak to weak conpsicuousness of veins on upper side, blue pink (RHS 73A) on lower side, cuspidate apex
COROLLA TUBE: medium length, yellow (RHS 9A) on inner side, weak conspicuousness of veins on inner side
ANTHER: yellow before pollen dehiscence

Origin & Breeding History: 'Caltraelbu' originated from a controlled cross in 2003 between the female parent identified as Z4012 and the male parent identified as C4462. The cross was conducted by the breeder J. Oud in Enkhuizen, The Netherlands. The new variety 'Caltraelbu' was selected from the resultant progeny as a single plant in 2004 based on plant growth habit, flower colour and time of flowering. Asexual reproduction by cuttings was first conducted in August 2004 in Enkhuizen, The Netherlands.

Tests & Trials: Trials for 'Caltraelbu' were conducted in a polyhouse during the spring of 2008 in St. Thomas, Ontario. The trial included a total of 20 plants each of the candidate and reference varieties. All plants were grown from rooted cuttings and transplanted into 30 cm hanging baskets on May 23, 2008. Each basket contained 4 cuttings with a total of 5 baskets per variety. Observations and measurements were taken from 10 plants of each variety on July 22, 2008. All colour determinations were made using the 2001 Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Colour Chart.

Comparison tables for 'Caltraelbu' with reference varieties 'KLEC01055' and 'USCALI17'

Plant height (cm)

Sepal length (cm)

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Calibrachoa: 'Caltraelbu' (left) with reference varieties 'KLEC01055' (centre) and 'USCALI17' (right)

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Calibrachoa: 'Caltraelbu' (left) with reference varieties 'KLEC01055' (centre) and 'USCALI17' (right)