Balsomcor

Coneflower

Variety Description

Varieties used for comparison: 'Katie Saul' (Big Sky Summer Sky) and 'Balsomsed' (Sombrero Salsa Red)

Summary: The plants of 'Balsomcor' are shorter than those of both reference varieties. The plants of 'Balsomcor' are dense while those of 'Katie Saul' are sparse to medium density. The stems of 'Balsomcor' are green while those of 'Katie Saul' are green tinged heavily with purple. The leaves of 'Balsomcor' are narrower than those of both reference varieties. The flower heads of 'Balsomcor' are smaller than those of both reference varieties. The ray florets of 'Balsomcor' are shorter than those of 'Katie Saul'. The colour of the inner side of the ray florets of 'Balsomcor' differ from those of both reference varieties. The ray florets of 'Balsomcor' have no rolling of the margin while those of 'Balsomsed' have moderately involute rolling when newly opened. The ray florets of 'Balsomcor' have a rounded apex while those of 'Katie Saul' have a pointed apex.

Description:

PLANT: upright growth habit, very short, strong floriferousness, dense
STEM: green, medium to many leaves

LEAF: moderately to strongly elongated, broadest part strongly towards base, medium green, no variegation, weak rugosity, absent or very weak glossiness, absent or very few indentations of margin

PEDUNCLE: green, dense pubescence
FLOWER HEAD: few to medium number of ray florets, semi-dropping attitude of ray florets at origin, relatively all or almost all ligulate ray florets, no spatulate or quilled ray florets
RAY FLORET: medium length/width ratio, inner side when newly opened red (RHS N30A) with orange (RHS N25B) and orange red (RHS 30C) undertones, inner side when fully opened red (RHS 34A,44A) with understones of orange red (RHS 30C), inner side when aged orange (RHS 25B-C) with red (RHS 34A) overlay, weakly reflexing, absent or very weak twisting, round apex, medium tip indentations
DISC: daisy, low to medium to medium height/diameter ratio, medium diameter in relation to flower head, yellow to orange with red brown paleae, no ray florets within the disc

Origin & Breeding History: 'Balsomcor' originated from a cross pollination between the female parent, a proprietary seedling designated 18-8, and the male parent, a proprietary breeding selection designated G0052Y. The cross was conducted in October 2004 at Elburn, Illinois, USA as part of a controlled breeding program. The initial selection of 'Balsomcor' was made in October 2008 based on flower colour, branching and growth habit. Asexual propagation since that time has been through the use of vegetative cuttings.

Tests & Trials: Trials for 'Balsomcor' were conducted in a polyhouse during the summer of 2012, in St. Thomas, Ontario. The trial included a total of 12 plants of the candidate variety, 10 plants of the reference variety 'Katie Saul' and 15 plants of the reference variety 'Balsomsed'. All plants were grown from bare-rooted plants transplanted into 3.8 liter containers on April 17, 2012. Observations and measurements were taken from 10 plants of each variety on July 19, 2012. All colour determinations were made using the 2007 Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Colour Chart.

Comparison tables for 'Balsomcor' with reference varieties 'Katie Saul' and 'Balsomsed'

Plant height (cm)

Leaf width (cm)

Flower head diameter (cm)

Ray floret length (cm)

Main colour of inner side of ray floret (RHS)

Secondary colour of inner side of ray floret (RHS)

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Coneflower: 'Balsomcor' (left) with reference varieties 'Katie Saul' (centre) and 'Balsomsed' (right)

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Coneflower: 'Balsomcor' (left) with reference varieties 'Katie Saul' (centre) and 'Balsomsed' (right)

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Coneflower: 'Balsomcor' (left) with reference varieties 'Katie Saul' (centre) and 'Balsomsed' (right)