Garbro

Sedum

Variety Description

Varieties used for comparison: 'Vera Jameson' and 'Autumn Joy'

Summary: 'Garbro' has taller plants, longer, thicker leaves and thicker stems than the reference varieties. 'Garbro' matures earlier than 'Autumn Joy'. 'Garbro' has purple stems, while 'Autumn Joy' has light green stems. The leaf blades of 'Garbro' are lanceolate with an acute apex, whereas those of the two reference varieties are elliptic with an obtuse apex. The leaves of 'Garbro' are sessile while 'Vera Jameson' has a short petiole. Anthocyanin colouration is present in the leaf blades of 'Garbro',while it is only present at the midrib and base for 'Vera Jameson' and is absent for 'Autumn Joy'. 'Garbro' differs from the reference varieties in overall flower colour.

Description:

'Garbro' is a deciduous sedum variety with an upright growth habit. The stems are purple with moderate glaucosity. The main stems are thick and the lateral stems are thin to moderately thick. The leaves are simple and sessile. The leaf blades are thick, lanceolate in shape with an acute apex, an obtuse base and an entire to scalloped margin. The main colour of the upper side of the leaf blade is green with no variegation and dull, dark purple red anthocyanin colouration.

The inflorescence of 'Garbro' is a medium to dense compound corymb. The flowers are rotate with five petals. The petals are white in colour with speckles of purple and a purple apex. The base of the style is purple.

Origin & Breeding History: 'Garbro' originated from a cross between Sedum telephium 'Munstead Dark Red' as the female parent and Sedum spectabile 'Carmen' as the male parent. The cross was conducted by the breeder, Susanne Herdegen, an employee of InnovaPlant GmbH & Co. KG in Gensingen, Germany in the summer of 2001. 'Garbro' was selected based on its well branching plants, uniform growth , dark foliage and dark red flowers. Asexual reproduction of the new sedum by vegetative cuttings was first conducted in the summer of 2002 in Gensingen, Germany.

Tests & Trials: The tests and trials for 'Garbro' were conducted in a polyhouse during the summer of 2005 at BioFlora Inc. in St. Thomas, Ontario. The trials included 15 plants of each of the candidate and reference varieties. All plants were grown from rooted cuttings and transplanted into 6 inch pots on June 30, 2005. Observations and measurements were taken from 10 plants of each variety on August 11, 2005 and all colour measurements were made using the 2001 Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Colour Chart.

Comparison tables for 'Garbro' with reference varieties 'Vera Jameson' and 'Autumn Joy'

Plant height (cm)

Leaf length (cm)

Colour of mature flower (RHS)

Colour of immature flower (RHS)

Colour of style (RHS)

Click on image for larger view

Sedum: 'Garbro' (left) with reference varieties 'Vera Jameson' (centre) and 'Autumn Joy' (right)