Balablim

Sutera

Variety Description

Varieties used for comparison: 'Balcoble' (Blue Showers), 'Yasflos' (Candy Floss Blue), 'KLESU03186' (Blue Sky Falls) and 'Sutcabl' (Cloud 9 Blue)

Summary: 'Balablim' is a sutera variety which differs from the reference varieties in plant growth habit. 'Balablim' has a horizontal habit, whereas 'Bacoble' is trailing and 'Yasflos' is semi-erect. 'Balablim' differs from the other candidate varieties 'KLESU03186' and 'Sutcabl' in leaf shape. 'Balablim' has elliptic leaves while 'KLESU03186' has ovate and 'Sutcabl' has rounded ovate leaves. 'Balablim' also has less anthocyanin colouration in the stems than 'KLESU03186'.

Description:

'Balablim' is a Sutera variety which has a horizontal growth habit and medium branching. The stems have weak to medium anthocyanin colouration. The leaves are simple and elliptic in shape. The leaf margins are dentate to serrate with a medium number of teeth. 'Balablim' has medium green leaves with medium pubescence on the upper surface.

The inflorescences of 'Balablim' are located in both terminal and axillary positions on the stems and are a racemose type of cluster. The corolla tube is straight and funnel shaped. The corolla lobes are free and have weak undulation of the margin. Pubescence on the outer side of the corolla tube is short and medium in density. The upper side of the corolla is blue violet and the inner side of the corolla tube is yellow orange.

Origin & Breeding History: 'Balablim' originated in a controlled breeding program during June 2001 at Arroyo Grande, California, as the result of the open pollination of the Sutera variety 'Yasflos', characteristized by its medium lavender coloured flowers and loose, upright habit. Seeds produced from the open pollination were planted and grown to maturity. The initial selection was made in August 2001. Asexual propagation since that time has been through the use of vegetative cuttings.

Tests & Trials: The tests and trial for 'Balablim' were conducted in a polyhouse during the spring of 2005 in St. Thomas, Ontario. The trial consisted of 15 plants of each variety. The plants were grown from rooted cuttings and transplanted into 15 cm pots on April 28th, 2005. Observations and measurements were taken from 10 plants of each variety on May 31, 2005. All colour characteristics were determined using the 2001 Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) colour chart.

Comparison tables for 'Balablim' with reference varieties 'Balcoble', 'Yasflos', 'KLESU03186' and 'Sutcabl'

Plant height (cm)

Plant width (cm)

Length of corolla tube (mm)

Colour of corolla (RHS)