Gaulsidh5

Wintergreen

Variety Description

Variety used for comparison: Gaultheria procumbens

Summary: The plants of 'Gaulsidh5' have medium vigour whereas those of Gaultheria procumbens have strong vigour. The inflorescence of 'Gaulsidh5' is longer than that of Gaultheria procumbens. The inflorescence of 'Gaulsidh5' has 5 to 8 flowers per panicle whereas the inflorescence of Gaultheria procumbens has 3 to 5 flowers per panicle. The fruit of 'Gaulsidh5' is larger than that of Gaultheria procumbens. The fruit of 'Gaulsidh5' is oblate in longitudinal section whereas that of Gaultheria procumbens is round.

Description:

PLANT: medium vigour, spreading growth habit, green stem

LEAF: simple
LEAF BLADE: elliptic and obovate, broadly acute apex, cuneate base, weakly serrate margin
LEAF BLADE (UPPER SIDE): dark green to light green (RHS 144A-B) with light green (RHS N144A) tones when newly opened, brown green (darker than RHS 137A) in summer, brown green (RHS 146A-B) and brown purple (darker than RHS 178A) in fall, brown green (darker than RHS 147A) with an overlay of dark brown (redder than RHS 200A) in winter
PETIOLE: present

INFLORESCENCE: 5 to 8 flowers per panicle
COROLLA: urceolate, white (RHS NN155B) on outer side, weak intensity of anthocyanin colouration on outer side
FRUIT: oblate in longitudinal section, red (RHS 45B-C) skin when young, red (RHS 45A-B) skin when mature, white (RHS N155D) flesh, glossiness ranging from medium to strong

Origin & Breeding History: 'Gaulsidh5' originated from an open pollinated cross that occurred in 2006, in Mission, British Columbia, in a greenhouse production bed of Gaultheria procumbens seedlings. The new variety was discovered as a chance seedling in the fall of 2010 and was selected based on its large berry size. 'Gaulsidh5' was evaluated in greenhouse trials from 2011 to 2015 and assessed for stability, uniformity and overall performance. Asexual reproduction of 'Gaulsidh5' was first conducted by tissue culture from stem cuttings in April 2011, in Mission, British Columbia.

Tests & Trials: The comparative trial for 'Gaulsidh5' was conducted in late 2015 and throughout the spring to fall of 2016, at Bioflora Inc., in St. Thomas, Ontario. The trial included a total of 10 plants of the candidate variety and 8 plants of the reference variety. All plants were grown from young plants in 10 cm diameter pots and transplanted to 12 cm deep containers on November 5, 2015. The plants were over-wintered in a double polyhouse and moved outdoor in the spring of 2016 to an irrigated trial area. Observations and measurements of fruit and winter leaf colours where taken on December 27, 2015, leaf and flower characteristics were taken on August 10, 2016, fall foliage colours were taken on November 11, 2016. All colour determinations were made using the 2007 Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Colour Chart.

Comparison tables for 'Gaulsidh5' with reference variety Gaultheria procumbens

Inflorescence length (cm)

Fruit height (mm)

Fruit width (mm)

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Wintergreen: 'Gaulsidh5' (left) with reference variety Gaultheria procumbens (right)

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Wintergreen: 'Gaulsidh5' (left) with reference variety Gaultheria procumbens (right)