Suntory Supplement: Liven Up Your Landscapes

Armstrong Garden Centers in California promotes Senetti in large patio planters and for landscape customers.

For decades, we’ve seen more of the same cool-season plantings everywhere, fall through early spring. You can count the types of plants that are used on one hand – pansies, violas, primrose,cabbage/kale and garden mums. One newer crop that is capturing attention all over the world is Senetti, which provides high color impact when you need it the most.

If you’re looking to expand your palette and make a statement with a signature plant, Senetti is perfect for focal points near the public in beds and large planters. Just placing Senetti at key entry points will take your landscapes to the next level and provide a lot of color per plant. Set the trend in your markets with modern varieties your customers will love. As an added bonus, you can cut them back for a fresh, second bloom cycle to get more out of each plant.
 

What are Senettis?
Bred by Suntory Flowers in Japan, Senetti is a collection of pericallis hybrids, which were obtained by cross breeding members of the Compositae and Asteraceae families. Before reclassification, Senetti was known as Cineraria x hybrid, but it is nothing like a typical seed cineraria grown as a house plant. Its large, daisylike flower heads bloom from early spring until summer. Bloom count can be as high as 200 on a plant grown in a 10-inch pot.

Costa Farms planted a large swathe of the solid-colored ‘Senetti Blue’ with ‘Senetti Light Blue Bicolor’ directly behind it at its Florida trial grounds.

Senetti has excellent branching with good vigor and plants are unmatched for fall/winter and early spring season color. It is generally grown as an annual but is a perennial by nature, but requires frost protection. It is ideal for spring and early summer landscapes and patio containers and would be positioned with violas, pansies and primulas.

While the original series has eight varieties in shades of blue, magenta and purple, a more compact Baby Senetti series is available in four colors. Solid colors and striking bicolors are available and can be mixed and matched. Turn to the last page to see all the Senetti varieties!

In a sheltered patio situation, Senetti can tolerate temperatures as low as 32°F and thrives in cool, damp weather that is typical in early spring. Plants provide long-lasting color for several months and can be cut back to rebloom. Senetti is the only reblooming pericallis on the market.
 

Winning the world over
Although Senetti was bred in Japan, its 2001 debut in Europe as a great success, most notably in the United Kingdom, where consumers embraced the early-season plant and found it to be a beautiful garden performer, says Chris Spanton of Sutton Consumer Products. “Senetti has strong, bright colors that consumers love, especially as we come out of winter into spring,” Spanton says. “As an added bonus, Senetti has the ability to rebloom. Just cut the plant back 50 percent in height and it will flower again in four to six weeks, provided it is well fed.”
 

Left: Armstrong Garden Centers presents the full assortment of Senetti varieties in large pots to stimulate impulse purchases. Right: Costa Farms created a serene look by surrounding a fountain with pots of ‘Senetti Blue Bicolor’. Bottom: Plant Senetti en masse in key focal points like this enclosed brick bed against the building. Striking ‘Senetti Magenta Bicolor’ is a consumer favorite.

Senetti has even performed well in drier climates, like Australia. “If you’re looking for a slightly more robust flowering annual, then Senetti is a great alternative to viola, pansy and primula,” says Matthew de Ville of Oasis Young Plants in Australia. “Senetti plants are fantastic for winter color in the garden or in decorative tubs, producing an amazing display of daisylike flowers that are packed with color. Senetti produces a compact, mounding plant covered in a profusion of large, jewel-toned flowers.”

Top: Make a statement by placing a single plant in a striking pot. Bottom: Look at the number of flowers on this single ‘Senetti Magenta’ plant, creating a concentration of rich color.

He adds that when plants were exposed to light frost in Sydney, there was very little damage. However, plants should be protected from exposure to frequent and lengthy periods of frost. “These Senetti plants have displayed characteristics that are sometimes difficult to see at your local garden center,” De Ville says. “Characteristics such as vigor, habit and the prolific flowering nature of Senetti make it an easy choice for color.”

Sean O’Brien manages plantings at Hunter Valley Gardens in Australia and trialed Senetti under harsh conditions. Plants in his gardens are in full sun and experience hot summers and cold winters. “One of the things we’re looking for is a very drought-tolerant hardy plant that really doesn’t need any care,” O’Brien explains. “The beauty with Senetti is its even growth. We didn’t have single loss in the crop and it has just been fantastic. We’ve had everything from hail, rain, wind and general lack of sun. We had quite a few frosts, as well, which was a bit of a concern initially. But the plants have done really well. One of the biggest surprises was its evenness in growth and uniformity and the ability to establish itself very quickly.”
 

Leading the way the the USA
Senetti is a plant that is creating its own season as the first flower of spring, although it can also be used in the fall. John Rader of EuroAmerican Propagators in Bonsall, Calif., has been perfecting the supply chain for Senetti as a propagator and working with cuttings producer Florexpo. He is pleased to see the growing demand for Senetti. “The market had to discover uses for it,” Rader says. “It works differently in different parts of the country. In the North, it’s an early spring crop. Here in California and in Southern climates, it’s winter bedding.”

One of his big customers, Armstrong Growers and its Armstrong Garden Centers, has championed Senetti in a big way. In addition to supplying Senetti plants to landscapers who use them in resorts in Las Vegas and Disneyland, Armstrong kicks off spring with a Senetti Smile campaign, giving away plants at area shopping malls and encouraging recipients to post pictures in a photo contest on Facebook.

On the East Coast, Costa Farms with facilities in Florida and North Carolina has promoted Senetti as a premium item through large retailers including Lowe’s. Costa Farms Vice President LJ Contillo, who directs Costa’s color production says he chose Senetti for its “wow” impulse factor and flower power. “The color was eye catching and the crop production timing and sales gave us the ability to try to grow and sell plants at a time of year when not much is being produced and distributed, wowing consumers during winter with something different than pansy and viola,” he explains.

A solid drift of 'Senetti Blue' brings color to a winding path at Costa Farms' trial grounds in Florida.

Costa also is known for its extensive post-harvest and outdoor performance trials. “The past two years, the Senettis have not only rebloomed in deco containers but also rebloomed in trial gardens last year after the first flush went blind,” Contillo says. “Obviously, the cooler the temperature (not below freezing), the longer lasting flower you will get throughout most of the country. Regardless, I would consider them like a garden mum with regards to plant habit and blooming ability, except the second flush of flowers gives the consumer a longer lasting garden experience. We saw a second flush even without cutting the plant back at all or deadheading spent blooms.”
 

Growing demand
In the future, you can expect more consumers to recognize Senetti and ask for it by name. Suntory is marketing Senetti in high profile consumer magazines, such as Sunset, and partnering with key growers and retailers. The Senetti Smile campaign will be expanded to provide funding for causes, including supporting children who lost their parents in the tsunami that struck Japan last year and building a cancer treatment hospital for teenagers in Costa Rica, where Florexpo produces Senetti cuttings.

Be the first to use Senetti in your markets and create smiles for your customers, too.

About the author: Delilah Onofrey is director of Flower Power Marketing for the Suntory Collection. She can be reached at donofrey@gmail.com.

To learn more about Senetti, visit www.Senetti.com.