plant named ‘Star Dust’
A new and distinct gardenia named ‘Star Dust’ that is resistant to race 2 of the root knot nematode and has dark green, glossy leaves and fragrant white flowers typical of the genus is described.
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Botanical designation: Gardenia jasminoides Ellis×G. thunbergia L.
Varietal denomination: ‘Star Dust’.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONGardenia (Gardenia jasminoides) has been a favorite landscape plant in the warmer areas of the United States for more than a century. Popularity of the species has been encouraged, in large part, by the attractiveness of the plants and the allure of the pleasantly aromatic flowers. Additionally, the species is quite adaptable to various cultural methods and has modest to long-term life expectancy. There is a consistent lack of seed production in most cultivars despite frequent production of pollen and pistillate structures which leads to the presumption that most present-day cultivars have originated as asexual deviants. The species has few important cultural problems other than nematode infestation for which no cultivars of G. jasminoides are known to exhibit tolerance. Thus, a sizeable share of the plants produced for retail sale are now grafted onto stocks of G. thunbergia, the only recognized nematode-resistant species of the genus, and the price to consumer must reflect this additional production cost. Unfortunately, this rootstock species is intolerant of freezing temperatures which thereby limits outdoor culture of grafted plants to zone 8 or warmer.
All plants for the project herein described were grown in the open at the address given above. Ambient air temperature during the duration of this period ranged from approximately 4-22 C in winter to 22-34 C in summer with occasional, sometimes consecutive, nights of −5 C from January-March. Supplemental irrigation as needed was obtained from the local water service. Early in this study the water tested approximately ph 7+ but was later changed to about ph 6.5. Test plants for nematode screening were grown in new plastic pots in a modification of the local ‘Traxler Mix’ that included only soil and sand with no more than 5% (by volume) ‘pearlite’ and no pine bark or peat. All pots were placed on new, black plastic ground cover and given quarterly 8-8-8 fertilizer with minor elements by hand.
The discovery of a reliable seed-producing cultivar of G. jasminoides, i.e. ‘Star Bright’ made possible horticultural improvement through controlled breeding. In 2003, a pollination on ‘Star Bright’ was made with pollen from G. thunbergia and the resulting seedlings all were first exposed to Southern root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita, race 2) in 2004. Inoculum for each of these inoculations was prepared by laboratory staff of the Nematology Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, Fla. Three years later the plant herein described was found to have the basic horticultural features of desirable cultivars as well as demonstrated resistance to nematode infestation.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe ‘Star Dust’ plant exhibits various physical attributes that resemble, in part, both parental types. Mature, blooming plants may reach one meter in height and width with moderately open habit more resembling the pistillate parent than the pollen parent.
Branches are essentially straight with usually at least 10 cm between nodes and young bark light green that darkens to medium brown with age (
Leaves on the ‘Star Dust’ plant are nearly identical to those of the pistillate parent (
Foliar symptoms of nematode infestation in gardenia are slow to develop and less than distinctive until the root system is severely damaged. The ‘Star Dust’ plant in
Flowering in the ‘Star Dust’ plant illustrates the contribution of characters from both parental types. Timing of flower production in the hybrid is between that of the parental types, i.e. 2-4 weeks later than ‘Star Bright’ and 2-4 weeks earlier than G. thunbergia. Flowers are sessile on young branches or terminal ends of branches and have a light green colored corolla tube of 1×5 cm set in a dark green calyx cup with 5-6 sepal-like structures appressed upward against the base of the corolla tube (
Young, brown wood cuttings of ‘Star Dust’ root readily in the soil mixture described above under mild, outdoor conditions, i.e. spring months, in Gainesville as has been demonstrated repeatedly.
‘Star Dust’ has been proven both self- and cross-fertile but the pattern of heritability for desirable characters, including flower production, remains to be determined. Retention of the described traits of ‘Star Dust’ can be assured only by asexual reproduction.
- Coloration:
The colors cited are set forth with reference to The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart, 1996 edition.
The upper surface of the leaves appears to be about RHS 147A.
The bloom coloration appears to be about RHS 155C.
Claims
1. A new and distinct variety of Gardenia plant, as herein illustrated and described.
PP15189 | September 28, 2004 | Barendse |
- MPEP Chapter 1600.
- E-mail communication from Sep. 18, 2009.
Type: Grant
Filed: Aug 13, 2007
Date of Patent: Nov 30, 2010
Patent Publication Number: 20090049575
Assignee: (Gainesville, FL)
Inventor: Allyn Cook (Gainesville, FL)
Primary Examiner: Wendy C. Haas
Application Number: 11/891,789