Aster novi-belgii/novae angliae 'Benary Composition'
Good Qualities:
Year 1:
Can be a good filler; Grows very well; It will grow anywhere; Well established. Plants look excellent. Produced heavy; nice color.
Year 2:
Easy to grow (2); Color (2); Nice form; Nice stem length.
Problems:
Year 1:
The foliage gets brown and dry before the flowers are ready to use (3); It’s an aster and market is flooded and I don’t like them; Another fall aster. No market; It looks too wild and everyone complained it didn’t hold up; Had to work with stems after cutting to get saleable. Size causes too much on one stem; Short and a little floppy.
Year 2:
These plants just have not done well in this climate (Zone 7a), They haven't produced anything that I thought was usable, I seem to get foliar problems that wreck it; It just does not do well here (Zone 6b), the flowers look terrible when it blooms - probably because of the heat; Not pretty flower, may be our heat (Zone 6b); Low demand for this flower in Aug/Sept.
Trial Data
Year 1
| Yield (stems/plant) | Stem Length (inches) | Market Appreciation Rating (1) | Repeat Again Rating (1) | Ease of Cultivation Rating (1) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average | 7.4 | 25.7 | 2.6 | 2.5 | 4.7 |
(1) Data shown are from those respondents who harvested stems. Some respondents may not have harvested stems because they were too short. Flowering stems may be longer next year after plants are established. See comments section for more details.
(2) 1 to 5 scale, with 5 being the best. Market ratings are based on sales to wholesalers, retailers, or final consumers direct.
Year 2
| Plants Surviving (%) | Yield (stems/plant) | Stem Length (inches) | Market Appreciation Rating - Wholesale (1) | Market Appreciation Rating - Retail (1) | Market Appreciation Rating - Consumer (1) | Repeat Again Rating (2) | Ease of Cultivation Rating (2) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average | 97.5 | 5.6 | 29.4 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 4.0 |
(1) Data shown are from those respondents who harvested stems. Some respondents may not have harvested stems because they were too short. Flowering stems may be longer next year after plants are established. See comments section for more details.
(2) 1 to 5 scale, with 5 being the best. Market ratings are based on sales to wholesalers, retailers, or final consumers direct.
Supplier
Green Leaf Enterprises/Benary
2369 Old Philadelphia Pike
Lancaster, PA 17602
717-299-0300
FAX 717-299-7162
perennials@yoder.com
Comments:
Year 1:
Similar to the Autumn aster that grows wild around here; I have never cared for this plant. It is pretty in the wild but has never done that well as a cut for me. There was a pretty pink one that I may nurture; Don’t test more asters; Not a great leap forward!; Hope for better things next year.
Year 2: