Salvia 'Marashino'
Good Qualities:
Year 1:
Great intense red color (5); Productive (2); Looked like little butterfliesBpeople loved it. Still blooming September 23; Vigorous; Tall; The plants were loaded with blooms. They began flowering in the beginning of June and are still going strong as of 10-27-98; Heat tolerant; Nice in bouquets. Held up well in vase.
Year 2:
Color; Better use in landscapes.
Problems:
Year 1:
Too branchy and difficult to cut a good stem (3); Few flowers open at one time (3); Buds are on each lateral stem. It does not look like they will open before the tip flower turns brown; The stems are very brittle and the petals drop after being out. The vase life is seemingly very short. The stems have a strong medicinal smell and are very sticky. Harvesting and transporting would be a problem; Scraggly. Flowers are not showy.
Year 2:
Branchy stems and irregular blooms don’t work as a cut; Flowers too small to make statement; Must have winter killed; Wilts when you look at it, had to mow it down to get nice stems; Took cuttings and put out in spring cold wet summer, Did not do as well as last year. I let it die. Won’t overwinter, too bad.
Trial Data
Year 1
| Yield (stems/plant) | Stem Length (inches) | Market Appreciation Rating (1) | Repeat Again Rating (1) | Ease of Cultivation Rating (1) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average | 15.1 | 17.2 | 2.8 | 3.0 | 4.8 |
(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
| Yield (stems/plant) | Stem Length (inches) | Market Appreciation Rating (1) | Repeat Again Rating (1) | Ease of Cultivation Rating (1) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average | 46.5 | 19.5 | 1.7 | 1.2 | 4.4 |
(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
North Creek Nursery (NC)
388 North Creek Rd.
Landenberg, PA 19350
610-255-0100
FAX 610-255-4762
Comments:
Year 1:
Similar to Salvia 'Cherry Queen'; Very nice, hope it overwinters; Maybe it will look better next year. This may be another great landscape plant; Might be better used as a perennial border plant instead of for cut flowers; I don't think this one will make it through the winter. Too bad because I really like it.
Year 2:
Great landscape plant; Easy to grow, stems 14;, blooms from top down, top blossoms gone before any height; Plants had the most variability of stem size, many of which were too short for adequate harvest. Did poorly as far as stem size was concerned when temperatures consistently rose above 80 degrees F.