PEARL CELEBRATION
This cultivar is grown for it's reliability in that it can be easily timed for showing from early to late September. Also it is one of the larger cultivars with very good form and requires little dressing. With good stock selection colour is also very good . I have grown it since it's introduction and consider it a banker for me.

Propagation
Cuttings are put in to root early December and plenty of cuttings are p roduced from the stools. Hormone rooting powder is used as I think it does help to give earlier rooting. Cuttings are struck into seed trays using a mixture of seven parts peat and one part perlite with 2 ox Vitax Q4 and 4 oz lime per bushel. A bottom hea t, provided by a soil warming cable, of 21C is used and all the cuttings required are put in as one batch. They are misted twice daily and root in about 12 days.

After rooting the trays of cultivars are left on the soil cable for about four weeks in ord er to build up a good root system and to help compensate for the poor light conditions at this time of year. Air temperature in the greenhouse at this time is kept only frost free.

Potting on
The cuttings are then potted on into 3.5" pots using a soilless mix of six parts peat and two parts grit. If a gallon measure is used this will make one bushel. To this is added 4 oz Vitax Q4 and 4 oz lime. Water is withheld at this stage for about 10-12 days then they are given a good soak ensuring that all the compost in the pots is evenly wet. Air temperature is increased to about 7C. Once the 3.5" pots are well filled with roots, but not at the stage of being pot bound, they are moved into 5" square pots and keep in the cold greenhouse until mid April.

The compost used is the peat/grit ratio but the fertiliser content is increased to 8 oz Q4/6 oz lime per bushel. If the weather is mild they are moved into the cold frame mid April where light liquid feeds are given using Vitafeed 3.0.1 until planting out

Stopping
Plants are stopped in two batches, half the quantity on 20th March the remainder 10 days later. Only the smallest tip is removed using a levering action to ensure the growing point is broken. Plants should be showing side shoots in the leaf axils just sta rting to move at this stage. No growth retardant is used.

Ground preparation
The beds are normally dug over in mid October. Farm yard manure is dug in every other year at the rate of one barrowload per four square yards. A professional soil an alysis is done every few years in March and the beds are sterilised with Basamid every third year. pH readings are taken late winter and early spring. The last test showed a reading of 6.8.

When the weather conditions are suitable the beds are dug over about three times during February/March and again late April. A few days before planting out a base dressing of 4 oz per square yard Vitax Q4 is applied and worked into the top 4".

Covers up before planting
The covers are put up about three weeks befor e planting. This warms up the beds to a soil temperature of 10C and allows them to dry out sufficiently to enable planting to take place about 10th May - give or take a few days. Twenty plants of this cultivar are usually grown. They are planted at 15" ap art in three rows using the Domino five system. Plants are moist at the time of planting.

The laterals are reduced to three per plant in late April and then reduced to two per plant in early June. They are best flowered at two per plant. The roof covers are removed in early June.

Feeding starts mid June
As I like to put a plant out which is on the lean side feeding would usually start about mid June, so that plant weight is increasing through bud initiation and bud swell. Vitafeed 3.0.1 or 1.0.1 is used depending on the state of the plants/weather etc. T his would normally be every 12/14 days and stops as soon as colours shows. This cultivar does not like bloom feeds.

Spraying programme
Spraying starts early March, prior to this the stools and root ed cuttings are drenched every two weeks with Tumblebug and Tumbleblite. Plants are sprayed weekly from the end of March using insecticides: Tumblebug, Sybol, Pirimor, Gammacol and fungicides: Tumbleblite, Nimrod, Benlate.

Securing buds safely
Prior to bud securing all side shoots are removed when large enough to handle safely except for the shoots surrounding the bud. These are removed at two day intervals until the bud is fully secured. If they are removed all at once the surge of sap into the bud wil l tend to make it cock. If this does happen a piece of quarter inch inside diameter electric cable, with the inside cable removed, split along one side and cut into one inch lengths, is placed around the neck when long enough and pushed up under the bud every other day to straighten the bud. When the neck under the bud is about 3 inches long it is painted from the bud to the first leaf with Gro-Slow at the rate of 1:10. This reduces the length of the neck which otherwise is very long and can be a problem when staging.

Protecting the blooms
Side covers are put up at planting out and stay on the shelter until colour shows then removed if the weather is dry and not windy. This lets full air circulate the flowers and helps to stop damping. If the weather is bad they are put on to the top half of the shelters to protect the blooms leaving a 3ft gap at the bottom all round to let air in. The roof is covered by wooden panels covered in polythene and bolted in place. These go on when a good percentage of plants are in colour. I would prefer to keep them off as long as possible but the weather usually dictates otherwise. Only bud bags are used with this cultivar, these being removed when the bag is quite full. The buds are sprayed with a mixture of Gammacol and P irimor before bagging and again when the bag is removed. The developing blooms are dusted frequently with Gamma dust.

Cutting for shows
Before any blooms are cut the plants are marked for stock. Only the best are kept, i.e. plants that carry two good flowers. Stock is graded at this time. Blooms are cut at least 24 hours before staging. The stems are not boiled only placed in water to about half the stem length. After cutting, each bloom is inspected for marked or damaged petals - these are removed then blooms are tied in an upright position in plastic bins. Blooms are matched for colour, size etc. at this time and the best five are placed in one bin. They usually select themselves.

Apart from 1995 when unusually warm weather resulted in blooms going over quickly, a good percentage of flowers are used, e.g. in 1993 20 plants - 30 blooms shown. 1994 20 plants - 28 blooms shown.

Preparing for winter
Stools are cut down and lifted early October. They are not washed but trimmed back to about 4" and boxed up in fresh compost in standard seed trays. The compost used is the same as used for the 3.5" potting stage. All green growth is removed at this time and they are drenched with Tumblebug/Tumbleblite and placed in the cold greenhouse. They are kept fairly dry until they go on the soil cable which is switched on in the second week of November. By this time cuttings are starting to show and light feeds with Vitafeed 3.0.1 usually ensures plenty of cutting material ready for early December. No crown gall or other health problems have been seen, this could be due to sterilising with Basamid.

RUTLAND

I have grown this cultivar since 1985, the cultural routine is much the same as for Pearl Celebration with the following exceptions:

A leaner plant is required at planting out time, this is achieved by reducing the amount of water given and also a reduction in feeding during the time in the 5" pot stage.

Plants are stopped in two batches on 20th March and 30th March, again only the smallest tip is removed. After planting out, when feeding starts, no Potash is given, only high Nitrogen feeds. as this cultivar seems to derive all it's Potash requirements f rom the initial base dressing of Vitax Q4. If more is given then Magnesium deficiency is induced and although spraying with Epsom Salts helps it is better to reduce the Potash in the liquid feeds. This was very evident in the 1995 growing season when weeks of sun and high temperatures were experienced, resulting in a lot of blooms with short stubby petals i n the shoulders of the flower. Rutland is not so dependable a cultivar as Pearl Celebration but with 15 plants grown I would expect to get two or three good vases of five blooms.

Size and form are very good and it requires very little dressing. In the past the colour was quite bad with bronzing of the lower petals but with stock selection over the years this is not now so evident and the colour which is a rich yellow is usually very good.

This cultivar will respond to bloom feeding which should be slightly high in nitrogen to get the long petal required.

The main problems are with greenfly/blackfly. Being a yellow it acts like a magnate for these pests so regular spraying and dusting is essential, twice a week if possible is recommended using the same chemicals as Pearl Celebration. Again, no crown gall has been noted with this cultivar.

If you would like further information or wish to comment on this publication please send your e-mail to: paul.barlow@chrysanthemums.info

Last updated on 20 December, 2001