Lobelia - Starship: Cultural Research (EN)

Lobelia x speciosa Starship Additional Culture Research

Lobelia Starship - Germination • There is no significant difference between germination temperature 18°C and 22°C. • Light improves germination rate.

18°C / Dark

22°C / Dark

18°C / Light

22°C / Light

Lobelia Starship – Germination & Plug Culture • Germination conditions • • • • •

Temperature: 18-22⁰C Light: required Cover: lightly with vermiculite to maintain moisture Moisture level: level 4 Seed number per cell: 1

• Days to germ: 7-8 days • Moisture: keep media moist (level 4) during stage one and two, and avoid dry out • Plug tray size: 288 or 128 cell, 72 cell for Early Spring Forcing • Plug time (288 cells): Scarlet 7-9 weeks, all others 810 weeks

Lobelia Starship™ Scarlet

Lobelia Starship – Plug Culture & Daylength Response • Growing Lobelia x speciosa plugs under long day conditions results in floppy stems Long day plug

Short day plug

Short Day plug

Long day plug (with floppy stem)

Lobelia Starship – Plug Culture & Daylength Response • Key messages • Keep plug production under less than 12-hour daylength for at least the first 6 weeks from sowing to prevent thin, floppy stems and premature flowering.

• For autumn sales, black cloth after germination until transplant (8-9 weeks), then transplant to natural daylength until flower.

Lobelia Starship™ Blue

Lobelia Starship – Plug Culture & Daylength Response

Plug 10 hrs

Plug 12 hrs Plug NDL* > 14 hrs NDL* = Natural Day Length

10 weeks later

Lobelia Starship – Plug Culture & Daylength Response

12 weeks later

Plug 10 hrs

Plug 12 hrs Plug NDL* > 14 hrs

Lobelia Starship – Planting • Planting deep shows less plant loss, more coarse flower stems and less flower stems that bend.

Deep planting Shallow planting

Lobelia Starship – PGR Response • Starship is responsive to paclobutrazol (Bonzi) at 30ppm (7.5 ml/l) spray, but not responsive to daminozide (Alar/B9).

Paclobutrazol 2 x 30 ppm sp

Control

Lobelia Starship – Forcing for Autumn Sales Schedule • Target marketing time: • Sowing: • Plug tray size:

week 34-35 week 14-16 288 or 128 cell

• 10H SD bulk after germination until transplant: • TP to Natural daylength until flower: • Container size: • Growing temperature: • Total crop time:

9-10 weeks

15 L pot with 4ppp 3 L/19 cm pot with 1ppp ADT 22-24C 18-19 weeks

8-10 weeks

Lobelia Starship – Forcing for Autumn Sales Schedule 10H SD Crop time (weeks)

8-10

TP

Natural Long Day 9-10

Floweri ng

Lobelia Starship – Forcing for Autumn Sales Schedule

√

From 10-hour SD bulked plugs

x

Without 10-hour SD bulked

Lobelia Starship – Key Messages for production • Germination: 18-22⁰C, cover lightly, under light.

• Keep media moisture to avoid germination and seedling loss.

• The best sowing period is around week 4 to 6 for Spring sales.

• For other sales targets: SD plug 10 h

Early Spring (W19)

Spring

Summer

Autumn (W3538)

Number of true leaves

10

6

6

6

Plug size

72

288

288

288

13-15

9-10

9-10

8-9

Plug lead-time (weeks)

Lobelia Starship – Key Messages for production • Don’t grow plug under LD supplemental lighting, to avoid premature flowering and weak stems.

• It is long day crop with critical daylength about 13-14 hours.

• If necessary, paclobutrazol (Bonzi) 20-30ppm (5 to 7.5 ml/l) spray at about 3 weeks after transplant, repeat if needed.

• Deeper planting could prevent plant loss.

• Perform best under high light and cooler (1318⁰C) starting temperature.

Lobelia Starship™ Burgundy