Feedback on New Introductions Earth Kind again:-))

Testing new daffodil cultivars across the country is difficult BUT by following “Earth Kind” protocols or developing protocols for daffodils that can be scientifically duplicated from one region to the next WOULD be possible. Again uniform testing of all sorts of plants is ALREADY being implemented nationwide, (USA) spreading to Europe….

William Carter wants to test new introductions of daffodils BUT it will take several thousands of one cultivar to do a true widespread “scientific research” type test.

With Earth Kind roses and perennials you chose a “Super Earth Kind” variety, for roses this is “Carefree Beauty”. It grows from the humid swamps of Florida and the Gulf Coastal states, to the Deserts of the southwest to the Ice Box of Northern Minnesota.

The ONLY daffodil that comes close is “Ice Follies”. OK in EVERY test garden for daffodils you would be growing FOUR blocks of Ice Follies as you also need to set up EACH daffodil test garden with at least three to four different blocks with in each larger test plot/block containing randomly mixed groupings of all of the test bulbs.

You CANNOT just plant a single bulb in a single location within a “test” plot. ALL test plots across the USA will REQUIRE a complete soil analysis done BEFORE planting of the test beds and then another complete soil test AFTER the time limit. Three to four years is a LONG test period for most of us older folks!

Minimum/maximum air temperatures are going to need to be tracked as would rainfall by the month. What about soil temperatures? What about elevation and or snow fall? High temperatures combined with high winds spells disaster for time length of open blooms. You would also need to track amount of rain during open bloom time as this affect how long individual blooms remain open. Bruised and damaged blooms “bleed out” and don’t last but a couple of days.

For roses the Farmers Branch (city) test plot has experts from the Dallas and Houston Rose societies along with local Master Gardeners and researchers go out in this massive rose bush planting and MEASURE each rose bush EVERY month during the growing season! They count EVERY BLOOM and BUD EVERY month. They have to watch for disease and or pest insects.

For daffodils in the test beds you would compare how many bulbs you planted in the fall, and NOTE how many double nosed bulbs, how many single nosed bulbs ETC. Then in the spring you would count how many buds and blooms, BUT you would also count how many different groups of leaves came up from various “noses” in each of the bulbs so that you could determine the “multiplication” of various varieties.

It would NOT be scientific to compare JUMBO four nosed bulbs of one variety you planted as compared to “landscape” non-blooming rounds of another variety!

EVERY bulb variety being tested would be compared to how “Ice Follies” bloomed and multiplied or even survived on AVERAGE in the four test plots. IF even Ice Follies dies out then you “could” check soils and herbicides or other maybe root rot or pest issues…. Again you would note ANY visible disease problems each month during the growing season.

To be fair you WOULD not EVER fertilize them at one location or alter the PH EXCEPT to correct an “abnormal” soil test that is outside of that regions “normal” readings…

The second photo shows an “Earth Kind” perennials test garden in the second full year. This test garden went through 70+ days without ANY watering and with day time highs EXCEEDING 100*F or 38*C and with NO measurable rainfall during that period.

Daffodils would have to suffer through these same types of conditions in different locations. We would need to determine what is the “Ideal” number of hours of sunshine for daffodils and make this a uniform number for ALL test plots. Full sun would mean Full sun for that elevation and or latitude for each test plot!

On Clay soils, with low water percolation tests they recommend “Expanded Shale” tilled in for ALL shallow rooted plants. For trees they have to survive in what ever the test plot has available as far as soil structure. For daffodils should we “cheat” and create raised beds with perfect drainage? Probably NOT!

MANY of the test plots are chosen because they have slight elevation changes so that flooding rains will drain away and or across the beds.

It would be “Pretty Easy” to pony up with areas that are already doing “Earth Kind” plant testing and set up uniform Daffodil tested “sponsored by” volunteers from members of the American Daffodil society or local state daffodil societies…..MUCH better than having a lot of backyard tests done.

And YES we Texans sometimes will beat a dead horse to get that extra mile out of them…..I have a “couple” of ADS volunteers who are actually interested in pushing this idea to the next level and helping flesh out the details of “Earth Kind Daffodil Test Beds” going nationwide. Keith Kridler Mt. Pleasant, Texas

1 comment for “Feedback on New Introductions Earth Kind again:-))

  1. Keith: You provide a wonderfully thorough and sobering picture of what it would take to derive meaningful results on daffodil vitality in various regions; a major undertaking indeed. Your message serves as a good reminder of why this has not occurred already. Thanks, Melissa

    At 09:28 AM 4/8/2012, Keith Kridler wrote:

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