‘Tainan No. 1’ Statice: An Early Flowering Limonium Cultivar

Abstract

Statice [Limonium sinuatum (L.) Mill.] is commercially grown as a cut-flower crop and used for both fresh and dry flower arrangements. Exposure to low temperatures at 11 ± 2 C at the seedling stage promotes flowering. Vernalization requirements differ among cultivars (Semeniuk and Krizek, 1973) and even in a population within the same cultivar (Shillo and Zamski, 1985). The genetic diversity is the result of floral dimorphism in the structure of pollen and stigma. The two known phenotypes, A/cob and B/papillate, exhibit self-incompatibility, whereas crosses between them are fully compatible and produce seeds (Baker, 1953, 1966). Most current statice cultivars are planted in the fall, experience natural cooling in winter, and then flower from spring to summer in the lowlands of Taiwan or other subtropical areas. However, growers have been seeking early-flowering statice cultivars that will produce cut flowers in the winter when the price is higher. Mass selection is often applied in breeding for a lower vernalization requirement to obtain earlier flowering populations (Cohen et al., 1995). In this present work, ‘Tainan No. 1’ was developed through eight continuous generations of mass selection from the parental cultivar Fortress Mix. The horticultural traits of this newly released cultivar are described subsequently.