The hairy green tennis ball had me stumped
IN THE GARDEN
I like to keep abreast of new plant introductions, even though they arrive at a startling speed and often vanish just as quickly if the market doesn’t accept them.
New hybrids are produced on a large scale from cuttings, or mass produced through tissue culture. That process is known as micropropagation, or cloning. This is not genetic engineering. There are no GMO flowering plants, and the crop plants that have been created are not available to home gardeners, so don’t be concerned about if a label doesn’t say GMO free.
Meanwhile, I was recently introduced, literally, to an unusual plant I hadn’t seen before. It happened when I dropped in to the Uptown Gallery in Waterloo Square for the opening reception of their latest art show. I wasn’t expecting to see live flowers, but a fellow gardener there, Joanne Makulski, drew my attention to an odd-looking flower in a vase. It looked like a hairy, green tennis ball. Joanne asked if I knew the name. I was stumped — always embarrassing for someone who’s often mistakenly perceived as being a plant know-it-all. I confessed I didn’t know the name or anything about it.
On returning home (after viewing some great artwork, by the way), I searched online to find out more about this strange plant and, to my surprise, discovered it to be a variety of Dianthus. It didn’t look anything like any Dianthus I’d ever grown. It was called Green Ball Dianthus, a hybrid form of Dianthus barbatus, a.k.a. Sweet William. Now that’s one for my want list, I thought, except it might not appear in my garden for a while. Although it was new to me, I’m sure the flowers must be familiar to countless brides and florists because it was first developed for the cut-flower market.
I searched and searched online for plants, even seeds, and I checked all the big-name plant producers like Proven Winners, to no avail. I even read of rogue gardeners who’d tried without success to grow the plant from cuttings — so now you know why that guy was trying to catch the flying bridal bouquet.
The flowers have been around since 2011 when they were introduced as Green Trick ‘Temarisou,’ a registered brand from the Hilverda Group in the Netherlands, who at the time licensed it only for production by commercial cut-flower growers.
As for the true origin, one source mentioned it was a plant developed by the multinational Suntory group of Japan, and then the trail went cold. Since Green Ball looks nothing like the familiar Dianthus, I suspect it could have appeared as a natural mutation or as an induced mutation, enhanced by further breeding. The botanical term for the unusual flower shape is called an umbel, which consists of short, tightly packed flower stalks that stem from a central stalk like the ribs of an umbrella.
That was about as much as I could discover, until I found reports of actual plants being sold in California, and in the U.K., but nothing in Canada. It is heading north now
— I learned the Ball Seed company is marketing it, though not directly to gardeners. They have it available as rooted plugs through Ball Tagawa Growers in California. If it hasn’t already made it across the border, maybe it’s on its way.
Of course, this is where I hear from a reader that Bud’s Shrub and Grub has been selling it for ages. If so, I’d love to know, or you could toss me a bouquet. And in case you’re wondering, no flowers left the Uptown Gallery with me.
To chat with local gardeners, share tips, pics, or discuss green tennis balls, see Grand Gardeners on Facebook at www.facebook.com/groups/Grandgardeners/.
David Hobson gardens in Waterloo and is happy to answer garden questions, preferably by email: garden@gto.net. Reach him by mail c/o Etcetera, The Record, 160 King St. E. Kitchener, Ont. N2G 4E5