 |
| EIGC Booth - Primulina will be a common houseplant ! |
History by definition is everything
that has happened previously. The significance
of events is what people remember.
Ancient history is mostly guesswork and only comes to life if some
enterprising author weaves a story from fuzzy facts.
Computers with infinite storage have
changed that. Now, every event will be
recorded forever. The only thing left
is: ‘Does it matter?’ and ‘Does anybody
care?’
On July 26, 2016, Ellen Wells
reported on Asian Violets (Primulina) as a possible new houseplant. The original story in Tropical Topics is
copied here:
Gary’s
“Next Big Thing”
I keep asking about what folks
think will be the “next big thing,” the next tillandsia or succulent trend.
“Asian violets,” says Gary Hunter of Gary’s Specialty Plants in Drumore, Pennsylvania.
Gary is in the miniature plant business and is a regional grower of small
houseplants. His biggest business with small plants is through Longwood
Gardens’ plant shop, where they sell hundreds of mini plants each week, all
year long.
Gary’s latest project is
working with these Asian violets, the common name for Primulina, a genus in the
Gesneriad family. “Primulina
are like African violets, but better,” writes Gary. “Primulina species and
hybrids have been in the hobby world for years but have never been grown
commercially.” The reason, he continues, is that these plants take up to a year
to flower, eliminating them as a commercially viable flowering plant. “What I
was missing was that they could be sold as a small, variegated foliage plant in
6.5-cm pots and fit with our assortment.”
That's Primulina Loki pictured
above. Precious! Gary likes these Asian violets so much that he believes
they’ll become as popular as African violets, if not more so. Not convinced?
Check them out yourself at next week’s Eastern
IGC Show at the Valley Forge Casino Resort outside of Philadelphia, where Gary
will have a booth. Or check out Gary’s BLOG,
which is full of great information.
The significance is that this is the first known reference to
Primulina in a commercial horticultural trade magazine.
The commercial barrier has been broken and has been recorded
here as a historic event. The facts are
preserved.
Like!
ReplyDelete