Garden Guru: Scarlet goes wild in hot new petunia

Norman Winter
·3 min read
Supertunia Mini Vista Scarlet petunia makes its debut in 2023. Here it is dazzling in Mississippi State University’s Trial Garden at the Truck Crops Branch Experiment Station in Crystal Springs Mississippi.
Supertunia Mini Vista Scarlet petunia makes its debut in 2023. Here it is dazzling in Mississippi State University’s Trial Garden at the Truck Crops Branch Experiment Station in Crystal Springs Mississippi.

Norman Winter is a horticulturist. He is a former director of the Coastal Georgia Botanical Gardens. Follow him on Facebook at Norman Winter “The Garden Guy.” See more columns by Norman at SavannahNow.com/lifestyle/home-garden/.

Supertunia Mini Vista Scarlet petunia will quickly become the one in which all other red petunias will be compared. Though it is making its debut in 2023 the tsunami created from the beauty shown in 2022 trials is already causing market jitters. If there will be enough next spring, we can only hope.

Last February, I wrote about how the Supertunia Mini Vista petunias were racking up awards. Though I am touting Supertunia Mini Vista Scarlet largely based on my trials, know that the University of Georgia just recognized Supertunia Mini Vista Midnight which will also debut in 2023, with a Plants of Distinction for July - which was nothing short of torrid for the heat.

Then one of the most talked about plants at Young’s Plant Farm Annual Garden Tour in June was the new Supertunia Mini Vista Yellow. Holy wow what a year 2023 is shaping up to be.

At Mississippi State University’s Truck Crops Branch Experiment Station in Crystal Springs, Mississippi, Supertunia Mini Vista Scarlet was nothing short of dazzling, a real attention grabber. Of course, this is what we have all longed for in a red petunia, and this one, promises to be like none other.

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The Garden Guy designed this container using Supertunia Mini Vista Scarlet petunia, Superbells Grape Punch calibrachoa, White Knight lobularia or sweet alyssum and Goldilocks creeping Jenny.
The Garden Guy designed this container using Supertunia Mini Vista Scarlet petunia, Superbells Grape Punch calibrachoa, White Knight lobularia or sweet alyssum and Goldilocks creeping Jenny.

If you haven’t tried the Mini Vista series yet you will be delighted with their compact nature which is 12-inches tall with a 24-inch spread. I’ve seen what seems like a million photos this summer from Supertunia Vista Bubblegum and the new Supertunia Vista Jazzberry. These are incredible award-winning petunias, the big boys, but the Mini Vistas are more refined or behaved, allowing you to really use them in combinations and designs.

Like all Supertunias, no matter the category, they will need plenty of sunlight to really perform. The soil should be moist, well-drained and never boggy. When you think about a long growing season, feeding should be part of your regimen, especially so, for those in containers where the intense heat dictates a daily water application.

I have gotten on a cycle of using a water-soluble mix every other week. Lastly, and this will prove hard for many, at some point in late summer, when they seem less productive, maybe leggy or open, cut them back with a sharp pair of scissors or pruning shears. You will be rewarded with new growth and blooms to carry you through fall.

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In this container Supertunia Mini Vista Scarlet was partnered in an analogous color scheme or colors next to each other on a color wheel by combining with Superbells Dreamsicle calibrachoa, White Knight sweet alyssum and Goldilocks creeping Jenny.
In this container Supertunia Mini Vista Scarlet was partnered in an analogous color scheme or colors next to each other on a color wheel by combining with Superbells Dreamsicle calibrachoa, White Knight sweet alyssum and Goldilocks creeping Jenny.

All of my Supertunia Mini Vista Scarlet petunias were used in various container combinations using my own recipes. This color of bright scarlet red is so fun to use, it just creates happiness. In one container, I partnered it with Superbells Grape Punch calibrachoa, White Knight lobularia and Goldiliocks creeping Jenny. You simply can’t take your eyes off this petunia.

In a slight deviation from that recipe, I used Superbells Dreamsicle calibrachoa to give an analogous flair with the Supertunia Mini Vista Scarlet, while still using White Knight Sweet alyssum and Goldilocks creeping Jenny. By analogous, I am referencing two colors, in this case, scarlet and orange, which are next to each other on the color wheel.

This container features triadic harmony or three colors equal distance apart on the color wheel. The plants are Supertunia Mini Vista Scarlet petunia, Superbena Royale Chambray verbena and Superbells Yellow calibrachoa.
This container features triadic harmony or three colors equal distance apart on the color wheel. The plants are Supertunia Mini Vista Scarlet petunia, Superbena Royale Chambray verbena and Superbells Yellow calibrachoa.

Lastly, is the container where I created an eye-catching triadic harmony of color by partnering Supertunia Mini Vista Scarlet petunia with Superbena Royale Chambray verbena and Superbells Yellow calibrachoa. Triadic harmony is created by picking out three colors equidistant on the color wheel. My plants were young when planted and I don’t think I realized what they would look like at maturity, a real "wowzer."

By all means, don’t let color schemes or recipes throw you. I promise, if you give Supertunia Mini Vista Scarlet a try you will feel like a pro designer. Hey, try all three new colors - scarlet, yellow and midnight - and you will create your own triadic harmony recipe.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Supertunia Mini Vista Scarlet petunia is the flower of 2023