Over the Garden Fence: A lesson on the colorful coleus
It is spring. As the colors of spring multiply and cheer, we step into plant arenas, garden centers.
About three weeks ago, clad in a colorful coleus shirt, Chris Baker of Baker's Acres stepped up to the podium at the Licking County Master Gardeners' event and shared. His colorful coleus print shirt was an ice-breaker, and the power-packed presentation that followed certainly portrayed Chris as a man who could "Live Life in Full Bloom" — the theme of the conference.
At his greenhouses coleus have been bred, oodles of them. On that day, he traced the history from Java and went on to talk about Burpee in the 1890s when there was a 20-year span of high sales of coleus. This plant has square stems, which puts it into the mint family. The original coleus species were known as Coleus blumii for Carl Ludwig Blume.
These plants put pizzazz into shady areas and sunny spots. They are the bling in potted planters.
Coleus are easily propagated by taking cuttings and placing them into a growing medium. Even placing them into water brings on roots easily. These are considered clones of the original plant.
Those of us who grow them know of the vitality. We have been taught to remove by pinching out the spike bloom that forms at the top to make the foliage even more productive. This is where the seeds are of course. The bloom is another way of reproducing. Chris even alluded to a series called the "Crack Series" — a reference to all of the seedlings that take off in the cracks of the walkways in the greenhouse.
As Chris works with pollination to reproduce new coleus cultivars, he told us that "sports" show up, which means the plant resembles neither parent, taking on a life of its own with markings and color. It did not seem to be a downside, especially when it came to naming the sport variety. And the plant family gene pool is wide.
When the pictures of coleus accompanied with their names began, my pen could not scribble fast enough. Among his first hybrids were "Dappled Apple," "Holy Guacamole," "Blond Bombshell" and "Squiggy." There were ones like "Duke of Swirl," "Carm's Charm," "Grape Expectations" and "Big Bob." Last year at the Ohio State Fair, when I judged potted plants, Big Bob was there and huge, strongly dark-veined "Fishnet Stockings" and "Morning After" with crumpled surface and dark edges were popular.
Chris did share some of his favorite sports such as "Gnash Rambler," "Zesty Zucchini," "Doctor Wu" and "Tooth or Consequences." He pointed out the wide gene pool produces so many that naming becomes a real effort. This he illustrated with pictures of many unnamed varieties. He shared newer toothed and frilled edges, unusual color contrasting plants, including '"Evening in Chernobyl" — "a wacko dark one," he said.
There are two more pages of named coleus in my notes, but my point here is that, as you shop, watch for the newer coleus while hunting your favorites. One of mine is "Henna."
There was no question about the level of his commitment to coleus. This work comes with surprises, bringing joy and fulfillment. And Chris noted that 90% of coleus plants grow and survive well.
Get growing!
Mary Lee Minor is a member of the Earth, Wind and Flowers Garden Club, an accredited master gardener, a flower show judge for the Ohio Association of Garden Clubs and a former sixth grade teacher.
This article originally appeared on Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum: The coleus plant offers many options
