...Return to Horticulture Digest...
...Return to Issue #110 Table of Contents...

Horticulture Digest

Date Last Edited:  08/24/2001


Protea
picture
Hawaii Cooperative Extension Service


Horticulture Digest #110
EVALUATION OF PROTEA ACCESIONS FROM SOUTH AFRICA FOR TIME OF FLOWERING ON MAUI

By agreement with the Fynbos Experiment Research Unit of the Vegetable and Ornamental Plant Institute (VOPI) of the Agricultural Research Council of South Africa and with the cooperation of the USDA, in 1988 a number of Protea hybrids were imported into Hawaii for evaluation at the Maui Branch Station of the Hawaii Institute of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources (HITAHR) of the University of Hawaii. Evaluations of plant growth characteristics, adaptability to the Maui environment, yield, seasonality of bloom, and keeping quality were carried out during 1989 to 1993. This summary reports on yields and seasonality of bloom from August 1992 through July 1993.

Table 1 shows the total yields of single "average" plants during this period.

Table 1.  Yields and seasons of flowering on Maui for South African 
Protea accessions (1992-1993).

                              Percent of annual yield by month
                 __________________________________________________________
Cultivar  Yield  Aug  Sep  Oct  Nov  Dec  Jan  Feb  Mar  Apr  May  Jun  Jul

Guerna      86     8   16    5    4    1    2    1    1    2    2    5   53
Sneyd        1     0    0    0    0    0    0    0    0  100    0    0    0
Embers       1     0    0    0    0    0    0    0    0  100    0    0    0
Susara       1     0    0    0    0    0    0    0    0  100    0    0    0
Cardinal    31   9.6    0    0    0    0   13  9.6   13   13   16  9.6   16

Sylvia      66     3    2    6    2    5   14    9   12    9    9    9   20
Andrea       5    40    0    0    0    0   60    0    0    0    0    0    0
Brenda     210     0    0    1   12   80    7    0    0    0    0    0    0
Red Baron   86     4    1   12   14   17    7   19   23    0    3    0    0
Pink Satin   0     0    0    0    0    0    0    0    0    0    0    0    0

Lady Di      9     0    0    0    0   22   56   11   11    0    0    0    0
Ivy          1     0    0    0  100    0    0    0    0    0    0    0    0
Carnival    14    36   14   14    0    0    0    0    0    0    7    7   22
Annette     37     0    0    0    0   37   27   14   11    5    3    3    0
Breggie     25     0    0    8   24   40   12    0   16    0    0    0    0

Elsie       15     0    0    0    0   40   27   20   13    0    0    0    0
Noel        14     0   43   50    0    0    0    0    7    0    0    0    0
Riette       0     0    0    0    0    0    0    0    0    0    0    0    0
Regina      23     0    0   17   30    9    0    0    0    0    0   44    0
Mashuda #1   5     0    0   60   40    0    0    0    0    0    0    0    0

Mashuda #3  27     0    0    0    4   62   15   11    4    4    0    0    0
Heibrech    45    11   20   22    7    2   22    7    2    0    2    5    0
Of interest is the distribution of blooms during this one year period, expressed as a percent of the annual total for each month (Table 1). Some cultivars have a longer season of bloom than others. Among the seasonal bloomers, it is possible to select cultivars to cover a large portion of the year, although spring and summer months are not well represented.

Descriptions of some VOPI cultivars as provided by South Africa follow, except the seasons of bloom are reported for Maui conditions.

Top of Page



Protea repens types

'Guerna' was selected from the Kouga variant of P. repens. Flower color: deep red. Peak flowering time: July-September, but scattered flowers were cut throughout the year.

'Sneyd' has the medium-sized, deep red flower of the Alicedale variants. It has high yield and good stem length. On Maui, it produced one flower during April, but South Africa reports about a 6-week bloom period.

'Embers' has a medium-sized flower, each bract a deep red at the tip and creamy-white basally. It has a shiny, smooth texture, and flowers after 'Sneyd' in South Africa, but concurrently with 'Sneyd' in April on Maui. South Africa recommends it for garden use.

Top of Page



Protea magnifica types

'Susara' is a hybrid between P. magnifica and P. susannae. It produces small to medium flowers with an unusual shape, having soft salmon-pink and light red shades. It produces a high yield on exceptionally long stems. Its Maui flowering period was April, but South Africa reports a 6- to 8-week bloom. It may tolerate a slightly alkaline soil.

Top of Page



Protea eximia types

'Cardinal' is an outstanding P. eximia type. It has a medium-sized deep pink-red flower with a satin sheen; long, straight stems; and high yield. Flowering time is January to May on Maui.

'Sylvia' has a medium-sized, deep pink-red, P. eximia type flower. It has a high yield and flowers from January to mid-summer on Maui.

Top of Page


except the seasons of


Protea compacta types

'Andrea' is a hybrid between P. compacta and P. magnifica. It produces a large, striking, medium pink-red flower with numerous series of bracts. It has high production; long, straight stems; and flowers from mid-winter to spring in South Africa but produced three flowers in January during its year of evaluation on Maui.

'Brenda' has medium-sized, deep-pink-red flowers with a shiny smooth texture. It has a high yield and flowers from November to January on Maui.

'Red Baron' is a P. obtusifolia X P. compacta hybrid with a small- to medium-sized flower with dense brilliant, deep red bracts lined with short, white hairs. It has a high yield and flowers from October through March.

Top of Page



Protea longifolia type

'Satin Pink' is a small, multi-pastel shaded flower with soft pink-red and cream shades. It has a high yield but failed to flower on Maui in the year of evaluation. In South Africa, it has a 3-month season in the winter.

Top of Page



Protea lacticolor type

'Ivy' has high yields; long, straight stems; and small foliage. It is harvested in the elongated bud stage (candle) in South Africa. Bracts pinkish. Not a VOPI selection, but a Protea Heights exclusive. A novelty. Too few flowers to define a season in Hawaii, but its season should be late summer to fall.


R.A. Criley, criley@hawaii.edu
Department of Horticulture, CTAHR
University of Hawaii at Manoa

P.E. Parvin, and P. Shingaki, ta_maui1@avax.ctahr.hawaii. edu
HITAHR--Maui Branch Station


Top of Page

Return to Hort Digest #110 Table of Contents

Return to Horticulture Digest Home Page



Home | Academics | Faculty and Staff | Links | News | Research and Extension | Students | Contact Us