Trial Gardens

Plant breeders around the world are constantly working to develop new varieties and improve existing varieties.  It typically takes 3 to 5 years to develop a new variety.  Even then there's no guarantee it will be a commercial success.  That's where trial gardens come in.

A trial garden is a garden grown specifically for the purpose of testing and evaluating plants.  Universities, plant breeders, and horticultural industry companies have trial gardens, as do many botanical gardens and professional garden journalists. In the classic trials model, newly developed varieties of plants are compared with the closest similar industry standard plant throughout their life cycle — from germination and propagation through maturity, from seed to harvest. By growing new varieties side-by-side with existing ones, researchers can determine whether these new varieties are indeed better, and, if so, in what respects.

During this year's trip to Cultivate, I visited the Cultivar Trial Gardens at The Ohio State University Chadwick Arboretum & Learning Gardens.  These trials are conducted each year in order to evaluate ornamental bedding plants. The objective of these trials is to observe the performance of the plants under environmental conditions typical of central Ohio, as well as to determine local consumer preference for each plant.  Located in front of Howlett Hall, the trial gardens are always open to the public.  I recommend stopping by if you're in the Columbus area.

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