Azalea plant named ‘Bliss’

Details Azalea plant named ‘Bliss’ Azalea plant named ‘Bliss’

2001-06-25

2003-03-04

Bell, Kent L. (Department: 1661)

Plants

Shrub or vine

Azalea or rhododendron

Plant Patent

active

PP013613

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present Invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Azalea, botanically known as
Rhododendron hybrida,
an evergreen greenhouse-forcing type Azalea, and hereinafter referred to by the name ‘Bliss’.
The new Azalea is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventors in Salinas, Calif. and Alva, Fla. The objective of the breeding program is to create new Azalea varieties having uniform plant habit, profuse and uniform flowering, dark green foliage, good foliage retention during the cooling and forcing periods, resistance to Cylindrocladium, and excellent postproduction longevity.
The new Azalea originated from a cross made by the Inventors in December, 1991, in Salinas, Calif., of the cultivar ‘Cachet’, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 6,412, as the female, or seed, parent with the cultivar ‘Alaska’, not patented, as the male, or pollen, parent. The new Azalea was discovered and selected by the Inventors as a flowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross in a controlled environment in Alva, Fla., in July, 1994. The selection of this plant was based on its single flower form, intense pink flower color, very large flower size, uniform flowering response, very good foliage retention, and excellent postproduction longevity.
Asexual reproduction of the new Azalea by terminal cuttings taken in a controlled environment in Alva, Fla. since April, 1995, has shown that the unique features of this new Azalea are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The new Azalea has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in environment such as temperature, daylength, light intensity, relative humidity, fertilizer rate and type, and/or water status without, however, any variance in genotype.
The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of ‘Bliss’. These characteristics in combination distinguish ‘Bliss’ as a new and distinct cultivar:
1. Very dark green leaves that do not abscise during the cooling and forcing periods.
2. Large plants with dense and outwardly spreading plant habit; vigorous growth habit.
3. Very freely branching habit; usually about 5 lateral branches develop after pinching.
4. Rapid flowering response; plants begin flowering about 23 days after cooling treatment.
5. Numerous, large and showy intense pink-colored flowers.
6. Single flower form.
7. Excellent postproduction longevity with plants maintaining good flower substance for about four weeks in an interior environment.
8. Very low incidence of infection with Cylindrocladium in inoculated trials.
Plants of the new Azalea differ from plants of the female parent, the cultivar ‘Cachet’, in the following characteristics:
1. Plants of the new Azalea are more outwardly spreading and not as compact as plants of the cultivar ‘Cachet’.
2. Plants of the new Azalea have single flowers whereas plants of the cultivar ‘Cachet’ have double flowers.
3. Plants of the new Azalea have intense pink-colored flowers whereas plants of the cultivar ‘Cachet’ have fuchsia pink-colored flowers.
4. Plants of the new Azalea are more resistant to Cylindrocladium infection than plants of the cultivar ‘Cachet’.
Plants of the new Azalea differ from plants of the male parent, the cultivar ‘Alaska’, in the following characteristics:
1. Plants of the new Azalea have single flowers whereas plants of the cultivar ‘Alaska’ have single to semi-double flowers.
2. Plants of the new Azalea have intense pink-colored flowers whereas plants of the cultivar ‘Alaska’ have white-colored flowers.
3. Plants of the new Azalea flower about 12 days earlier than plants of the cultivar ‘Alaska’.
4. Plants of the new Azalea have much longer postproduction longevity than plants of the cultivar ‘Alaska’.
Plants of the new Azalea can be compared to the plants of the cultivar ‘YB 871 Remembrance’, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 9,132. However, in side-by-side comparisons conducted in Alva, Fla., plants of the new Azalea differed from plants of the cultivar ‘YB 871 Remembrance’ in the following characteristics:
1. Plants of the new Azalea are more vigorous, more outwardly spreading and not as compact as plants of the cultivar ‘YB 871 Remembrance’.
2. Plants of the new Azalea have larger leaves than plants of the cultivar ‘YB 871 Remembrance’.
3. Plants of the new Azalea have single flowers whereas plants of the cultivar ‘YB 871 Remembrance’ have semi-double flowers.
4. Plants of the new Azale have intense pink-colored flowers whereas plants of the cultivar ‘YB 871 Remembrance’ have dark pink-colored flowers.
5. Plants of the new Azalea have much longer postproduction longevity than plants of the cultivar ‘YB 871 Remembrance’.
6. Plants of the new Azalea are more resistant to Cylindrocladium than plants of the cultivar ‘YB 871 Remembrance’.
Plants of the new Azalea can be compared to the plants of the cultivar ‘Party Favor’, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 10,050. However, in side-by-side comparisons conducted in Alva, Fla., plants of the new Azalea differed from plants of the cultivar ‘Party Favor’ in the following characteristics:
1. Plants of the new Azalea have larger flowers than plants of the cultivar ‘Party Favor’.
2. Plants of the new Azalea have single flowers whereas plants of the cultivar ‘Party Favor’ have semi-double flowers.
3. Plants of the new Azalea have intense pink-colored flowers whereas plants of the cultivar ‘Party Favor’ have dark pink-colored flowers.

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