Plants – Commercial herbaceous vegetable or herb plant
Plant Patent
2002-04-02
2004-07-20
Bell, Kent (Department: 1661)
Plants
Commercial herbaceous vegetable or herb plant
Plant Patent
active
PP015028
ABSTRACT:
Latin name of the genus and species: The Latin name of the novel, ornamental plant variety disclosed herein is
Ipomoea batatas
(L.) Lam.
Variety denomination: The inventive cultivar of
Ipomoea batatas
disclosed herein has been given the variety denomination ‘Sweet Caroline Light Green’.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Ipomoea species are members of the morning glory family Convolvulaceae.
Ipomoea batatas,
commonly referred to as the white or yellow sweetpotato and the orange yam, are typically fast growing vines with palmately-lobed leaves. These ornamental species produce storage roots identical in appearance to the common sweet potato, but not as palatable. Late in the growing season, tubular flowers appear which are similar to morning glories, but plantings are dominated by the appearance of the foliage. The plants are highly desirable due to their ability to grow under varied stress conditions, cover a large space, and last the entire growing season. Moreover, these plants have few insect or disease problems.
Existing varieties of
Ipomoea batatas
are popular for landscaping applications. There are currently six common types of ornamental sweetpotatoes that are being cultivated primarily for annual, summer vines. These six cultivars are ‘Blackie’ (unpatented), having dark purple-black foliage, lavender flowers, and edible storage roots; ‘Terrace Lime’ (unpatented) and ‘Margarita’ (unpatented; also known as ‘Sulfur’), which have large brilliant chartreuse leaves and lavender blooms; ‘Black Heart’ (unpatented; also known as ‘Ace of Spades’), having heart-shaped leaves with burgundy purple color; ‘Tricolor’ (unpatented; also known as ‘Pink Frost’), is a variegated plant which has pale green, white, and pink-margined leaves; and ‘Lady Fingers’ (unpatented), which has medium green, dainty leaves divided into long, thin, fingerlike lobes which are complemented by burgundy stems and veins.
Ipomoea batatas
‘Margarita’ has recently been released in the United States, and has become widely used as a landscape annual. It is not suitable for mixed containers, as this variety exhibits a very vigorous growth and tends to out-compete other species. Another popular variety is ‘Blackie’, a vigorous purple-leaved clone which is also unsuited to containerized gardens. See Armitage. A. M. and J. M. Garner, 2001.
Ipomoea batatas
‘Margarita’.
HortScience
36:178.
Therefore, to meet the current horticultural demand, it is desirable to produce new, more robust cultivars of ornamental sweetpotato with attractive foliage colors, leaf shapes, and plant architectures. In addition, it would be advantageous to develop cultivars of ornamental sweetpotato exhibiting a more compact growth, and which do not out-compete other species in mixed containers.
The present invention comprises a new and distinct variety of
Ipomoea batatas,
which has been named ‘Sweet Caroline Light Green’. The variety is suitable for use as a landscape or containerized plant.
Lineage
The
Ipomoea batatas
‘Sweet Caroline Light Green’ cultivar originated from a conventional cross between
Ipomoea batatas
cultivars NC15-2ORN (the female parent; not patented) and NC136-4ORN (the male parent; not patented) conducted in the Winter of 1999-2000 at the Horticultural Greenhouses located at North Carolina State University, Raleigh, N.C. NC15-2ORN resulted from a cross between ‘Sulfur’ and a ‘P5’ (origin unknown) by ‘Sulfur’ cross. NC136-4ORN resulted from a cross between ‘Sulfur’ and a ‘Sulfur’ by ‘Blackie’ cross. Seeds from this cross were planted in the Horticultural Greenhouses in Spring 2000. The single, individual plant now known as
Ipomoea batatas
‘Sweet Caroline Light Green’ was selected in July 2000 because of its combination of exceptional features, and has been propagated asexually since that time.
Asexual Reproduction
Since its selection,
Ipomoea batatas
‘Sweet Caroline Light Green’ has been asexually reproduced at the Horticultural Greenhouses located at North Carolina State University, Raleigh, N.C. predominantly by vegetative propagation of vine cuttings. Asexual propagation of the new cultivar by cuttings at the location previously stated has shown that the unique features of this new Ornamental Sweetpotato are stable and the plant reproduces true to type in successive generations of asexual propagation.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present
Ipomoea batatas
‘Sweet Caroline Light Green’ ornamental plant is a moderately-compact, densely-mounding cultivar producing many, short shoots and having dense foliage. This cultivar is distinguishable from other cultivars known to the inventors by its bright chartreuse green leaves that have 3-5 moderate to deep-lobes. The plant has a good vigor, but is less vigorous than
Ipomoea batatas
‘Margarita’ and ‘Blackie’ and, unlike these cultivars, ‘Sweet Caroline Light Green’ may be grown in containers with other species. ‘Sweet Caroline Light Green’ flowers under short day conditions.
REFERENCES:
Armitage, Allan M. and James M. Garner, “Ipomoea batatas‘Margarita,’”HortScience: 36(1) 178 (Feb. 2001).
Armitage, Allan M., “Sweet Potato,”Greenhouse Grower: 103-104 (Mar. 1999).
Baggett, “Sweet potato vines are morning glory cousins,”Fine Gardening: 84 (Apr. 2002).
Bodger Seeds, Ltd., “2001 Pack Trials” invitation, Apr. 3-12, 2001.
Bodger Seeds, Ltd., “2001 Pack Trials” brochure, p. 13, Apr. 3-12, 2001.
Bodger Botanicals catalog, Sep./Oct.: p. 6 (2001).
North Carolina State University, “New Sweet Potatoes Add Ornamental Flavor,”Extension's Successful Garden: p. 1 (Mar. 2002).
Online catalog selling Ipomea cultivars: www.glasshouseworks.com/trop-ij.html p. 4, date of access: Aug. 15, 2002.
Online catalog selling Ipomea cultivars: www.sunnyfield.com/varietylists/companionplants.html p. 5, date of access: Aug. 15, 2002.
Online catalog selling Ipomea cultivars: www.papgenos.com/plantdb/plants.asp?catid=15 pp. 1-4, date of access: Aug. 15, 2002.
“Ornamental Sweet Potatoes,” www.Inla.org/ornpotato.html pp. 1-2, updated Jun. 4, 2000, date of access: Aug. 15, 2002.
“Bodger Seeds/Botanicals,”Greenhouse Grower(Jun. 2001).
Pecota Kenneth
Pierce Cynthia
Yencho G. Craig
Bell Kent
Myers Bigel Sibley & Sajovec P.A.
North Carolina State University
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