Polaris® Purple

Flowering Type: Facultative long day plant, flowering more quickly under a long day length.

Flowering Mechanism: Typical cultivation as a flowering annual that flowers from June to late october. Higher light intensity and warmer temperatures will shorten the total crop time.

Germination: Maintain optimal conditions for seedling development, should begin on the day of sowing until root emergence. Expect the emergence of the first seedlings after 14 days.

Cover: Cover the seeds lightly with vermiculite.

Sowing method: 3-4 seeds per plug, direct sowing is also possible.
 

Media: Use a well-drained media, pH 5.8-6.2; EC 0.7-1.2
 

Temperature: Maintain 20-22 °C (68-72 °F) for the first 14 days, then lower the temperature to 18-20 °C (64-68 °F) during days and 16-18 °C (61-68 °F) during nights.
 

Moisture: Begin with the moisture level wet (4) for the first 14 days or until root emergence has occurred. Afterwards, begin to dry back the media slightly and alternate between a moisture level moist (3) and medium (2).

Humidity: 80-85 % until day 14; then reduce to 40-60 %. Provide proper ventilation and horizontal airflow to improve oxygen levels in the media.
 

Light: Light is not required for germination. Providing an additional light source after germination will improve the growth and uniformity of the seedlings. Keep light levels below 250 ft. candles (25,000 lx) before increasing it up to 400-500 ft. candles (40,000 – 50,000 lx) in the final stage of plug production.

Fertilizer: Maintain an EC of 0.7-1.2. At radicle emergence, begin feeding 100 to 150 ppm N on a regular basis by using a balanced fertilizer.
 

Plug Bulking and Flower Initiation: Optimum conditions during the vegetative stage from cotyledon expansion to flower initiation. This stage is when the seedlings root to the edge of the plug and reach the 4-6 true leaf stage where flower initiation occurs. Vernalization is not required for flower initiation.

Growth Regulators: Mixed applications of daminozide (2,500 ppm per spray) and chlormequat (300 ppm per spray) can be applied to keep the plugs uniform and compact.
 

Fungicides: Preventative applications of fungicides can be used to prevent damping-off.

Media: pH 5.8-6.2; EC 1.2-1.5
 

Light: As facultative long day plant, high light intensity supports flowering. To initiate flowering provide long day lengths above 14 hours.

Temperature: At the beginning, a temperature of 16-18 °C (61-68 °F) during the day is optimum, during the night you should lower the temperature to 14-16 °C (57-61 °F). Then, lower the temperature slowly to 10 °C (50 °F) to keep the plants compact. Verbena does not tolerate frost.
 

Moisture: Grow the plants relatively dry by alternating between moisture levels medium (2) and dry (1). Ensure that the plants never dry out completely.
 

Humidity: 40-60 % humidity is ideal. Providing good ventilation and horizontal airflow will help lower the humidity and dry back the media, providing oxygen to the roots.

Fertilizer: Relatively high fertilization levels are required. Regular applications of 200 ppm N should be used as needed to maintain a pH of 5.8-6.2. Ensure to prevent a deficiency of magnesium and iron.

Growth Regulators: Apply B-Nine (daminozide) sprays at 2,000–2,500 ppm on a regular basis to keep the plants compact. Pinching the plants promotes better branching, but delays flowering.
 

Fungicides: Under long periods of low light conditions and high humidity, fungicide applications may be necessary.
 

Common Diseases: Keep track on powdery mildew under high humidity conditions.
 

Pests: Primarily aphids and thrips.

Plug Crop Time

288 tray: 5-6 weeks

Finished Crop Time (from 288 tray)

12-15 cm (5-6") pots (1*): 6-7 weeks

17-19 cm (7-8") pots (2-3*): 7-8 weeks

*plants per pot