Keiwhihus

Petunia

Variety Description

Variety used for comparison: 'Suncopaho' (Surfinia Baby Compact White)

Summary: 'Keiwhihus' is a white flowered petunia variety which differs from the reference variety 'Suncopaho' in plant width. The plants of 'Keiwhihus' are much wider than those of 'Suncopaho'. The flowers of 'Keiwhihus' have weaker lobing of the corolla than those of the reference variety. The veins on the upper side of the corolla are more conspicuous in the flowers of 'Keiwhihus' than they are in 'Suncopaho'.

Description:

PLANT: creeping growth habit, broad to very broad width

SHOOT: thin, medium length, absent to very weak anthocyanin colouration

LEAF: short to medium, medium width, elliptic, narrow acute apex, no variegation, medium green upper side, no blistering, petiole short to medium

SEPAL: medium length, narrow, linear to oblanceolate, no anthocyanin colouration

FLOWER: medium to long pedicel, single, small diameter, funnelform
COROLLA: weak to medium lobing, white upper side, white lower side, veins yellow and weakly conspicuous, weak undulation of margin
COROLLA TUBE: short to medium length, yellow on inner side, veins weakly conspicuous
ANTHER: yellowish white before and after pollen dehiscence

Origin & Breeding History: 'Keiwhihus' originated from a crossing of unnamed breeding lines which was conducted in October 2000 at Katori-shi, Chiba-ken, Japan. In April 2001, 119 seedlings were obtained from that crossing. Those seedlings were grown in pots in a glasshouse and evaluated. In September 2002, one seedling was selected in view of its growth habit, flower size and colour. The selected plant was propagated by cuttings and grown in pots, and included in a trial from April to September 2003. As a result of an examination of botanical characteristics, it was concluded that the variety was distinct from other varieties, and was also uniform and stable. The new variety was named 'Keiwhihus'.

Tests & Trials: The trials for 'Keiwhihus' were conducted during the spring of 2007, in a polyhouse in St. Thomas, Ontario. The trials consisted of a total of 15 plants of the candidate and reference varieties. All plants were grown from rooted cuttings planted into 15cm pots on April 24, 2007. Observations and measurements were taken from 10 plants of each variety on June 5, 2007. All colour measurements were made using the 2001 Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Colour chart.

Comparison tables for 'Keiwhihus' with reference variety 'Suncopaho'

Plant width (cm)

Main colour of corolla (RHS)

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Petunia: 'Keiwhihus' (left) with reference variety 'Suncopaho' (right)

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Petunia: 'Keiwhihus' (left) with reference variety 'Suncopaho' (right)

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Petunia: 'Keiwhihus' (left) with reference variety 'Suncopaho' (right)