July 2018 Variety Info

Small Containers Get BIG COLOR with Moxie!

{Sponsored} Vegetative geraniums continue to be the most important annuals on the market. Since the introduction of Calliope Medium and Calliope Large, geraniums received much increased attention because of the brilliant and completely new colors, exceptional bi-colors and dramatically increased outdoor performance. Syngenta Flowers’ newest development is a compact interspecific geranium named Moxie!.

Moxie! is designed to be the next generation of compact geraniums. Much like Calliope Medium and Calliope Large, Moxie! is bred to have increased branching, a larger number of blooms, more color in the greenhouse and on the retail shelf, ultimately leading to quicker sell-through and increased customer satisfaction.

“Moxie! is essentially a compact version of Calliope, but we decided to give it a new name, as it’s geared towards pot tight growing of pints and quarts, and is especially suited for smaller containers, baskets and border plantings,” said Karl Trellinger, technical services manager at Syngenta.

Moxie! is not a branded program, but a value added product that allows growers to use interspecific genetics in place of zonals in core black plastic programs. Essentially, Moxie! gives growers and consumers more bang for their buck. The goal with moving interspecific geraniums into an opening price point is that it will improve the overall customer experience with geraniums as a category.

The most important variety will be Moxie! Dark Red. It has the most brilliant dark red color of any compact dark red geranium; additionally, it has dark green foliage. Trellinger predicts that it will be the huge seller. Key Moxie! breeding goals are dark green or medium green foliage with strong zone as well as very striking new bi-colors.

Moxie! geraniums can be finished in about eight weeks from callused cuttings or six weeks from rooted cuttings. Growth regulation is similar to other compact geraniums. Sprays with Cycocel are sufficient and should be applied as needed. If Florel is used, it should only be applied during young plant production.

Moxie! geraniums work especially well as border plants or in patio pots, smaller baskets, window boxes and color bowls. For large containers and landscape plantings, it is best to grow Calliope Medium or Calliope Large.

The big difference consumers will see between Moxie! and other compact geraniums is that due to the advanced branching, Moxie! geraniums have significantly more blooms, more impactful colors and keep a mounded shape throughout the summer.

On creating the best combination baskets, Trellinger suggests to stay away from more vigorous companion plants and instead focus on compact ones, like Cabrio calibrachoa, Techno Upright lobelia, Lanai Compact or Magelana verbena or Carita Cascade angelonia.

As of Summer 2018, Moxie! comes in six colors: Dark Red, Deep Rose, Deep Rose Mega Splash, Pink, Scarlet and White. Next in the line of Moxie! geraniums is an extended color range including great new bi-colors.

For more information, visit syngentaflowers-us.com/moxie-geranium

© 2018 Syngenta