Do your petunias come back every year?

tlbean2004

11 years ago

I just brought some "supercal petchou" petunias from lowes because they were so pretty.

Im gonna plant them tomorrow but want to know if they will pop up next year?

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rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7

11 years ago

Hybrid crosses are not natural; they are an invention of skilled and patient hybridizers. Quite often, but not always, hybrid crosses result in plants that cannot reproduce functionally. Other times, the hybrid can produce seeds, but they won't much resemble the original parent plant.

A petchoa is a laboratory cross between one type of petunia and a calibrachoa, two plants that are related but not even in the same genus (inter-generic). Never in a million years would such a plant be created 'naturally'.

Thus, there are considerable chromosomal variations. If there are simply too many differences, these plant inventions cannot make seeds, or if they do, the seeds are aborted or are empty.

I hope that your plants do really well this summer and fall. I hope that you enjoy the heck out of them and that they become the shining star in your garden or planters.

And I hope that you'll purchase more next season rather than propagate your own. Plant breeders, researchers, and hybridizers do very important work. Many multi millions of dollars are lost each year by patent breeching, and it starts with people in their backyards. It may not be important to you, but it is to the patent holder.

I think that you have enough terminology in this thread to do some research on your own. Plant breeding is a fascinating subject, but it's not a big mystery. :-)

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Comments (9)

rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
11 years ago
last modified: 11 years ago
Hybrid crosses such as the petchoa series are sterile and will not produce seeds.

Some other types of petunias reseed quite prolifically, though they may not produce identical progeny.
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
11 years ago
and it would depend on your location ...

i have never had a petunia reseed in MI ... my part anyway

ken
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dowlinggram
11 years ago
I've had petunias reseed but the flower is never like the hybrid I planted. I don't think you'd be happy with the results if they did reseed. If you want to go to the trouble you could take a series of cuttings from them and grow them inside for the winter but you'd have to have a place with good light. Really though it is not worth the trouble when you can buy new ones next year
rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
11 years ago
last modified: 11 years ago
Again, the 'SuperCal® Petchoa hybrids won't develop viable seeds, only duds, if at all.

The petchoas are also under Federal plant protection laws....asexual propagation is illegal without licensing from the patent holder. Those laws apply to everybody.

However, the vast majority of other kinds of petunias reseed freely, even though they may not come true from those seed. You can also take cuttings to your heart's content on any petunia no longer patented.

I sprung for "Blushing Pink" a few weeks ago! Hadn't planned on it; that's not what I went to the garden center for but my heart skipped a beat when I saw it. ;-)

See what I mean?
tlbean2004
Original Author
11 years ago
So you are saying that i cant take cuttings from my own plants?

Also, if the seeds are viable, im sure any petunia flower would be pretty.
rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
11 years ago
tlbean, I'm saying that it is against Federal protection laws to take cuttings of a plant that is under protection. It is also illegal to divide, graft, or any other means of asexual propagation.

Click HERE for a simple explanation of plant patent laws that will help clarify the subject but you are more than welcome to ask me anything.

If your pretty petchoa plants were able to produce seeds (remember...they are sterile), you could absolutely plant them. Plant patents are strictly for asexually produced plant discoveries or inventions.
tlbean2004
Original Author
11 years ago
Im not really worried or concerned about laws. lol

But why are they sterile?

What makes then sterile?

Is that confirmed? It is not natural to be sterile. Anyways I want to try and collect seeds just to see.

I have read that the seeds could be viable but that its a toss up with what you would be getting......
tlbean2004
Original Author
11 years ago
I guess....... I got to many plants to worry about collecting seeds. And im horrible at rooting anything. I may purchase some next year and i may not. I might change it up next year.