Your source for the highest quality young plant liners. Featuring 130 new varieties, MYP exclusives, trialed-and-true favorites, and solutions for growers.
& Trial Garden RESULTS DATA
Table OF Contents
2026 MYP TRIAL GARDEN RESULTS 4 TOP VISITOR FAVORITES 6 TOP GARDEN PERFORMERS 11 BEST OF THE BEST 16 TOP COMBINATIONS 22 AAS TRIAL AREA STANDOUTS 28
YOU ASKED, WE TRIALED: 2026 FEATURE TRIALS 29 TOP KERLEY BY KIENTZLER 34
MYP EMPLOYEE COMBO WINNER 35 VISITOR & EVENT HIGHLIGHTS 36
Mast Young Plants’ trial garden is located in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The 2026 summer trials featured 2000 varieties, 500+ uniquely handcrafted hanging baskets and planters, 200+ new items displayed in both sun and shade, the All-American Selection trial grounds, and our 2026 trials: Growth Regulator and Kerley Genetics by Kientzler.
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2026 MYP Trial Garden Results
Top 10 Visitor Favorites 1. Heliopsis ‘Sole d’Amore’ - Kientzler 2. Coleus TerraScape Pink Ribbons - Kientzler 3. Lantana Shamrock™ Cherry Sunrise - Ball FloraPlant 4. Lavender Stochys Primavera - Darwin Perennials 5. Begonia Hybrid Wookie Pink Splash - Benary 6. Felicia Forever Blue - Kientzler 7. Banana Musa Ever Red - Collection 8. Colocasia Royal Hawaiian™ Tropical Paradise Collection 9. Nemesia Nesia™ Arctic Blue - Danziger 10. Gaillardia Spintop® Mango - Dümmen Orange Top Performers Based On Staff Evaluation 3. Dahlia City Lights™ Compact Sunny Yellow - Selecta 4. Dipladenia Madinia® Hot Pink - Syngenta Flowers 5. Echinacea SunMagic® Hot Pink - Bull Plant Genetics 6. Geranium Moonlight™ Orange - Selecta 7. Helianthus Sunbelievable™ Brown Eyed Girl Compact Danziger 8. Muehlenbeckia axillaris Creeping Wire Vine Golden Girl Kientzler 9. Pentas Phenom™ Blue - Green Fuse® Botanicals 10. Succulent Combo Tight and Tidy® Mix - Chris Hansen Best Of The Best Best Heat-Tolerant Annual: Cuphea Cubano™ Presidente - Danziger Best Heat-Tolerant Perennial: Heliopsis ‘Sole d’Amore’ - Kientzler Best Pollinator-Friendly Annuals: Petunia Dekko™ Maxx™ Pink - Syngenta Flowers Helianthus Sunfinity® Double Yellow Syngenta Flowers Celosia Intenz™ Dark Purple - Ball Ingenuity Ageratum Monarch Magic - Ball FloraPlant Rudbeckia Sunbeckia® Sarah - Collection Best Pollinator-Friendly Perennials: Coreopsis Uptick Yellow and Red Darwin Perennials Gaillardia Spintop® Mango - Dümmen Orange Salvia nemerosa May Night - Collection Best Overall Performance Annual: Begonia Fragrant Falls® Peach - Beekenkamp Best Overall Performance Perennial: Rudbeckia Rising Sun® Chestnut Gold Green Fuse® Botanicals Best Overall Cut Flower: Lisianthus Voyage 2 Blue 2 - Collection (NEW category) Best Foliage: Tradescantia Pink Paradise - Collection 1. Canna CannaSun™ Alisa - Green Works 2. Cordyline Torbay Dazzler - Collection
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Top 10 Visitor Favorites
The people have spoken! Visitors vote for their favorite new varieties and we tally their votes all summer long. Introducing our visitors’ top 10 new varieties!
1. Heliopsis ‘Sole d’Amore’ Kientzler
2. Coleus TerraScape Pink Ribbons Kientzler
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3. Lantana Shamrock™ Cherry Sunrise Ball FloraPlant
4. Lavender Stochys Primavera Darwin Perennials
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5. Begonia Hybrid Wookie Pink Splash Benary
6. Felicia Forever Blue Kientzler
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Variety Name Breeder 7. Banana Musa Ever Red Collection
Variety Name Breeder 8. Colocasia Royal Hawaiian™ Tropical Paradise Collection
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9. Nemesia Nesia™ Arctic Blue Danziger
10. Gaillardia Spintop® Mango Dümmen Orange
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Top Performers BASED ON STAFF EVALUATION
1. Canna CannaSun™ Alisa Green Works
2. Cordyline Torbay Dazzler Collection
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3. Dahlia City Lights™ Compact Sunny Yellow Selecta
4. Dipladenia Madinia® Hot Pink Syngenta Flowers
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Variety Name Breeder 5. Echinacea SunMagic® Hot Pink Bull Plant Genetics
Variety Name Breeder 6. Geranium Zonal Moonlight™ Orange Selecta
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7. Helianthus Sunbelievable™ Brown Eyed Girl Compact Danziger
8. Muehlenbeckia axillaris Creeping Wire Vine Golden Girl Kientzler
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Variety Name Breeder 9. Pentas Phenom™ Blue Green Fuse® Botanicals
Variety Name Breeder
10. Succulent Combo Tight and Tidy® Mix Chris Hansen
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Best of the Best
Best Heat Tolerant Annual Cuphea Cubano™ Presidente Danziger
Best Heat Tolerant Perennial Heliopsis ‘Sole d’Amore’ Kientzler
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Best Pollinator Friendly Annuals Petunia Dekko™ Maxx™ Pink Syngenta Flowers
Best Pollinator Friendly Annuals Helianthus Sunfinity® Double Yellow Syngenta Flowers
Best Pollinator Friendly Annuals Celosia Intenz™ Dark Purple Ball Ingenuity
Best Pollinator Friendly Annuals Ageratum Monarch Magic Ball FloraPlant
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Best Pollinator Friendly Annuals Rudbeckia Sunbeckia® Sarah Collection
Best Pollinator Friendly Perennials Gaillardia Spintop® Mango Dümmen Orange
Best Pollinator Friendly Perennials Coreopsis Uptick Yellow and Red Darwin Perennials
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Best Pollinator Friendly Perennials Salvia nemerosa May Night Collection
Best Overall Cut Flower Lisianthus Voyage 2 Blue 2 Collection
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Best Overall Performance Annual Begonia Fragrant Falls® Peach Beekenkamp
Best Overall Performance Perennial Rudbeckia Rising Sun™ Chestnut Gold Green Fuse® Botanicals
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Best Foliage (NEW category) Tradescantia Pink Paradise Collection
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Top Combinations
Hanging Basket #64 Begonia Beauvilia® Bright Pink Beekenkamp
Begonia Hybrid Hula™ Pink - Collection Tradescantia Pink Paradise - Collection
Hanging Basket #87
Angelonia AngelMist® Spreading Dark Purple - Ball FloraPlant Lantana Lucky™ Pink - Ball FloraPlant Scaevola Pink Brillance - Ball FloraPlant
Hanging Basket #110 Petunia Nimbus Pink - Westflowers Jamesbrittenia Jammin’ Pink - Kientzler Calibrachoa Eyeconic™ Cherry Blossom Imp Danziger
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Hanging Basket #157 Petchoa SuperCal® Premium Yellow Sun Sakata Lantana Bandolero™ Pineapple Syngenta Flowers Lobelia Magadi™ Dark Blue - Selecta
Hanging Basket #163 Petunia Surprise® Fire Engine Red Dümmen Orange Calibrachoa Double MiniFamous® Neo Deep Yellow 27 - Selecta Nemesia Nesia™ Inca - Danziger
Deco Pot #105 Lantana Bandana® White - Syngenta Flowers Petunia Capella® Fuchsia Lace - Danziger Gomphrena Pinball™ Purple - Sakata Jamesbrittenia Jammin’ Pink - Kientzler
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Deco Pot #121 Coleus Talavera™ Sienna - Syngenta Flowers Petchoa SuperCal® Premium Caramel Yellow Sakata Petchoa SuperCal® Premium Cinnamon Sakata Lantana Landscape Bandana® Gold Syngenta Flowers Solanum jasminoides Yellow Zebra - Collection Celosia Kelos® Fire Yellow - Beekenkamp
Deco Pot #167 Salvia farinacea Velocity™ Blue - Syngenta Flowers Impatiens SunPatiens® Compact Pink Flash - Sakata Lobularia Stream™ Compact White - Danziger Petunia Potunia® + Starfish - D ümmen Orange Gomphrena Pinball™ Purple - Sakata
Deco Pot #199 Celosia Kelos® Fire Pink - Beekenkamp Verbena Firehouse™ Burgundy - Ball FloraPlant Calibrachoa Cha-Cha™ Diva Hot Pink - Ball FloraPlant Petunia Bee’s Knees - Ball FloraPlant
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Deco Pot #200 Celosia Kelos® Fire Yellow - Beekenkamp Calibrachoa Candy Shop™ Candy Bouquet Westflowers Verbena Lanai® Magenta - Syngenta Flowers Jamesbrittenia Stardom™ Goldstar - Danziger
Deco Pot #209 Argyranthemum Beauty Yellow - Westflowers Gomphrena Pinball™ Purple - Sakata Calibrachoa Candy Shop™ Grape Splash Westflowers Petunia Potunia® + Popcorn Yellow - Dümmen Orange Petunia Itsy™ Blue - Syngenta Flowers
Window Box #11 Angelonia Alonia™ Big Blue - Danziger Lobularia Stream™ Compact Violet - Danziger Lophospermum Lofos® Compact White Suntory Calibrachoa Eyeconic™ Purple - Danziger
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Window Box #12 Angelonia Alonia™ Big Snow - Danziger Verbena Lascar™ Vampire - Selecta Petunia Amore® King of Hearts - Danziger Scaevola Fanatix™ Dark Blue Syngenta Flowers Bacopa Calypso™ Jumbo White Syngenta Flowers
Window Box #14 Cuphea Cherrybells - Ball Seed
Lantana Bandolero™ Red - Syngenta Flowers Petunia Inferno™ The Orange! - Westflowers Jamesbrittenia Stardom™ Goldstar - Danziger
Window Box #18 Angelonia Alonia™ Big Grape - Danziger Petunia Crazytunia® Moonstruck - Westflowers Verbena Lanai® Lavender Star Syngenta Flowers Jamesbrittenia Stardom® Goldstar - Danziger
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Our annual AAS Trial proved again that these are outstanding performers. Our AAS judge, Melissa Winchester, scored the entries and will be submitting her results to the committee. These trials are held around the country and the next round of AAS Winners will come from the combined ratings of these countrywide judges’ scores. AAS Trial Area Standouts
Rudbeckia Claire Orange Takii Seed
Celosia Flamma Pink Sakata
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You Asked, We Trialed 2026 FEATURE TRIAL
The 2026 feature trials were designed to address several questions growers and gardeners have posed to our trial garden staff: What varieties can I cut back? Should I cut back or should I use PGR? How can I extend the life of my annuals? What are the long-term effects of using PGR as a retailer to better customer success?
Feature Trial: Growth Control This year’s trial compared several approaches to managing plant growth, including cutback and paclobutrazol (Paclo) applications at different rates, with the goal of determining how different growth- control strategies affect plant size, branching, flowering, and overall plant quality throughout the season. Trial Layout • Sixteen higher-vigor varieties from MYP’s catalog were selected, based on habit and known sensitivities to PGR’s and mechanical cutbacks. • Twelve 14-inch pots, each containing four plugs of the same variety, were planted in week 21 and grown pot-tight in the greenhouse until week 26, when they were moved outside and spaced. • For each variety, three pots were assigned to each of four different treatment rows. All other cultural practices, irrigation, and fertility were the same across all treatments, with 17-5-17 applied at 150 ppm N twice daily. Row Treatment Timing
Treatment Details
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Control
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No cut back; no PGR application
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Cut Back
Week 29
Plants cut back, leaving 4–5 nodes
Drench application at 0.096 oz/gal; 30 oz solution per pot Drench application at 0.16 oz/gal; 30 oz solution per pot
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Paclobutrazol – 3ppm Week 29
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Paclobutrazol – 5ppm Week 29
Week 29: Cut backs using hand shears left 4-5 nodes per plant and PGR Paclo drench applications were mixed according to label and applied by hand at a volume of 30 oz. per pot.
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Cut Back Results Results varied among varieties, though most demonstrated a positive long-term cut back response: • In general, they developed a denser, more compact habit and maintained a more uniform appearance later in the trial compared with untreated controls. • They also displayed extended summer performance, suggesting that a hard cut back may be an effective strategy for freshening vigorous varieties and improving finished plant quality.
The primary disadvantage of the cut back treatment was a temporary 1-2 week delay in flowering following cut back, which varied by variety.
Helianthus Sunfinity® Double Yellow
Coleus, Gomphrena, Helianthus, and Ipomoea recovered the quickest, with flowering and overall development approximately one week behind vs. the untreated controls. • They rapidly produced new vegetative growth and established an improved, fuller habit following pruning. • Resulting plants showed improved structure and continued to maintain their form later in the trial.
control
cut back
Paclo @ 3ppm Paclo @ 5ppm
Rudbeckia Rising Sun™ Chestnut Gold
Calibrachoa, Verbena, Petunia, and Rudbeckia exhibited an intermediate response, with flowering generally delayed approximately 1–2 weeks following cutback. • These varieties required additional time to re- establish flowering compared with the faster- recovering group but still developed denser and more compact canopies than the untreated controls. • The temporary delay in flowering was offset by improved plant structure and appearance later in the production cycle.
control
cut back
Paclo @ 3ppm Paclo @ 5ppm
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Lantana Bandolero™ Pineapple
Angelonia, Ageratum, Lantana, and Celosia were among the slowest varieties to recover following the hard cutback. • These plants exhibited the greatest delay in returning to flower, indicating a slower transition from vegetative recovery to reproductive growth. • Despite this, the long-term response of these varieties was generally favorable. By the end of the trial, cut back plants displayed improved branching, greater canopy density, and a more balanced overall habit compared with the untreated controls. This suggests that, for these varieties the primary limitation of hard cut back is the length of the recovery period rather than the final quality of the plant.
control
cut back
Paclo @ 3ppm Paclo @ 5ppm
Dahlia Hypnotica® Lemon Swirl
Dahlias showed particularly poor tolerance to the hard cut back treatment and appear to be poorly suited to aggressive cut back late in the crop cycle. • Multiple dahlia pots failed to produce sufficient new growth following the cutback, while those that recovered exhibited slow regrowth and fewer flowers. • This suggests that the removal of a large portion of the existing plant can significantly delay re- establishment of plant structure and reduce finished plant quality. Lighter trimming and removal of dead flowers may be a more appropriate method for maintaining plant appearance and extending summer performance.
control
cut back
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Paclobutrazol Results Paclobutrazol treatments resulted in relatively minor differences in overall plant growth vs. controls:
• The higher application rate generally produced a slightly more compact and dense plant habit, with reduced internode elongation compared with the lower rate and control treatments – though not as pronounced as with the cut back results. • PGR-treated plants exhibited some differences in foliage and flower coloration. One of the primary questions addressed in this trial was whether mechanical cut back or paclobutrazol application provided a more effective method of controlling plant growth while maintaining flowering. The results suggest that the two approaches provide different advantages:
Gomphrena Spitfire Pink
• Hard cut back generally produced a more substantial improvement in long-term plant density and habit, but this response was accompanied by a temporary delay in flowering. • Paclobutrazol, in comparison, produced a more subtle growth-regulating effect but may allow flowering to continue with less interruption. Gomphrena provided a clear example of this response. The PGR-treated plants maintained flowering comparable to the untreated control while developing a more compact and controlled habit vs. both control and cutback treatments. This indicates that for varieties with a favorable response to PGR applications it may provide an alternative to mechanical cutback while maintaining flowering.
control
cut back
Paclo @ 3ppm Paclo @ 5ppm
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Conclusion Plant maintenance and growth management are important factors in maintaining the quality, longevity, and overall performance of summer container annuals. Overall, the results indicate that the decision to use hard cutback or PGR should be based on the desired outcome, timing, and individual variety response. • Hard cut back appears to be the stronger tool for substantial rejuvenation, increased branching, improved density, and extending the useful display life of many vigorous annuals. • PGR applications may be better suited for situations where more gradual growth control is desired and maintaining continuous flowering is a priority. • For home gardeners, these findings provide practical guidance for managing plants that become overgrown or begin to decline later in the summer. • For growers and retailers, the results demonstrate an opportunity to use variety-specific maintenance and growth- regulation strategies to help plants remain compact, attractive, and high-performing throughout the summer season.
Future Trial Considerations The trial will be repeated next year with modifications intended to produce a more measurable response from the PGR treatments and further refine growth- management recommendations with the goal to develop more precise, variety-specific recommendations that can be used by both growers and home gardeners to maintain attractive, compact, and long-lasting summer containers.
Melissa Winchester Innovating Manager
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Top Kerley by Kientzler A UK breeding company headed by David and Tim Kerley asked if we would be willing to display some of their varieties in our trial garden to gauge local interest in their breeding efforts. We partnered with Kientzler North America, who often brings their varieties to market in the US, to grow a mix of petunias, double petunias, calendula, and begonias. We’re pleased with the trial performance and we’re eagerly looking forward to these new for ‘28 varieties.
Petunia SummerScape Fuchsia Flash
Petunia ShowTime Black Cherry
Calendula PowerDaisy Tango 2028
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MYP Employee Combo Winner
Mike Fernandez Lead Maintenance Tech
Craspedia Golf™ Beauty - Danziger Senecio Angel Wings - Concept Plants Bracteantha SunBrero Bright Red - Kientzler Sedum Gold Mound - Selecta Acalypha Chenille Red - Collection Celosia Kelos® Fire Red - Beekenkamp Celosia Kelos® Fire Pink - Beekenkamp Celosia Kelos® Fire Yellow - Beekenkamp Achillea Milly Rock™ Red - Darwin Perennials Achillea New Vintage™ Violet - Darwin Perennials Eupatorium Elegant Feather - Kientzler
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Visitor & Event Highlights Trial garden season gives us the opportunity to welcome industry friends and experts as well as the general public to our garden. The 2026 trial garden offered visitors the opportunity to learn about exciting new plant genetics being introduced to the marketplace next year, gain inspiration for retail greenhouse or backyard combination planter designs, and to connect with people within and beyond the greenhouse industry.
Over 950 visitors 218 unique greenhouse businesses 11 broker offices 13 internationally known plant breeders Hosted the Perennial Plant Association Customer Appreciation Night in the Garden
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See You Next
Year!
MAST YOUNG PLANTS 6564 Peach Ridge Ave NW Grand Rapids MI 49544 616.784.0583
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