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Luster Aquatic Nursery
3864 Oak Hill Ranch Road
Zolfo Springs, FL 33890

Phone (863)735-2400
Fax (863)735-2401
Email info@lusteraquatic.com

New For 2010

Hard to believe it is already time for a new season! As always, we have spent the off season looking for new plants to offer and innovative growing methods to give our customers the competitive advantage. This has been an exciting year on both counts.

We have realized that while the 2" plastic net pots offered an important advantage over selling bareroot stock, they were less than ideal and having to remove the pots did indeed still result in some transplant shock. This year we are taking a huge step to eliminate the shock altogether by offering the marginal plants in a new generation of peat pots. These pots have proven to stand up to the rigors of constant dampness for months. The roots grow through the entire surface of the pots, resulting in air pruning that increases root tip numbers and eliminates the problem of having only a few roots circle the bottom of the pot. They are fully biodegradable, so there is no need to break the bottom out of the pot when you transplant them, saving time and eliminating transplant shock. You simply plant the entire pot in the new container. An added sales advantage is these pots are OMRI listed organic pots.

Maybe more exciting, in the last year we have developed and tested a revolutionary new way to grow lotus. Using our new method, the need to fret and worry over tubers is gone. These will arrive at your facility as plants complete with aerial leaves. They are shipped in small tubs which you can then plant in a container of your choice, or after removing the top of the container and adding water, they can be sold right off the shelf for your customer to plant as they wish. Free from the limitations of tubers, these lotuses can be shipped year round and are capable of blooming within weeks of replanting. You can order them when your weather is acceptable and will no longer be forced to buy according to the grower's weather and then have to store them for future planting or worry whether the tuber will sprout. The potential of the new system is so exciting that we have launched a new web site to clearly explain the advantages and provide pictures of the results you can expect. It can be found at www.thelotusexpress.com

There are also a number of plants being offered this year that are new too or rarely seen in the market:

	Dwarf West Indies Crinum (C. oliganthum) is a tropical Crinum that grows in partial shade to full sun. It is a small plant growing to about 12" and forms dense clumps. The green foliage is offset by fragrant white flowers that are at 2" plus oversized for the plant. Hardy to zone 8.
	Fire Fingers (Sanchezia nobilis) is another tropical and grows into a small shrub 4' to 6' tall. The leaves are green, variegated with white veining and tubular orange blooms emerge from red bracts. It grows well in moist soil and in partial shade to full sun. It is root hardy to zone 9A, but leaves will burn below 40 F.
	Water Banana (Typhonodorum lindleyana) is a tropical aroid originating from Madagascar. This plant grows to 6' in full sun and standing quiet water. The large leaves look to be a cross of an Alocasia and a Banana tree and it makes an eye-catching specimen plant in a pond. It is extremely tropical and will suffer at temperatures below 50 F.
	Holly-Leaved Mangrove (Acanthus sp.) originated in Southeast Asia and is a small shrub growing to about 5' and produces spikes of white flowers. It grows best in full sun, but will do well in light shade. The plant bears a striking resemblance to American Holly (Ilex opaca), but is herbaceous and tropical. It will need protection at temperatures below 40 F.
	And a late, but exciting addition to the list for 2010: Pink Coreopsis (Coreopsis rosea) is a hardy marginal, Zones 3 - 8. It should be kept constantly moist, likes full sun and reaches one to two feet in height. It blooms in the summer and attracts butterflies.

Nymphaea ‘Rachel Presnell' is a tropical day blooming lily that has large star-shaped flowers with a frilly center, this lily has white petals and the center petaloids are white with a yellow base. The eye catching flower is accented by red pads with dark maroon mottling.
Nymphaea ‘Darcy Presnell' is a striking tropical day blooming lily with green pads and two-toned flowers. It produces large, star-shaped flowers in which the lower half of the petals are yellow and the upper half are pink.
Nymphaea ‘Hunter's Moon' is one of the few blue/green lilies available on the market. This day blooming tropical holds its color well over the three day bloom and the flower is accented by green pads heavily mottled with maroon areas.