University of Florida releases three new caladium cultivars

Added on 15 February 2024

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University of Florida releases three new caladium cultivars

Caladium ‘Wonderland’

Researchers at the University of Florida (UF) have released three new caladium varieties with the names ‘Pinky Swear,’ ‘Wonderland’, and ‘Salsa.’ ‘Pinky Swear’ and ‘Salsa’ are already available at some nurseries, and ‘Wonderland’ should be ready to purchase next year.

So, who coined the names of these new cultivars? In the case of ‘Salsa’ and ‘Wonderland,’ it was Dot Bates, and her daughter, Terri Bates, of Bates Sons & Daughters, which sells caladiums in Lake Placid, FL.

Dot came up with ‘Salsa.’

“It’s a snappy red, and salsa is a good description,” says Terri Bates. “It lets the consumer know it is red with some green.”

Terri named the other caladium ‘Wonderland.’

“Customers have been asking for a shorter, fuller Gingerland,” she says. “‘Wonderland’ looks like Gingerland, so people have an idea of what it will look like. That’s why I picked that name.”

Caladium growers in Florida work with Zhanao Deng, a plant breeder and Professor of Environmental Horticulture with the UF/Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (GCREC).