The 2020 East Texas Horticultural Field Day was not open to the public due to COVID-19, but a series of videos provide a virtual tour of highlighted ornamental plants.
The annual field day typically features more than 500 ornamental plant trial varieties for public viewing, along with presentations by experts at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center in Overton.
In the virtual tour, Brent Pemberton, Ph.D., Texas A&M AgriLife Research ornamental horticulturist, Overton, focuses on plants performing especially well this year. His videos cover topics like perennials, heat tolerant plants, classic varieties that add color to gardens, novelties and foliage, and container plants.
“It’s a shame we can’t open the field trials up to the public, but we want to highlight some of the ornamental plants that are performing well and discuss why they were noteworthy varieties,” he said. “Since you can’t come to us, we wanted to bring the 2020 field trials to you. We hope you enjoy and find varieties that pique your interest for your garden and landscape.”
Pemberton covers a wide range of ornamental plants including pentas, petunias, dahlias, salvias, lavender and vincas among many others.
The website also features a webinar with Pemberton discussing results from the 2019 trials.
Pemberton started the trials in 1993 to meet the needs of commercial seed companies, local nursery managers and gardening enthusiasts.
-30-
