Night Sky Petunia the star that started it all

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This article was published 18/11/2023 (686 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

When Night Sky Petunia debuted in 2016, it was a phenomenon not only for the consumer response it generated but it was also a novel flower with a distinctive speckled colour pattern never before seen in a petunia. No two blooms are exactly alike. Consumers were immediately intrigued, and Night Sky Petunia earned a significant following on social media. It has received numerous awards around the world. Consumers continue to keep the interest alive as evidenced by the frequency with which #nightskypetunia appears on Instagram posts.

Petunias are among the top three best-selling annuals in North America. One of the reasons petunias are so interesting to consumers, said Becky Lacy, product manager for Selecta One North America, is because of the huge genetic variability of the cultivated petunia. “With the petunia, you are able to get a huge range of flower colour variation – the whole rainbow – and really interesting patterning like stars, veins, and picotees,” said Lacy by phone from Napa, California. In 2012, when a surprising spotted pattern was first noticed during the breeding work by Antonella Capo at Selecta One’s facility in Germany, its potential was recognized immediately.

Initially, someone suggested calling the new variety, Freckles. “But the blue colour which is a difficult colour to achieve in flowers was also unique,” said Lacy. “There are blues that are more violet and blues that are more purple.” The colour of the flower falls into that perfect range of blue that looks exactly like an evening sky, said Lacy, and the name Night Sky was chosen. In 2015, Night Sky received the FleuroStar Award in Europe. Year after year, several other awards from countries around the world have followed.

“The Night Sky Petunia has a utility patent on it which is authorized by Selecta One,” said Lacy. A utility patent protects innovation and allows the patent owner to prevent someone else from breeding with this genetic product. “But as utility patents start to age,” said Lacy, “there will be a year that it will no longer be valid and then other breeders are able to breed with this genetic. If breeders are able to come up with that spotted pattern on their own, then they can do it, but they can’t use our varieties to make crosses with. In the last couple of years, though, as that patent has started to reach the end of its life, we have offered it to select breeders to be able to use Night Sky Petunia in their breeding. So, you have started to see some additional spotted petunias on the market.”

One of the challenges that other breeders have found, said Lacy, is keeping spotted patterns stable. “What the gene is doing is that it is kind of turning on and then turning off and it’s not a very stable response so it’s kind of random looking. But basically, the gene will flash on and flash off and that’s what gives the Night Sky Petunia its spotted look.” The Night Sky Petunia remains at the forefront of spotted petunias because Selecta One does a very good job of keeping the spotted pattern stable, said Lacy. “It can be a little bit difficult, however, for that pattern to be stable at different times of the year and in different marketplaces. When you think about the difference between Winnipeg and Napa, California, for example, they are pretty different climates, but we test our Night Sky Petunias in a range of climates to make sure they are going to perform in all those different regions.”

High daytime temperatures combined with cool nighttime temperatures, for example, can result in a whiter colour pattern. In conditions where night temperatures are warm and day temperatures are humid and warm, the pattern becomes more purple.

Geneticists and chemists are dedicated to looking into new ways of breeding plants. “It is much more complicated than just making a pollination cross,” said Lacy, “but we want to continue to find new and interesting things – novel flowers like the Night Sky Petunia that nobody has ever seen before.”

For spring 2024, SweetSunshine Magenta Sky is the first double-flowering Sky petunia. The successful crossbreeding for this groundbreaking new petunia was in 2019. The fully double magenta blooms have a white picotee edge and a white speckled pattern. This well-branched plant has a semi-trailing habit and will be well-suited for hanging baskets.

Also new for spring 2024, is Headliner Violet Sky. Described as the little brother to Night Sky Petunia, Headliner Violet Sky has a deeper violet colour with creamy spots rather than white.

Today the Sky Petunia series has grown to include 12 varieties – Headliner Night Sky, Headliner Starry Sky Burgundy, Main Stage Glacier Sky, Headliner Electric Purple Sky, Headliner Crystal Sky, Starlet Midnight Sky, Headliner Enchanted Sky, Headliner Strawberry Sky, Headliner Light Pink Sky, and now the newest entrants, SweetSunshine Magenta Sky and Headliner Violet Sky.

“Night Sky Petunia is by far our number one selling variety within the Sky series but the other varieties are also instant hits,” said Lacy. “There have been so many groundbreaking developments in petunias — for example, the first time we were able to develop a black petunia. Some breeders are now working with GMO petunias. All over the world there are incredible things happening with petunias. I think that petunias will continue to surprise us.”

I’m intrigued by the Headliner Starry Sky Burgundy Petunia which features large burgundy flowers with a yellow star and a sparkling galaxy of creamy speckles. The star pattern is more pronounced in cool weather. Starry Sky Burgundy is a darker, moodier variety, said Lacy who has seen it used in gothic-inspired gardens.

I also like the eye-catching berry hue of Headliner Strawberry Sky Petunia as well as Main Stage Glacier Sky Petunia which has large, deep blue flowers with a white picotee edge and trailing habit. The dramatic colour of both varieties really enhances the star pattern.

Did you grow any of the Sky Petunias this year? Which ones are your favourites?

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