"What I think would be interesting and completely plausible would be to cross SFT with a multiflora trait variety such as Rose Quartz Multiflora." [Keith]
Keith, I really think I have one great SFT because of its extremely bushy appearance. The others I started just didn't express like this one particular one did. Hopefully, its exuberance will carry on in the seeds. It should produce some really great stock for containers. It's currently thriving in a 4 - 5 gallon container and completely covered in blooms and buds.
But I don't think my RQM is all that multifloral. At least it hasn't expressed it yet (unless I mixed it up when I planted it because the Sun Gold sittin' right next to it is covered with flowers ... does SG produce long trusses?)
I only have one RQM at home, one at the construction shop, and a couple at friends' homes. Maybe one of the others will express more multifloral and I can give it a shot at crossing with the SFT.
But I do have several dwarves available to try a cross with SFT ... Lime Green Salad, mixed Long Island Seed Project dwarves, Pixie Peach, and Heartland F1. I'll give it a shot, Keith. I wasn't all that nimble with crossing last year. I'll be more diligent this year.
Keith, regarding crossing SFT with Variegated you say, "likely but with such fine leaves would the variegation even show up that much?"
With the one plant I mentioned that is showing a large amount of cream foliage, and lookin' real close at it, I'd say that large portions of single SFT leaves and possibly significant areas of foliage would express the cream splotching if the gene were expressed across the SFT foliage even at 50% of what it's showing on the original Variegated. And if the cream-green striations would express up the sides of the SFT stems, they would be very visible since the SFT stems are really much thicker and stumpier than the Variegated stems.
Again, I should be taking pictures of these things I'm trying to describe. I'll do it this weekend. But I may need some help gettin' them posted up. Hate to say it but I really detest my new Dell and the photoshop it came with. My old Compact and its photoshop was so darn easy.
PV
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