Citizen Scientist Master Gardeners Conduct Landscape Plant Variety Trials

In 2010, Master Gardeners in Maricopa County, AZ, volunteered to trial three recently introduced ornamental plant cultivars and maintain performance records of those cultivars. The records were shared with the wholesale grower that provided the plants.  Calliandra eriophylla X Calliandra californica (Maricopa Red™), Calliandra californica (Sarita™) and Caesalpinia pulcherrima (Phoenix Bird™) were distributed to 13 Master Gardener citizen scientists. Of those, six Master Gardeners never submitted reports. The remaining seven submitted monthly reports that included a current photo of each plant and a completed data sheet that documented plant height, canopy diameter; method, frequency, and duration of irrigation; pruning events; fertilization; flowering; and fruiting and environmental stress symptoms such as frost damage, salt burn, and heat stress. Master Gardeners were also asked to subjectively state if the plant appears healthy and attractive. By the end of 2012, only four volunteers were still submitting monthly reports, either due to plant mortality or because the volunteer moved away.