'Santonia Golden Lights∑ : A Novel Intergeneric Hybrid of Sandersonia and Littonia (Colchicaceae)

Sandersonia aurantiaca Hook. (Colchicaceae) is a relatively new and increasingly popular cut-flower crop. It is from South Africa, where it is found at altitudes of 600–2000 m and in summer rainfall areas (Brundell and Reyngoud, 1986). This species produces stems up to 1 m long, with up to 12 flowers on a stem (Brundell and Reyngoud, 1986). The flowers are 2–2.5 cm long and 1.3 cm in diameter. Flowers are golden-orange, lantern-shaped, and hang down from curved, wiry flower stalks originating at the leaf axils. The leaves are soft and narrow, ranging up to 10 cm long and 2 cm wide at their widest point before tapering to a thread-like tip. In mature plants, stems arise from the single growing point on the tip of each of the two lobes of the stoloniferous corm (Dahlgren et al., 1985). New Zealand growers refer to the stoloniferous corm as a tuber and to the lobes as legs. Growers break the tubers into two at the midpoint, where the legs are joined, and plant each leg separately to ensure that all growing points give rise to new plants. A bud is present at the tip of each leg, and gives rise to the new plant, which consists of a tuber comprising two legs joined to form a “vee” shape and a stem that is produced from the center of the joint. During the growing season the original leg completely withers and is lost. In New Zealand, S. aurantiaca is grown for both cut flowers and as tubers for forcing. The export value of S. aurantiaca cut flowers in 2001 was just over NZ$3M compared to NZ$0.2M in 1990, with much of the New Zealand crop going to Japan. The 2001 export receipts for S. aurantiaca stems are down from the NZ$5.6M exported in 1995. New Zealand growers and researchers have been successful in developing S. aurantiaca as a floricultural crop (Clark, 1994). Other countries, e.g., South Africa, are now beginning to produce S. aurantiaca. For New Zealand to maintain its market share, new cultivars must be developed and introduced to the industry. Sandersonia aurantiaca is a monospecific genus in which little variation has been observed among seedpropagated plants. Therefore, hybridization programs must include species from related genera. Sandersonia aurantiaca is a member of the Colchicaceae (Dahlgren et al., 1985) and any breeding programs must involve other genera from this family. Littonia modesta Hook. (Colchicaceae), also of South African origin, is sometimes used in horticulture as a cut flower or as an ornamental plant. It is a relative of S. aurantiaca that climbs using tendrilous leaf tips to cling to supporting structures. Stem length depends on tuber size, but plants can reach in excess of 2 m. Flowers are golden-orange and bell shaped with six separate tepals. The flowers are borne on pedicels that usually originate in leaf axils. Leaves are hard-textured and up to 20 cm long and 3 cm wide, terminating in a tendril. Shoots grow from the tips of forkshaped tubers similar to S. aurantiaca. ‘Santonia Golden Lights (S. aurantiaca x L. modesta) was released by Sanza in New Zealand in 1998. Plant variety rights have been obtained for this cultivar in New Zealand.