Aster plant named ‘Esmnicaragua’

A new and distinct cultivar of cut flower Aster plant named ‘Esmnicaragua’, characterized by its strong and erect flowering stems; symmetrical branching habit with long lateral branches; dark green-colored foliage; uniform and freely flowering habit; daisy-type inflorescences with light purple-colored ray florets; and good postproduction longevity.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present Invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of cut flowerAsterplant, botanically known asAster hybridaand hereinafter referred to by the name ‘Esmnicaragua’.

The newAsteris a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in El Quinche, Pichincha, Ecuador. The objective of the breeding program is to create new cut flowerAstercultivars with durable leaves, strong stems, desirable floret colors and good postproduction longevity.

The newAsteroriginated from a cross-pollination made by the Inventor in El Quinche, Pichincha, Ecuador in February, 2000, of a proprietaryAsterselection identified as Line 04, not patented, as the female, or seed, parent with an unknownAsterselection, not patented, as the male or pollen, parent. The newAsterwas discovered and selected by the Inventor as a single flowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross-pollination grown in a controlled environment in El Quinche, Pichincha, Ecuador. The selection of this plant was based on its durable foliage, strong stems and desirable inflorescence form and attractive ray floret color.

Asexual reproduction of the newAsterby vegetative tip cuttings was first conducted in El Quinche, Pichincha, Ecuador in January, 2001. Asexual reproduction by cuttings has shown that the unique features of this newAsterare stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The cultivar Esmnicaragua has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in environment such as temperature, daylength, and/or light level, without, however, any variance in genotype.

The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of ‘Esmnicaragua’. These characteristics in combination distinguish ‘Esmnicaragua’ as a new and distinct cut flowerAster:1. Strong and erect flowering stems.2. Symmetrical branching habit with long lateral branches.3. Dark green-colored foliage.4. Uniform and freely flowering habit.5. Daisy-type inflorescences with light purple-colored ray florets.6. Good postproduction longevity.

Plants of the newAstercan be compared to plants of the female parent selection. Plants of the newAsterdiffer from plants of the female parent selection primarily in plant height as plants of the newAsterare shorter than plants of the female parent selection.

Plants of the newAstercan be compared to plants of the cultivar Claudia, not patented. In side-by-side comparisons conducted in El Quinche, Pichincha, Ecuador plants of the newAsterdiffered from plants of the cultivar Claudia in the following characteristics:1. Plants of the newAsterwere shorter than plants of the cultivar Claudia.2. Plants of the newAsterhad larger leaves than plants of the cultivar Claudia.3. Plants of the newAsterwere more freely flowering than plants of the cultivar Claudia.4. Plants of the newAsterand the cultivar Claudia differed in ray floret coloration as plants of the cultivar Claudia had lighter purple-colored ray florets.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION