In autumn female Skimmia cultivars strut their stuff with red berries. The ornamental value of the male cultivars lies in their flower heads. Skimmia japonica Obsession® combines the best of both worlds: it is a female plant with russet flower heads. The berries that appear in autumn stay on the shrub for months. Once the flower heads open, the white, sweetly scented florets become visible. It would be difficult to conceive of a more attractive product for the Christmas season.

The compact shrub was launched in the autumn of 2006 under its own auction code. In October, November and December some 45,000 plants were sold at the auctions. The buyers reacted almost obsessively: everyone was desperate to get hold of this shrub for their customers. The grower can look back on a successful launch. This year the Skimmia was nominated for a FloraHolland Award. With proper care this garden plant is long lasting and fully hardy.

This year Skimmia japonica Obsession® (vbn code 58847) will be available once more from October to the end of December. The plant will be supplied to the Dutch auctions in 12, 17, 19, 23 and 31 cm pots. The height of the plant varies from 25 to a maximum of 70 cm. The grower expects to be able to supply some 50,000 of these Skimmia plants.

Pot plant market success:  Successful market acceptance of new pot plant.