BONFIRE™ IN THE NEWS

APRIL 2006

BONFIRE – minimum water, maximum bloom

BONFIRE Begonia continues to bloom despite the UK hosepipe ban and water shortage enveloping a large number of British gardens this summer. Like all Anthony Tesselaar International (Tesselaar) plants, BONFIRE has been specially bred and grown to be low maintenance and uniquely robust. This means that the amateur horticulturist can enjoy the beauty of the plant without having to worry about a lack of experience, whatever Nature throws in their direction.

Intensive testing has shown that BONFIRE can weather temperatures as high as 100˚F without burning. BONFIRE – once it is established – is remarkably tough for a bedding plant because, as it grows, it quickly forms a corm. A corm is like a small saucer about half an inch (or one centimeter) thick which holds moisture and feeds the plant if it doesn’t rain for an extensive period. Therefore, it will survive, looking great, much longer between waterings and rainshowers than other plants such as petunias or pansies. It can be grown in sunlight to partial shade and it blooms profusely from spring right through until autumn or early frosts. The plant also recovers well following heavy rain and is therefore the perfect addition to any garden facing the UK climate, giving you the garden you’ve always dreamed of without too much effort.

If grown in pots, this flame-coloured plant can grow up to 45cm in diameter. It’s equally suited to the outdoors - whether you have a tiny balcony, a rooftop terrace or a rambling garden. BONFIRE also looks beautiful in containers or on the patio, or cascading from hanging baskets, where with the extra soil space, it grows quickly to form spectacular rounded bushes up to 60cm in diameter after only four to six weeks.

BONFIRE was launched in the UK by Anthony Tesselaar International (Tesselaar), an international horticultural marketing company renowned for the successful sourcing and branding of high quality plants.

It has been awarded prestigious industry awards at shows such as the Courson in France, Kildare Show in Ireland and a number of other prestigious endorsements relevant to individual countries. It is set to become a key focus in many summer garden-planting schemes for 2006.

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APRIL 2006

SIT BACK AND ENJOY THE BEAUTY OF THE BONFIRE

As stress levels in the city continue to soar, and record levels of anxiety hit Britain’s work force, health experts are increasingly drawing a connection between wellbeing, relaxation and gardening. Always searching for new ways to drive down tension, doctors across the nation are advising wearisome workers to ditch the suit and get green fingered.

But the complicated intricacies of pruning roses aren’t the way to relax – instead, doctors are advising patients to opt for simple, colourful, easy to grow plants. One of the most dramatic, is the new BONFIRE begonia, a plant that is flamboyant, bright red-orange and utterly effortless to grow.

BONFIRE is the perfect way to reduce stress levels with the minimum of effort; it’s a wonderfully low maintenance plant. Easy to cultivate and incredibly versatile, it will grow with ease in the earth or in a pot. Whilst brightening up your life with these stunning fiery flowers and jagged foliage edges, BONFIRE will grow on the terrace, in the window box or in the garden. So even if you can’t escape from the workplace, BONFIRE will be there to keep you calm.

Employers would also be well advised to heed doctors’ advice by introducing plants to the workplace. Colourful, easy-to-manage plants are one of the most cost-effective ways for employers to keep staff relaxed and happy.

This flame-coloured plant can grow up to18 inches/ 45cm in diameter. It is suited to the outdoors, whether you have a tiny balcony, a rooftop terrace or a rambling garden. BONFIRE also looks beautiful in containers, on the patio, or cascading from hanging baskets and window boxes.

When planted in the garden, the extra soil space allows it to grow quickly to form spectacular rounded bushes up to 24 inches/ 60cm in diameter after only four-six weeks. BONFIRE is extremely versatile and requires very little maintenance. It can be grown in sunlight or partial shade and blooms profusely from spring right through until autumn and its early frosts. The plant also recovers well following heavy rain and is therefore the perfect addition to any garden facing the UK climate, giving you the garden you’ve always dreamed of without too much effort.

Earlier this year BONFIRE was launched in the UK by Anthony Tesselaar International (Tesselaar), an international horticultural management and marketing company, which is renowned for the successful sourcing and introduction of high quality plants.

It has been awarded prestigious industry awards at shows such as the Courson in France, the Kildare Show in Ireland and was a popular new introduction when shown at the RHS Tatton Park Show in 2005. It is set to become a key focus in many summer garden-planting schemes for 2006.

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JANUARY 2005

BONFIRE: A Stunning New Plant Introduction for Spring 2005

Anthony Tesselaar International, an international horticultural marketing company renowned for its successful sourcing and branding of high quality plants, introduces BONFIRE – a stunningly different begonia. This is being introduced into the UK and European markets in early spring 2005.

BONFIRE has spectacular red-orange open pendulous blooms covering almost the entire plant, whilst its attractive pendulum shaped rich green foliage has serrated edges highlighted by a red margin.

Sensational as indoor pots of colour where they grow to 18 inches in diameter, it is also ideal for gardens and patios or hanging baskets where with the extra soil and space it quickly grows to form spectacular rounded bushes of up to 2-3 ft in diameter in only 4-6 weeks.

The plant blooms profusely from spring right through until autumn or early frosts. The plant has performed outstandingly in garden trials in France (where it was the regarded by the horticultural photographers as the best new introduction), Holland, UK and Ireland, giving great flowering value over a long period. It is set to become a focus in many summer garden planting schemes in 2005. BONFIRE is versatile and requires very little maintenance.

Recently samples of the plant were exhibited at Plantarium (Boskoop, Holland) and GLEE (Birmingham, England) in August and September to high interest.

A recent development

Begonias were first discovered in 1650 by Francisco Hernandez. The discovery of the earliest tuberous begonia is credited to Englishman Richard Pearce in Peru and Bolivia in 1864. Most forms available today can trace their descendency to the original four species he discovered.

BONFIRE as a variety came from a germplasm collection expedition by the New Zealand Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries in 1990. Further breeding and selections were made during the past 10 years to finally produce this outstanding variety, selected for its robustness, reliability, health and flowering consistency.

Anthony Tesselaar International

Anthony Tesselaar International is a world leader in the innovative marketing and distribution of plants specially bred and selected to make gardening easy for the consumer. They consistently search the world looking for, first and foremost, plants that are outstanding, have long flowering periods and are easy to grow, by anyone. Anthony Tesselaar, a third generation nurseryman, lives in Silvan, Victoria, Australia. The company has developed an international network of breeders, and markets its plants successfully throughout Australia, Japan, New Zealand, South Africa, Canada and the USA.