After more than 20 years of plant research, Prof. Mark Bridgen, horticulture,
has developed and patented a new species of flower at Cornell’s Long Island
Horticultural Research & Extension Center. The “Tangerine Tango” is an
alstroemeria, commonly known as the Lily of the Incas. It will bloom from May
until the first frost and can survive cold northern winters.
The researchers used sophisticated horticultural techniques to grow the flower.
Earlier attempts to grow it from another alstroemeria were hindered by the plant
itself, Bridgen said.
“[The plant embryos] would die on the mother plant. We’re using some advanced
techniques to get hybrids to grow and survive,” Bridgen said. The researchers
first attempted to grow the hybrid on the mother plant, but it recognized a
foreign gene and aborted the growth.
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