Get It Growing for 06/26/26

Plant breeders and marketing companies are constantly coming up with new cultivars to satisfy consumer preferences, fill market gaps and respond to industry needs. How do they decide which ones are good enough to be sold at garden centers across the country — and planted in your landscape?

You might be surprised to learn that, in many cases, the LSU AgCenter plays a role in this process.

In the heart of one of Louisiana’s clusters of nursery production, scientists at the AgCenter Hammond Research Station put about 150 annual bedding plants to the test every year in expansive, sun-soaked gardens. They also trial perennials, woody shrubs and ornamental trees.

The researchers mostly study new introductions from companies seeking the AgCenter’s data on how the plants perform in Louisiana’s challenging climate.

“It’s important for consumers to know what will work best in their environment,” said Caroline Blanchard, trials coordinator at the station. “We trial these plants so that consumers in Louisiana will know what works best in these hot and humid conditions.”

If a plant withers in the heat, doesn’t bloom as expected, struggles during dry spells or proves susceptible to pest problems, that information is noted. Of course, faculty and staff keep track of plants that shine, too. After all, if a plant can survive the Louisiana summer in full sun, there’s a good chance it can handle just about anything.

Other universities and private entities operate gardens that evaluate the performance of plants and provide data to help companies determine whether they’re worth putting them on the market. But the Hammond trials gardens are unique.

“This is different from other trialing companies who will trial in raised beds and really add a lot of inputs to their plants such as fertilizer and irrigation,” Blanchard said. “Our plants really take all of it. They take the heat, the sunlight, the water and all of that.”

At Hammond, plants are trialed in the ground in pine straw-mulched beds much like what you’d see outside someone’s home. That’s on purpose. The gardens recreate the conditions where the flowers, shrubs and other specimens are most likely to be used while giving scientists and visitors a sense of how the plants might fit into a typical landscape.

Founded in 1922, the 140-acre station originally focused on work that supported the truck farming industry, which was popular in the Florida Parishes region at the time. The facility retooled in the mid-2000s to support the green industry as it grew into a major economic driver of the area.

In addition to the trial gardens, the station also houses research aimed at improving various facets of nursery production.

The station is located at 21549 Old Covington Highway about 6 miles east of Hammond. The trial gardens are open for self-guided tours from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.

For more information, visit www.LSUAgCenter.com/Hammond or call 985-543-4125.

The LSU AgCenter Hammond Research Station is home to trial gardens where new plant introductions are evaluated on their performance in Louisiana’s challenging climate. Photo by Randy LaBauve/LSU AgCenter

Caroline Blanchard is the trials coordinator at the Hammond Research Station. Photo by Olivia McClure/LSU AgCenter

At the Hammond Research Station trial gardens, plants are installed in beds, providing important information on how they perform in typical landscape settings. Photo by Randy LaBauve/LSU AgCenter