plant named ‘Forged in Fire’

Botanical denomination:(L.) Sweet.

Variety designation: ‘Forged in Fire’.

The first offer for sale of‘Forged in Fire’ was by Walters Gardens, Inc. to Overdevest Nurseries, LP. on Sep. 19, 2024, and since was also sold to Prides Corner Farms and to Corso's Flower & Garden Center. Walters Gardens, Inc. obtained the new plant and all information relating thereto directly from the inventor. No plants of‘Forged in Fire’ have been sold, in this country or anywhere in the world, by any name, nor has any disclosure of the new plant been made more than one year prior to the filing date of this application, and such sale or disclosure within one year was either derived directly or indirectly from the inventor and would be a 35 U.S.C. § 102(b) exception.

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of‘Forged in Fire’. The new plant was selected as a single seedling from the cross performed by the inventor at a wholesale nursery in Zeeland, Michigan on Aug. 1, 2020, between ‘Fire Twister’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 33,733 as the female or seed parent and a proprietary unnamed hybrid known only by the breeder code 17-3-1 (not patented) as the male or pollen parent. Seed was harvested on Nov. 4, 2020, and eventually the single seedling was assigned the breeder code 20-7-13 toward the end of the trial period. The new plant was approved in an initial evaluation in the. summer of 2022 and slated for further trials and later introduction. The new plant was selected based on its compact habit, strong stems, ability to withstand lodging, mildew resistance, attractive colorful foliage, high-quality flowers over a long period, and ability to attract pollinators. The new plant has been asexually propagated at the same nursery first by division in the summer of 2022 and later by shoot tip cuttings with the resultant asexually propagated plants remaining identical to the original plant, stable and true to type in successive generations.

Plants of the new False Sunflower have not been observed under all possible combinations of environmental conditions and cultural practices. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in environmental conditions comprising temperature, daylength, light intensity, and fertility, without, however, any variations in genotype.

The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of the newplant. These characteristics in combination distinguish ‘Forged in Fire’ as a new and distinctplant:

The female parent, ‘Fire Twister’, has deep, burgundy foliage and 9 cm diameter red-orange flowers that lighten with maturity, and a dark brown center cone. The male parent has a shorter habit with single, soft, yellow flowers.

The following cultivars are the most similar cultivars known to the inventor: ‘Luna Rojo’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 34,988, ‘Bleeding Hearts’ (not patented), and ‘Funky Spinner’ U.S. Plant Pat. No. 33,715.

‘Luna Rojo’ has a smaller denser habit. ‘Bleeding Hearts’ has a slightly shorter habit and the foliage has more purplish highlights. ‘Funky Spinner’ has a shorter habit, and inflorescences with ray florets that are more distinctly banded yellow on the outside and reddish-orange in the center.

The following descriptions and color references are based on the 2015 edition of The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart except where common dictionary terms are used.‘Forged in Fire’ has not been observed in all possible environments. The phenotype may vary slightly with different growing environments such as temperature, light, fertility, soil pH, moisture, and maturity levels, but without any change in the genotype. The following observations and size descriptions are based on three-year-old plants grown in a trial garden at a nursery in Zeeland, Michigan with supplemental fertilizer and water as needed and without growth regulators or pinching.