Lisianthus
Lisianthus (Eustoma grandiflorum). Photo: Samara Elizabeth.
Lisianthus is a pretty perennial usually treated in Florida as an annual bedding or potted plant. The blooms of lisianthus come in shades of white, pink, blue, and purple. Double and single-flower varieties provide a wide selection of choices. Lisianthus blossoms make excellent cut flowers, and are popular for wedding bouquets.
Plant breeders at the University of Florida have been working on heat-tolerant varieties of lisianthus. Two varieties—the UF Savanna and UF Double Joy series—are great for the Florida gardener. The UF Savanna series is used as flowering potted plants in small containers. The sprays of flowers come in shades of blue, pink, and white. The UF Double Joy series is similar to the Savanna series, except it has double flowers.
UF Cultivars
These University of Florida lisianthus varities were developed by Dr. Brent Harbaugh and Dr. Zhanao Deng of the Gulf Coast Research and Education Center.
UF Savanna Series
The 'UF Savanna' is a beautiful container flower that's heat-tolerant, intermediate in height, and available in many colors. 'UF Savanna Blue Frost' and 'UF Savanna Pink Frost' flower colors are not available in other commercial pot type lisianthus.
'UF Savanna' cultivars are best used as flowering potted plants in 6 inch containers. These cultivars average 15 to 19 inches in height. 
Cultivars include 'UF Savanna Blue,' 'UF Savanna Blue Frost,' 'UF Savanna Blue Rim,' 'UF Savanna Pink,' 'UF Savanna Pink Frost,' 'UF Savanna Pink Rim,' 'UF Savanna Silver,' and 'UF Savanna White.'
UF Double Joy Series
Double flowering and heat-tolerant, 'UF Double Joy' cultivars are best used as flowering potted plants in 6 inch containers. The 'UF Double Joy' cultivars average 15-19 inches in height.
Cultivars include 'UF Double Joy Blue,' 'UF Double Joy Blue Rim,' 'UF Double Joy Pink,' 'UF Double Joy Pink Rim,' and 'UF Double Joy White.'