All-America Selections has been trialing edible and ornamental plants for over 90 years, presenting awards to entries that will impress home gardeners with their performance regionally or nationally. There have been plenty of exciting new winners that merit a place in your garden that will be highlighted in this series.
AAS Winners are grown and planted at nearly 200 Display Gardens all over the US and Canada, including nine gardens in Iowa. To see these winners and more, check out www.all-americaselections.org and search under the Display Gardens tab. For a sneak peek at potential future winners, plan a visit to Reiman Gardens, an All-America Selections Trial Garden.
One of my favorite parts of the All-America Selections program is seeing such a wide variety of plants every year. You might be surprised at the variety of “old standards” getting a new look and you might be even more surprised by a class of plants you never thought about growing in your own yard. Take a look at these three Winners that might become your new “old standards.”
Tagetes patula 'Super Hero™ Spry': The sweetest little French marigold you ever saw! The deep red and golden yellow of this bicolor bloom is uniquely uniform and stable throughout. 'Super Hero™ Spry' is easy to grow and great for your youngest budding gardeners. There simply aren't enough adjectives to describe this marigold, but many have tried: adorable, attractive, stunning!
Brassica oleracea 'Konan': Count Kohlrabi as a veggie I had never considered growing; it just shows up on fancy crudité platters, right? 'Konan' couldn't be easier to grow as your first time trying kohlrabi; it grows both in-ground and in containers with full sun and just a little bit of fertilizer. Plant a few extras and search through all the yummy-sounding roasted kohlrabi recipes online!
Salvia coccinea 'Summer Jewel™' series: Everyone loves Salvia, but you might not be as familiar with this species. Texas sage boasts small, fragrant foliage and attractive flower spikes that draw in humans and pollinators alike. The Summer Jewel series has multiple AAS award-winning colors, including red, white, pink, and lavender. Checking in at up to 16” tall, Summer Jewel can be tucked in all over the garden and true to its common name, they shine in mid-summer heat and drought.
Links to this article are strongly encouraged, and this article may be republished without further permission if published as written and if credit is given to the author, Yard and Garden, and Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. If this article is to be used in any other manner, permission from the author is required. This article was originally published on June 6, 2023. The information contained within may not be the most current and accurate depending on when it is accessed.