The New Year brings the announcement of the plants of the year, those varieties chosen to represent their plant families and, hopefully, make it into your garden.
The hardy geranium ‘Biokovo’ (Geranium cantabrigiense ‘Biokovo’) is the Perennial Plant Association’s 2015 perennial of the year. Prized for its ground covering capabilities, ‘Biokovo’ requires little maintenance. Its white flowers with pink sepals appear in late spring and continue to bloom sporadically all summer long. (perennialplant.org).
Savory (Satureja spp.) is the herb of the year for The Herb Society of America. Try both winter and summer varieties, remembering to harvest the leaves as they grow, which can easily be dried and stored. (herbsociety.org).
A heat-tolerant red petunia, a white-flowered salvia, a compact basil, three varieties of peppers, two types of squash, and two impatiens immune to downy mildew disease all share the spotlight as All-America Selections national winners for 2015. Every year, new, never-before-sold in North America plant varieties are trialed in All-America Selections trial grounds across the country and professional horticulturists determine which varieties will be winners based on their performance. (all-americaselections.org).
The American Hosta Growers Association has chosen ‘Victory’ as its hosta for 2015. ‘Victory’ sports a margin that changes from chartreuse to creamy white by early summer, topped by tall white flowers later in the season. A thick substance on its leaves makes this hosta slug resistant. (hostagrowers.org).