All-America Selections has announced more 2015 AAS Winners, bringing the grand total of introductions for the 2015 gardening year to 25. The seven winners join the 12 announced last November and six announced last July. This year, AAS has had the most winners in one year since 1939.
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Basil ‘Persian’
'Persian' Basil is a large, vigorous plant that is a prolific producer of pleasant tasting leaves for your culinary adventures. Not only is the taste excellent, but the green foliage, sturdy branches and large leaves make for a great ornamental plant. An additional bonus is that this winner is late to produce flowers, which often make basil develop a bitter taste. The bees were very active around this entry in the trials so you’ll also do your pollinator friends a favor having this basil in your garden. Bred by Terra Organics.
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Beet ‘Avalanche’
'Avalanche' exhibits a mild, sweet taste with a uniform root shape and no reddish tinge, making for more attractive produce. Judges raved about the raw eating quality when they discovered there was no earthy beety taste, nor any bitter aftertaste. As for garden performance, it is easy and quick to grow, and in just 50 days, you too can have delicious, white beets. Bred by Bejo Seeds.
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Broccoli ‘Artwork’ F1
'Artwork' is a unique and beautiful dark green stem broccoli that has only recently become available to home gardeners. Previously, stem or baby broccoli was exclusively available in gourmet markets and upscale restaurants. 'Artwork' starts out similar to a regular crown broccoli, but after harvesting the first crown, easy-to-harvest tender and tasty side shoots continue to appear long into the season, resisting warm temperature bolting better than other stem broccoli currently on the market. Bred by Seminis Vegetable Seeds
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Chives, garlic ‘Geisha’
The second of three organic herbs in this grouping of AAS Winners, 'Geisha' is a vigorous grower with a nice ‘just-right’ garlic flavor. Slightly wider, flatter and more refined leaves topped by white flower stalks late in the season mean this is another edible that can serve a dual purpose as an ornamental. 'Geisha' is a great culinary herb for use in stir-fries, soups, compound butters and as a fresh garnish for a variety of dishes. Although late-flowering, when 'Geisha' does burst into bloom, the butterfly inhabitants in your garden will be very happy. Bred by Terra Organics.
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Dianthus ‘Jolt Pink’ F1
This is a dianthus with brightly colored and large, showy flower heads on strong stems that perform well all summer long. 'Jolt' is heat tolerant, sporting very showy, bright pink fringed flowers. Judges called this entry the “best of the trials!" This is an easy-to-grow and trouble-free annual for the gardener looking for neat and tidy low-maintenance flower varieties. 'Jolt' is shorter on the bench, making it better for shipping, and the uniform blooms last up to four weeks longer than the comparison varieties, making it an excellent choice for landscapers. Bred by PanAmerican Seed.
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Oregano ‘Cleopatra’
Pretty silver-gray foliage makes this another herb that will be appreciated for its ornamental value. Unique from Greek and Italian oreganos, 'Cleopatra' has a mildly spicy, pepperminty flavor that is perfect in Mediterranean dishes, soups and sauces. This compact, trailing plant produces a high yield of leaves that are wonderful as a dried spice when fresh isn’t an option. Bred by Genesis Seeds, offered by Terra Organics.
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Petunia ‘Tidal Wave Red Velour’ F1
The first 'Tidal Wave' to win an AAS award was Silver in 2002. Now there is 'Velour Red' with deep red velvety blooms that don’t fade even in the heat of summer. Large flowers cover the vigorously spreading plants that rarely need deadheading because new blooms continuously pop up and cover the old, spent blooms. It is a perfect solution for the time-crunched gardener or anyone looking for petunias that are carefree. 'Tidal Wave' petunias are the tallest of the Wave family and bloom over and over all season long and recover quickly, even after hard rains. 'Tidal Wave' is an excellent landscape performer, covering a large area quickly and beautifully. Bred by PanAmerican Seed.
Many of the winners announced for 2015 are the first in a class to be granted an AAS award, such as brussels sprouts, garlic chives, oregano and pak choi.
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This 2015 winners include:
Basil ‘Persian’ – Regional Winner (Heartland, Mountain/Southwest and West/Northwest)
Beet ‘Avalanche’ – National Winner
Broccoli ‘Artwork’ F1 – National Winner
Chives, garlic ‘Geisha’ – National Winner
Dianthus ‘Jolt Pink’ F1- National Winner
Oregano ‘Cleopatra’ – Regional Winner (Northeast and West/Northwest)
Petunia ‘Tidal Wave Red Velour’ F1 – National Winner
These varieties are now available for immediate sale to brokers and growers. Consumers will find these winners for sale in the coming months as supply gradually becomes available throughout the chain of distribution.
A complete list of trial grounds and judges can be found here.
Costa Farms Wins 2024 Florida Agricultural-Environmental Leadership Award
A complete list of all AAS Winners since 1932 can be found here. The AAS Winners can now be sorted by flowers from seed, flowers from cuttings and vegetables.