This AAS 2017 National Ornamental from Seed Winner, bred by Murakami Seed Co., Ltd., claimed victory in North America’s trial sites to become the first ever AAS Winner from Japanese breeding company Murakami Seed. The judges gave this entry high marks in the greenhouse for the good branching, almost bushy growth habit and early-to-bloom flower spikes. In the garden, 'Asian Garden' celosia continued to bloom on sturdy stems, keeping the bright pink color all summer long, holding up even through some of the first frosts of the season. The AAS judges commented on the fact that this celosia was a pollinator-magnet, making this AAS Winner a sure bet for pollinator-friendly gardens

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If you are looking for a plant with little ornamental peppers that start off black and change to a beautiful, head-turning red, you'll be over the moon for this Regional (Southeast and Heartland) AAS 2016 Ornamental from Seed Winner from Seeds By Design. This newest in AAS' ornamental pepper winners is a very early flower- and fruit-producer that keeps up production through fall. The consistent plant habit and well branched fullness of the dark green, purple-black foliage make it an excellent addition to any mixed container, flower bed or cut flower design. The red conical shaped fruit are edible but not recommended as they are very spicy.

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Striking foliage with large double blooms of cherry pink make this geranium an AAS 2016 Ornamental Vegetative National Winner (bred by Dummen Orange). Gardeners looking for unique and distinct foliage to accent their containers and gardens will be delighted with Brocade Cherry Night.  The bronze leaves with green margins are a remarkable and unusual addition to any design. Add the double bright cherry blooms and this heat tolerant geranium is your winner for any planter, container or garden!

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This AAS 2016 Ornamental Vegetative National Winner (bred by Dummen Orange) has unique bi-color foliage with a nonstop display of orange flowers that gives it an exceptional look in any garden. Geranium 'Brocade Fire' is ideal for combination planters, landscapes and garden beds. This robust plant keeps its distinguishing foliage color and brilliant blooms throughout the hot summers then becomes a fantastic transitional flower going into fall. The orange flowers contrast with the striking foliage making this geranium a much appreciated and talked about new annual winner.

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This AAS 2016 Ornamental Seed Regional Winner (Southeast, Heartland, and Great Lakes) from by Takii & Co. Ltd. is the newest in color. The unique flower color of dusty lavender purple is a delight in the garden and flower containers as well as a major attractor of pollinators including bees, butterflies and hummingbirds. An extra bonus is how much the Goldfinch loves these flower seeds in the fall.  It’s a photo-ready moment when these complementary colors of gold and lavender connect! The early blooming, stable, compact uniform growth, and continuous flowering of this plant are additional positives to this plant.

This AAS 2015 Bedding Plant National Winner bred by PanAmerican Seed is a dianthus with brightly colored and large, showy flower heads on strong stems that perform extremely well all summer long. Jolt is the most heat tolerant dianthus on the market, sporting very showy, bright pink fringed flowers. Judges called this entry the “Best of the trials! We wish all dianthus performed this well.” This is an easy to grow and trouble-free annual for the gardener looking for neat and tidy low-maintenance flower varieties. Greenhouse growers should note that 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.

Fabulous and stunning color on a Wave petunia! The first Tidal Wave to win an AAS award was Silver in 2002. Now there is this AAS 2015 Flower National Winner (bred by PanAmerican Seed) with gorgeous deep red velvety blooms that don’t fade even in the heat of summer. Large flowers literally cover the vigorously spreading plants that rarely need deadheading because new blooms continuously pop up and cover the old, spent blooms. 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.

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The truly unique genetic background of this AAS 2015 Ornamental Vegetative National Winner, bred by Sakata Ornamentals delivers unsurpassed garden performance with season-long, soft pink flowers that never slow down. Strong roots take hold quickly after transplanting and these impatiens thrive under high heat, rain and humidity. The AAS Judges loved these vigorous spreading plants that keep their shape all summer, plus, they do just as well in full sun as in shade. These low-maintenance plants are perfect for gardeners looking for impatiens that are resistant to downy mildew.

This AAS 2015 Ornamental Vegetative National Winner from Selecta provides gardeners with shade garden confidence. Bounce looks like an Impatiens walleriana in habit, flower form and count, but is completely downy mildew resistant, which means this impatiens will last from spring all the way through fall. Bounce Pink Flame boasts of a massive amount of stunning, bright pink bicolor blooms with tons of color to brighten your garden, be it in shade or sun. And caring for impatiens has never been easier: just add water and they’ll “bounce” right back! Available in plant form only.

The Trilogy petunia series has a new color with this stunningly rich, vibrant red version (and AAS 2015 Bedding Plant National Winner from Takii & Co., Ltd.)! Trilogy petunias are known for their compact dome-shaped habit sporting large non-fading blooms throughout the season. The plants cover and recover themselves in upright blooms providing a constant mass of color in flower beds, baskets, and containers. Gardeners in high heat areas will appreciate the heat-tolerance of this variety and all gardeners will like how quickly Trilogy recovers after a rain. For growers, judges noted there was less need for PGRs and on the bench, the controlled growth habit meant tidier plants that were easier to separate and ship.

A third color in the popular Summer Jewel series, white brings a much-needed color to compact salvias. This dwarf-sized, compact AAS 2015 Bedding Plant National Winner from Takii & Co., Ltd. has a prolific bloom count throughout the summer. As a bonus, the blooms appear almost two weeks earlier than other white salvias used as comparisons. Judges noted how the bees, butterflies and hummingbirds loved the larger flowers, making it perfect for a pollinator garden. Because of the compactness and number of flowers, Summer Jewel White is great for large landscaped areas, as well as containers and small beds. Commercial growers now have an excellent compact white salvia coccinea and will appreciate the earliness, uniformity and excellent pack performance.

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