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Dazzling plants, products garner Retailer’s Choice Awards

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Ruby Ruffle® Patio Peach (Prunus persica Ruby Ruffle®), developed by the JC Raulston Arboretum at North Carolina State University, offered by Alpha Nursery (Salem, Oregon) and part of the Star Roses & Plants Bloomables collection, is  a compact ornamental tree blooms with clusters of dark pink, ruffled flowers in the spring followed by burgundy foliage with unique wavy edges. This selection is perfect for patio containers.
Camelia sinensis ‘Yellow Tea’, offered by Youngblood Nursery (Salem, Oregon), is a small shrub that grows to 6’ with shiny green and yellow variegated leaves and small yellow flowers.
Dahlia Venti™ Fireburst, offered by Ball Seed (Chicago, Illinois), is a very special red Dahlia that is more red than Fireball, with a bigger anemone “burst” flower pattern.
CentaureaSilver Swirl (Centaurea ragusina Silver Swirl), offered by Ball Seed, has distinctive silvery white foliage with wavy leaf edges and offers better winter hardiness and is ideal for combination plantings and front-of-the-border plantings.
Edge of Night Mondo Grass (Ophiopogon planiscapus ‘Edge of Night’), offered by Iseli Nursery (Boring, Oregon), is an attractive form of black mondo grass with a very narrow white stripe that runs down the outside of each blade-like leaf, providing a subtle contrast with the predominant shiny black color.
Helleborus Winter Moonbeam (Helleborus hybrid ‘Winter Moonbeam’ PP21062), offered by Meridian Young Plants (Lynden, Washington), has deep green leaves that are variegated and intricately veined in silver-grey.
Dark Fire Montbretia (Crocosmia ‘Dark Fire’ PP35303) offered by Monrovia, has smoky purple-green foliage that gives this plant a moody air before going ablaze with red and yellow bi-color flowers in summer. It’s a vigorous, clump-forming perennial that is adored by hummingbirds.
Pink Spike Snakeroot (Actaea simplex ‘Pink Spike’), offered by Monrovia (Dayton, Oregon), has chocolate-purple foliage with long, slender, light pink flower spikes in the late summer and fall.
Growth Technology GT Focus range of plant fertilizers offered by PlantHaul of Tustin, California.
Kodiak Jet Black® Diervilla (Diervilla Kodiak Jet Black® Diervilla (Diervilla  ‘SMNDSN’ PPAF), offered by Proven Winners (DeKalb, Illinois), is a tough, easy-growing shrub is a standout with its dark burgundy-black foliage. The color is especially intense in spring and autumn. The bright yellow flowers add contrast in early summer. ‘SMNDSN’ PPAF), offered by Proven Winners (DeKalb, Illinois), is a tough, easy-growing shrub is a standout with its dark burgundy-black foliage. The color is especially intense in spring and autumn. The bright yellow flowers add contrast in early summer.
Buddleia Moptop™ Fountain Butterfly Bush (Buddleja alternifolia ‘SMNBAB’ PP36748, CPBRAF), offered by Proven Winners, has a unique fountain habit with long, weeping branches covered in clusters of pale purple flowers. Unlike other butterfly bushes, this one blooms in the spring.
Sweet Caroline Shadowstorm™ Ornamental Sweet Potato Vine (Ipomoea batatas ‘NCORNSP-034SCVPG’ PPAF), offered by Proven Winners, has heart-shaped, near-black leaves that are speckled with green and the plant is fuller so you won’t need to continually trim to prevent it from getting scraggly as it grows.
Funky Flow™ Mahonia (Mahonia hybrid ‘NCMH1’ PP34442), offered by Star Roses and Plants (West Grove, Pennsylvania), is a vibrant, compact evergreen with bright green spring foliage that matures to a deep glossy hue just in time for summer. It has a pop of neon yellow flowers through the winter.
SaucR offered by Treleaf (Acworth, Georgia) are a leafy twist on plant pot saucers and they come in the shape of a leaf or lily pad in various sizes and colors. The veins on the drip trays prevent the pot from standing in water.
MoonShadow™ Morello Hardy Hibiscus (Hibiscus moscheutos ‘G191963’ PPAF), offered by Van Belle Youngplants (Abbotsford, British Columbia)  has big, juicy raspberry-red blooms that pop against deep purple-black foliage.

Every year, beautiful new plant introductions and dazzling new products vie for attention at the Farwest Show. This year, the best of the best were given Retailer’s Choice Awards by a jury of volunteer garden retailers.

The awards were given August 21 at the Farwest Show in Portland, Oregon in a presentation emceed by Danny Summers, managing director of The Garden Center Group. Both live goods and hard goods were eligible.

Ball Seed and Monrovia each had two selections honored, and Proven Winners had three. The judges picked several plants with black/dark foliage colors, which could be indicative of a developing “goth garden” trend, Summers said. The same trend appeared at the Retailer’s Choice Awards at Cultivate, he said.

The winners:

  • Ruby Ruffle® Patio Peach (Prunus persica Ruby Ruffle®), developed by the JC Raulston Arboretum at North Carolina State University, offered by Alpha Nursery (Salem, Oregon) and part of the Star Roses & Plants Bloomables collection, is  a compact ornamental tree blooms with clusters of dark pink, ruffled flowers in the spring followed by burgundy foliage with unique wavy edges. This selection is perfect for patio containers.
  • Dahlia Venti™ Fireburst, offered by Ball Seed (Chicago, Illinois), is a very special red Dahlia that is more red than Fireball, with a bigger anemone “burst” flower pattern.
  • CentaureaSilver Swirl (Centaurea ragusina Silver Swirl), offered by Ball Seed, has distinctive silvery white foliage with wavy leaf edges and offers better winter hardiness and is ideal for combination plantings and front-of-the-border plantings.
  • Edge of Night Mondo Grass (Ophiopogon planiscapus ‘Edge of Night’), offered by Iseli Nursery (Boring, Oregon), is an attractive form of black mondo grass with a very narrow white stripe that runs down the outside of each blade-like leaf, providing a subtle contrast with the predominant shiny black color.
  • Helleborus Winter Moonbeam (Helleborus hybrid ‘Winter Moonbeam’ PP21062), offered by Meridian Young Plants (Lynden, Washington), has deep green leaves that are variegated and intricately veined in silver-grey.
  • Pink Spike Snakeroot (Actaea simplex ‘Pink Spike’), offered by Monrovia (Dayton, Oregon), has chocolate-purple foliage with long, slender, light pink flower spikes in the late summer and fall.
  • Dark Fire Montbretia (Crocosmia ‘Dark Fire’ PP35303) offered by Monrovia, has smoky purple-green foliage that gives this plant a moody air before going ablaze with red and yellow bi-color flowers in summer. It’s a vigorous, clump-forming perennial that is adored by hummingbirds.
  • Growth Technology GT Focus range of plant fertilizers offered by PlantHaul of Tustin, California.
  • Kodiak Jet Black® Diervilla (Diervilla  ‘SMNDSN’ PPAF), offered by Proven Winners (DeKalb, Illinois), is a tough, easy-growing shrub is a standout with its dark burgundy-black foliage. The color is especially intense in spring and autumn. The bright yellow flowers add contrast in early summer.
  • Buddleia Moptop™ Fountain Butterfly Bush (Buddleja alternifolia ‘SMNBAB’ PP36748, CPBRAF), offered by Proven Winners, has a unique fountain habit with long, weeping branches covered in clusters of pale purple flowers. Unlike other butterfly bushes, this one blooms in the spring. (This variety is not on the Oregon Department of Agriculture approval list for sale in Oregon.)
  • Sweet Caroline Shadowstorm™ Ornamental Sweet Potato Vine (Ipomoea batatas ‘NCORNSP-034SCVPG’ PPAF), offered by Proven Winners, has heart-shaped, near-black leaves that are speckled with green and the plant is fuller so you won’t need to continually trim to prevent it from getting scraggly as it grows.
  • Funky Flow™ Mahonia (Mahonia hybrid ‘NCMH1’ PP34442), offered by Star Roses and Plants (West Grove, Pennsylvania), is a vibrant, compact evergreen with bright green spring foliage that matures to a deep glossy hue just in time for summer. It has a pop of neon yellow flowers through the winter.
  • SaucR offered by Treleaf (Acworth, Georgia) are a leafy twist on plant pot saucers and they come in the shape of a leaf or lily pad in various sizes and colors. The veins on the drip trays prevent the pot from standing in water.
  • MoonShadow™ Morello Hardy Hibiscus (Hibiscus moscheutos ‘G191963’ PPAF), offered by Van Belle Youngplants (Abbotsford, British Columbia)  has big, juicy raspberry-red blooms that pop against deep purple-black foliage.
  • Camelia sinensis ‘Yellow Tea’, offered by Youngblood Nursery (Salem, Oregon), is a small shrub that grows to 6’ with shiny green and yellow variegated leaves and small yellow flowers.

From the September 2025 issue of Digger magazine | Download PDF of article