Four new garden plants have been awarded the prestigious honor of being an All America Selection (AAS) for 1998. These new cultivars have been judged as superior in their class based on their performance in test gardens all over the country.
Lemon Basil ‘Sweet Dani’ was selected for both its culinary and ornamental value in the garden. ‘Sweet Dani’ was bred by a team of Purdue University researchers for its strong lemon scent and its compact, well-branched foliage. ‘Sweet Dani’ reaches up to 26 inches and will produce white flower spikes if left uncut. Gardeners interested in using the leaves for cooking can cut the plant repeatedly as needed with excellent regrowth.
Swiss Chard ‘Bright Lights’ is a brightly colored assortment of edible chard greens, accented with a rainbow of leaf stalks in red, white, yellow, gold, orange, pink, violet, or striped. The leaves have a mild chard flavor and can be harvested as soon as 4 to 5 weeks after planting the seed. Chard will regrow after the leaves are cut, resulting in multiple harvests. ‘Bright Lights’ will tolerate light frosts, making it an excellent candidate for fall gardening.
Impatiens ‘Victorian Rose’ is distinguished by being the first impatiens with consistently semi-double blooms. ‘Victorian Rose’ also has a greater number of blooms compared to other semi-double cultivars, giving this plant a more impressive display of color. Like other impatiens, ‘Victorian Rose’ performs best in shade and adapts well to growing in containers.
Petunia ‘Prism Sunshine’ is a single grandiflora (large-flowered) selected for its unique creamy yellow color that holds up well in summer heat. The 3- to 3.5-inch blooms literally cover the petite plants, which spread up to 20 inches as a low-growing bedding plant. ‘Prism Sunshine’ performs best in full sun and also adapts well to containers and hanging baskets.
The AAS winners are selected from many new cultivars based on garden performance, as well as production performance in the greenhouse. Although no plant offers a guarantee of success in an individual garden, the AAS winners have proved themselves worthy through many different types of growing conditions. Try these new selections alongside your old standbys so you’ll have a means of comparison. AAS winners should be available through local garden centers and mail-order catalogs next spring.