Click below to listen to my 2 min. Garden Bite radio show/podcast: UMN 2022 annual flower trial results
Yesterday was about AAS Landscape Design winners, today I’m sharing the results of the University of Minnesota Extensions Annual flower trials!
With November being the “cloudiest” month, I wanted to brighten it up with pretty flowers.
The U’s Horticulture Display Garden is in Morris, Mn. which is located in Zone 4. Each year, the Top Ten Performing Annuals are selected from the hundreds of cultivars trialed.
Annual flowers are evaluated on unique characteristics, exceptional performance, color and vigor under regional conditions. A visual evaluation and score are given to each variety several times during the growing season.
I don’t have time to share all top 10! but I have the link to them on gardenbite dot com with more information. If you’re into pink, this Celosia will grab you. Kelos Candela Pink is a 2021 AAS winner and was outstanding in the garden despite higher temps, lower moisture and plenty of wind.
A unique and vigorous celosia, it performed well in containers and in the ground. The branching habit promotes multiple inflorescences that continue to grow all season long reaching nearly two feet in length! Despite its height, it stays upright due to its thick stalks. Shocking pink flowers rise from foliage that is a dark maroon in the center and lighter green around the edges.
Lantana are one of my favorite annuals. Lantana Shamrock™ Peach Improved is a prolific bloomer with a combination of pink and yellow flowers that deliver the peach tone.
It’s nicely mounded too, no overreaching branches, they stay uniform.
Check out MY favorite, a portulaca called Mohave Yellow 2023 on gardenbite dot com. It spreads to nearly 2 ft in diameter with large yellow blooms covering the entire plant, not just new growth.
Penn State also trials annuals and perennials. Here’s a link to their results so far!