All-America Selections Announces Eight More Regional & National Winners For 2014

All-America Selections Floral January 28, 2014

Just in time for the 2014 gardening season, All-America Selections (AAS) is pleased to present eight more AAS Winners that proved themselves to be superior garden performers. With the addition of these eight winners, we have a grand total of nineteen winners for the 2014 gardening season, the most AAS Winners announced in one year since the first winners were announced in our first decade of existence in the 30’s and 40’s.

Both growers and retailers will want to offer the following National and Regional Winners to fulfill customer requests.

The four newest Regional Winners are:

  • Cucumber Saladmore Bush F1
  • Eggplant Patio Baby F1
  • Pepper Giant Ristra F1
  • Radish Rivoli

The four newest National Winners are:

  • Angelonia Serenita™ Pink F1
  • Impatiens, New Guinea Florific™ Sweet Orange F1
  • Ornamental Pepper NuMex Easter
  • Osteospermum AkilaÒ Daisy White F1

(Please allow several weeks for seed sources of the AAS Winners in this announcement to appear.)

  • A list of all AAS Winners since 1932 can be found here and the list is now sortable by National or Regional Winners:

http://www.aaswinners.com/winners/index.cfm

All-America Selections® was founded in 1932 and continues as the oldest independent testing organization in North America. Every year, new, never-before-sold varieties are trialed in our Trial Grounds and professional horticulturists determine which varieties will be deemed winners based on their garden performance. AAS relies upon a public relations program to inform gardeners about AAS Winners that are announced three times each year.

 

Cucumber Saladmore Bush F1

AAS 2014 Edible Winner

Regional Winner (Southeast)

Saladmore Cucumber boasts a bush-type growth habit making this AAS Winner perfect for growing in container gardens. Anyone looking for a good slicing type cucumber with dark green skin and long straight fruits will enjoy this beauty, along with its superior taste and texture; a perfect reflection of summer’s bounty. An added bonus is the disease resistance that proved to be especially valuable in warmer climates where comparison varieties easily succumbed to late season diseases.

Bred by Seeds By Design

AAS® Winner Data

Genus species: Cucumis sativus

Common name: Cucumber

Unique qualities: This semi-bush vine sets sweet crisp cucumbers as long as you keep them picked. Good garden performance due to the multiple disease resistances. Has duel use, pick small for processing as pickles and harvest larger for fresh slices or spears.

Fruit size: 7-8 inches

Fruit shape: Tapered, cylindrical

Fruit color: Dark green

Plant type: Annual

Plant height: 24-26 inches

Plant width: 24 inches

Garden location: Full sun

Garden spacing: 24 inches

Length of time to harvest: 55 days from sowing

Closest comparisons on market: Fanfare F1, Salad Bush, Bush Champion

Disease tolerances: CMV, Scab, anthracnose, PM tolerance

 


 

Eggplant Patio Baby F1

AAS 2014 Edible Winner

Regional Winner (Northeast)

Two things judge after judge brought up about this eggplant: 1) This entry produced such an attractive plant that it could be used as both an ornamental and an edible and 2) It is a perfect plant for container gardens. Patio Baby is indeed compact at less than 24” mature height, and yet it produces a prolific number of small 2-3” teardrop shaped glossy purple-black fruits. And of course, taste is a top priority in the AAS Trials and judges agreed that the taste was excellent, noting it was less bitter than the comparison varieties. Several northern judges were extremely pleased that Patio Baby grew so well in their conditions and was earlier to harvest by about a week, which is important when the gardening season is shorter.

Bred by PanAmerican Seed

AAS® Winner Data

Genus species: Solanum melongena

Common name: Eggplant

Unique qualities: Patio Baby is a very early and highly productive eggplant with a compact habit, making it a great choice for containers or in the garden. Deep purple, egg-shaped fruit should be harvested at baby size-2 to 3 inches, and are delicious roasted or in dips and salads. Thornless leaves and calyxes allow for painless harvesting and makes Patio Baby child-friendly, too. Plants will continue to produce fruit throughout the entire season.

Fruit size: 2-3 inches

Fruit shape: Ovate/egg, teardrop

Fruit color: Dark purple

Plant type: Annual

Plant height: 16-20 inches

Plant width: 18-22 inches

Garden location: Full sun

Garden spacing: 18-22 inches

Length of time to harvest: 45 days from transplanting

Closest comparisons on market: Hansel F1, Pot Black F1

Disease tolerances: N/A


 

Pepper Giant Ristra F1

AAS 2014 Edible Winner

Regional Winner (Mountain/Southwest)

Talk about versatility! Giant Ristra looks like a red Marconi pepper but has the heat of a cayenne. The texture and heat (hot, but not too hot) of this pepper makes it an excellent eating variety while it can also be dried and used in dishes for up to one year. Should you choose to use the peppers for a decoration, they can be used to make a beautiful ristra of dried peppers.

In the mountain and southern trial gardens, Ristra produced an exceptionally high yield of uniformly shaped peppers on attractive plants which judges reported were very easy to grow.

Bred by Seeds By Design

AAS® Winner Data

Genus species: Capsicum annuum

Common name: Pepper

Unique qualities: Heavy yield of bright red very hot 7-inch chile peppers. Has the appearance of a marconi but the spiciness of a cayenne. Fruits can be consumed fresh, roasted, or dried and used as herb. Giant Ristra red fruit can be strung together in long bunches and dried and displayed and used throughout the winter months.

Fruit size: 6-7 inches

Fruit shape: Elongated horn

Fruit color: Red

Plant type: Annual

Plant height: 26-28 inches

Plant width: 12-14 inches

Garden location: Full sun

Garden spacing: 12-14 inches

Length of time to harvest: 110 days from seed, 80 days from transplant

Closest comparisons on market: Sahuaro F1, Cheyenne

Disease tolerances: TMV


 

Radish Rivoli

AAS 2014 Edible Winner

Regional Winner (Southeast, Heartland and West/Northwest)

Rivoli earned the judges’ favor by producing a very large, uniformly-sized root with a bright red exterior and an exceptionally smooth, clear white interior. Unique to most radishes, Rivoli holds well and does not get pithy or woody, even under stress. All these attributes combined mean a tasty, sweet, crisp radish that also matures earlier than the comparisons.

A helpful tip from the AAS judges is to space Rivoli further apart than normal radishes since roots are much larger.

Bred by North Carolina State University, produced by Bejo Seeds

AAS® Winner Data

Genus species: Raphanus sativus

Common name: Radish

Unique qualities: Healthy leaves with fruit that is an even-colored bright red. Uniform roots are very round. Interior texture is smooth and dense with bright white color, even when roots get large. Exceptional quality and taste when picked young, but still tasty if allowed to remain in garden longer, giving gardener an extended harvest opportunity.

Fruit size: 1½ inches in diameter

Fruit shape: Round

Fruit color: Red exterior, bright white interior

Plant type: Annual

Plant height: 5 inches

Plant width: 3 inches

Garden location: Full sun

Garden spacing: Plant 1-inch apart with rows spaced 1-foot, when tops are about 2 inches thin to 2 inches apart (thinnings are edible)

Length of time to harvest: 30 days

Closest comparisons on market: Champion, Cherry Belle and Cherriette F1

Disease tolerances: Fusarium resistant with moderate mildew tolerance


 

Angelonia Serenita™ Pink F1

AAS 2014 Flower Winner

National Winner

Serenita is a compact, tough little angelonia ideal for very hot/humid temperatures like in southern areas but it does great in northern gardens too. This Serenita variety features a unique deep pink flower, not usually seen in angelonias. The AAS Judges praised this entry for being drought and heat-tolerant while continuing to produce a large number of flowers all season long.

Commercial growers should note that this is a new color for the Serenita series that require fewer PGRs to produce plants that are 2” shorter in the greenhouse, and can be up to 5” shorter in the garden.

Bred by PanAmerican Seed

AAS® Winner Data

Genus species: Angelonia angustifolia

Common name: Angelonia, summer snapdragon

Unique qualities: Deep pink flower color. Elegant yet tough plants bring long-lasting color with very little maintenance. Beautiful in mixed combos on the patio or as a soothing sea of soft color in the landscape.

Flower color: Deep pink with eye

Foliage color: Green

Flower form: Spikes of zygomorphic florets

Flower size:  ½-inch bloom

Plant height: 8-12 inches

Plant type: Annual

Garden location: Full sun to partial sun in well drained soil

Garden spacing: 8-10 inches

Length of time from sowing seed to flower: 12-13 weeks

Closest comparisons on market: Serena Lavender Pink, Serena Lavender, Serena White


 

Impatiens New Guinea Florific™ Sweet Orange F1

AAS 2014 Bedding Plant Winner

National Winner

Huge 2” blooms in beautiful shades of light orange against dark green foliage create a giant impact in the garden, especially in shade or semi-shaded areas where color is needed. The natural disease tolerance of a New Guinea Impatiens is a welcome addition to a plant that boasts such beautiful flowers on a compact plant perfect for small space gardens.

Commercial growers now have an alternative to vegetative New Guinea Impatiens and one that needs fewer PGRs to keep this beauty compact and tidy.

Bred by Syngenta Flowers

AAS® Winner Data

Genus species: Impatiens hawkeri

Common name: New Guinea impatiens

Unique qualities: Perfect for brightening gardens or patio containers in partial to full shade. Plants produce masses of large, uniquely bicolored flowers in shades of light salmon to deep orange. Naturally branching plants quickly fill beds and are perfect for planting ‘en masse’. With resistance to impatiens downy mildew it is the perfect alternative for shade gardens where the disease is a concern. Unlike traditional impatiens, it will not succumb to Impatiens Downy Mildew and will, instead, provide reliable, bright color in the garden all season long.

Flower color: Light salmon and orange bicolor

Foliage color: Dark Bronze-Green

Flower form: Single

Flower size: 2 inches

Plant height: 8-12 inches

Plant type: Annual

Garden location: Shade to partial sun

Garden spacing: 12inches

Length of time from sowing seed to flower: 12-13 weeks

Closest comparisons on market: Divine Orange (green leaf) Divine Orange (bronze leaf)

 

 

Ornamental Pepper NuMex Easter

AAS 2014 Bedding Plant Winner

National Winner

You know the AAS judges were impressed when the scores sheets read like this: “Exceptional plant. Love this little pepper! Striking color! Eye-catching! So easy to grow! Loaded with pepper fruits in fun colors. A favorite of garden visitors!”

NuMex Easter is a very compact plant, growing to only 6” high but packs quite a punch in such a small package. Beautiful purple, yellow and orange conical fruits pop up above the foliage for a great display of color.

Commercial growers will appreciate the shorter crop time for NuMex which results in earlier blooms on a very compact, well-branched and uniform plant with fantastic fruit coloration. Judges familiar with the bedding plant market think this is the first real ornamental pepper for bedding plant growers.

Bred by The Chili Pepper Institute at New Mexico State University

AAS® Winner Data

Genus species: Capsicum annuum

Common name: Ornamental pepper

Unique qualities: Novel color of fruit and compact growth. White flowers yield fruit in a range of colors from lavender to light yellow and when fully mature a light orange. Excellent in pots and perfect in the garden as a low edging.

Flower color: White

Foliage color: Green

Flower form: Small clusters of 4-6 upright showy fruits

Flower size: ¼” flower, peppers are 1.5 inches long

Plant height: 6 inches

Plant type: Annual

Garden location: Full sun with at least 12 hours of good quality sunlight

Garden spacing: 10 inches

Length of time from sowing seed to flower: 60 days

Closest comparisons on market: NuMex Twilight, Prairie Fire


 

Osteospermum Akila® Daisy White F1

AAS 2014 Bedding Plant Winner

National Winner

White osteospermums are not unique but a clear white osteo with a yellow center is a novelty, plus, it’s easily grown from seed. Akila® Daisy White is a tidy, uniform plant with open flowers that produces non-stop blooms all summer long. Even southern judges praised Akila’s ability to keep blooming in the heat and they also showed more drought tolerance than other osteos.

Daisy White is part of the Akila series and boasts the same great greenhouse performance as the other colors in the series, none of which need pinching or vernalization.

Bred by PanAmerican Seed

AAS® Winner Data

Genus species: Osteospermum ecklonis

Common name: Cape daisy, African daisy

Unique qualities: More blooms per plant than other seed osteo, great garden performance

Flower color: Pure White

Foliage color: Dark green

Flower form: Composite

Flower size: 2-inch diameter

Plant height: 14-16 inches

Plant type: Annual

Garden location: Full sun

Garden spacing: 10-12 inches on center

Length of time from sowing seed to flower: 12-14 weeks

Closest comparisons on market: Asti White, Akila White, Passion Mix

 

Other recently announced 2014 AAS Winners:

Ornamentals

Edibles

Source: All-America Selections