Grand Haven, MI – The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society (PHS) has included Proven Winners® ColorChoice® Bobo® Hydrangea paniculata in its 2021 list of Gold Medal Plants.
An exceptionally floriferous dwarf cultivar, Bobo® H. paniculata blooms in summer with large, lacy, white flowers that age to a soft pink. The compact cultivar reaches heights/widths of 2.5-3’ and is hardy in USDA zones 3 – 8 (-40°F/-40°C).
Bobo® hydrangea is one of seven plants awarded the 2021 PHS Gold Medal award. Plants are selected for the program based on hardiness, ease of growing, weather tolerance, and pest resistance. According to the PHS website, the award “recognizes exceptional perennials and pollinator-friendly plants as judged by a committee of PHS horticulturists, expert gardeners, nursery owners, and more.”
When notified about the award, breeder Dr. Johan Van Huylenbroeck of the Flanders Research Institute for Agriculture remarked, “When we selected Bobo® in 2005 in our hydrangea breeding program, I never thought that this dwarf plant could become such a giant for garden lovers. This award is a great recognition of our efforts to develop sustainable, healthy and good-looking garden plants. It encourages us to continue in this direction.”
Bobo® joins ‘Limelight’ as a PHS Gold Medal Award-winning panicle hydrangea. Both are Proven Winners® ColorChoice® varieties, introduced by Spring Meadow Nursery.
Tim Wood, breeder and product development manager at Spring Meadow Nursery remarked in his Plant Hunter blog, “I had no idea how good this plant was until it spent a few years in our trialing program. I knew it was a good container plant, but I soon discovered it was an even more remarkable garden plant that simply glows in the landscape. It is compact and dwarf in habit, and the flowers cover every inch of the plant right down to the ground.”
A longtime admirer of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society and the work they do, Tim found this endorsement of Bobo® to be very meaningful, saying, “I think I can speak for everyone at Spring Meadow when I say how proud we are that Bobo® has been recognized with this important award.”
More information about the PHS Gold Medal Award can be found here. For more information about Bobo panicle hydrangea, visit ProvenWinners-Shrubs.com and SpringMeadowNursery.com.
