Download 2004 Georgia Gold Medal Winners

2004 Georgia Gold Medal Winners
Chartreuse Joseph's Coat
Summer Annual
(Alternanthera ficoidea 'Chartreuse')
Like glowing beams of sunshine, Chartreuse Joseph's Coat is a
dazzling, trouble-free addition to any landscape. It is prized for its
eye-catching yellow-green foliage, compact growth habit, durabili­
ty, and nonstop color from early spring until fall frost.
Chartreuse Joseph's Coat is sometimes confused ill the nursery
trade because it goes by several common names, including Golden
Parrot Leaf, Golden Alternanthera or Chartreuse Calico Plant.
Sometimes a yellow-green form of Summer Poinsettia
(Amaran/hus) is also called Joseph's Coat. Landscapers call the
plant Chartreuse Alternanthera to avoid the common name confu­
SiOD.
Chartreuse Josepb's Coat has many uses in the landscape.
Growing just 4 to 8 inches tall, it's a favorite plant for use in
formal knot gardens or as edging to define plant beds. Theme
parks, like Disney World in Orlando, Florida, use the plant to
create intricate, eye-catclling lloral designs in the landscape.
Landscapers call Chartreuse Joseph's Coat an "echo plant"
because it tends to enhance or echo other colors, making them
appear more vibrant - particularly magenta, purple or blue. It's
also a favorite addition to container gardens and hanging baskets
where it spills over the side like froth from a bubbling stream.
Joseph's Coat is actually an heirloom plant that was popular
in the Victorian era when formal gardens were in vogue. Today,
thanks to the introduction of several exciting new cultivars
from Mexico and South America, there is a renewed interest in
the plant. It's an excellent plant for today's busy gardener
because it provides season-long color while requiring little
routine care.
Summer Snowflake Viburnum
Full Sun
Plant Characteristics: Chartreuse Joseph's Coat is asummer annual
prized for its yellow-green foliage. Small, greenish-white llowers
are borne in leaf axils, but they are usually hidden within the
foliage. Plants have a compact, mounded growth habit, growing 4
to 8 inches tall and 6to 12 inches wide. Leaves are opposite, 1/2 to
I inch long and linear in shape. Stems as well as leaves are bright
yellow-green.
Cultural Requirements: Chartreuse Joseph's Coat is most colorful
when planted in full sun, although it also will perform well in
morning sun and afternoon shade. Moist, well-drained soils are
essential. Like other annual plants, scheduled irrigation is required
to keep plants looking their best. Light pinching (removal of the
terminal shoots) throughout the season will keep them compact. In
formal landscapes, plants are sometimes sheared to provide a uni­
form shape and appearance.
Plant spacing depends on the desired visual effect. In formal
beds where a mass effect is required and plants are to be sheared as
one unit for a uniform look, set plants 6inches apart. In beds
where plants will be viewed as individuals, a spacing of 12 to 15
inches is recommended.
Fertilize Chartreuse Joseph's Coat at planting lime with acom­
plete slow-release fertilizer, such as Osmocote 18-6-12. No addi­
tional fertilizer should be needed throughout the season. Place 3
inches of a fine-textured mulch, such as pine straw or pine bark
mininuggets, on the soil surface at planting time to help maintain
uniform soil moisture.
Chartreuse Joseph's Coat can be propagated from terminal
cuttings.
(Viburnum plicatum VOL tomentosum 'Summer Snowflake?
Hardiness Zones S 10 8
Deciduous Shrub
Full/Port Sun
Not many shrubs bloom continuously from spring to fall, then
end the growing season with bright red fruit and rich, wine-red
fall leaves. But Summer Snowllake Viburnum does just that.
The vibrant, snow-white llowers are showstoppers in the
spring landscape. Then, as spring blossoms fade and other
plants begin their summer growth phase, Summer Snowllake
Viburnum gears up for an encore performance, llowering
repeatedly througbout the summer and fall, often as late as
November. "It's a great transition plant,"says Dottie Myers,
Atlanta landscape architect, "because it blooms when other
plants are not blooming."
Summer Snowllake Viburnum is a deciduous shrub, so it's
best to plant evergreens nearby to mask its winter nudity.
Lillie Gem Magnolia, Henry Anise-tree or Japanese
Cryptomeria, three other Gold Medal Winners from years past,
are excellent companion plants. Use Summer Snowllake
Viburnum as a single specimen or in groups of 3 to 5 plants
for added interest in the landscape. It grows smaller and is
more compact than many other viburnums, reaching 4 to 8
feet tall at maturity.
If Summer SnowJ1ake Viburnum has one llaw, it's a lack of
drought tolerance. Water is essential during periods of limited
rainfall, or leaf-scorching and a decline in bloom will result. Drip
irrigation is recommended to keep the plant looking its best.
Plant Characteristics: Summer SnowJ1ake Viburnum is an upright
deciduous shrub growing 4 to 8 feet tall tall and 3 to 4 feet wide.
Leaves are opposite, 2 to 4 inches long and I to 2 inches wide.
Flowers are borne in llat clusters, 2 to 4 inches wide on top of the
branches, giving the plant a layered effect. Each llower cluster con­
sists of many snow-white outer llowers surrounding a group of
inner, less showy llowers. The Ilowers give way in late summer to
clusters of bright-red fruit which fade to black. Awine-red leaf
color signals the end to another growing season.
Few pests seem to botber Summer Snowllake Viburnum. However,
drought and wet feet will cause leaf scorching or die-back.
Cultural Requirements: Moist, well-drained soils are essential
ingredients for success with Summer Snowflake Viburnum. Afull
sun environment is ideal if irrigation can be provided during peri­
ods of limited rainfall. Alocation providing morning sun and
afternoon shade is also acceptable.
Set plants 6to 8 feet apart to allow them to achieve their full
potential as shrubs. Wait until the plants are well established before
fertilizing, then apply two to three light applications of a com­
plete fertilizer, such as 16-4-8, during the growing season.
Prune as needed after spring llowering by thinning excess
branches within the canopy. Spring blossoms form on previous
season's growth, while repeat blooms form on new growth.
Take Home a Georgia Gold Medal Plant ... and Take Home a Winner!
Prepared by Gary L. Wade and James
T. Midcap, Extension Horticulturists, The University of Georgia
Anise Hysso, Hybrids
(Agastache spp.) 'Apricot Sunrise', 'Firebird', 'Tutti Frutti', 'Blue Fortune'
How many plants can you name that bloom non-stop
from May until fall frost, attract butterflies and humming­
birds like magnets, have fragrant, pest-free foliage, resist deer
browsing, and come back each year with vigor? If that
sounds too good to be true, then you need to plant one of
the Anise Hyssop Hybrids (Agastache spp.) and discover for
yourself the award-winning qualities of this remarkable
plant.
Because there are so many outstanding new selections of
Anise Hyssop, the Plant Selections Committee could not
agree on just one to receive its coveted Gold Medal Award. So
it chose four of the best: 'Apricot Sunrise', 'Firebird', 'Tutti
Frutti', and'Blue Fortune'. All are hybrids produced from
crosses between two species.
The native American species of Anise Hyssop, Agastache
Joeniculum, has long been a prized perennial herb known for
its anise (licorice) foliage scent and its culinary and medicinal
qualities. The leaves are ground and used as seasoning on
meats, vegetables, and salads. The leaves are also used in teas,
perfume, and aromatherapy. Native American Indians used
Anise Hyssop as a breath freshener and in poultices for vari­
ous ailments. Although our Gold Medal selections are rela­
tives of the native species, they were bred for their flowering
qualities and may lack some of the herbal qualities of the
na tive species.
'Blue Fortune'
Bald, Cypress
Herbaceous Perennial
Full Sun
Hardiness Zones 7 to 8
Plant Characteristics: Each of the Anise Hyssop Hybrids
grows to a different height and has a different flower color,
so you need to decide which one best fits your landscape plan.
(Taxodium distichum)
Apricot Sunrise is an erect, bushy plant growing 18 inches
tall. It bears orange-apricot, tubular flowers, I to I 1/2
inches long in its leafaxils. Firebird grows 24 to 36 inches
tall and produces copper-orange tubular flowers. Tutti
Frutti grows 36 to 48 inches tall and produces raspberry­
rose-pink tubular flowers. Blue Fortune grows 36 to 40
inches tall. Unlike the other three hybrids, Blue Fortune pro­
duces an abundance of compressed, blue-purple, tubular
flowers in the form of a flower spike at its terminals. All
selections bloom continuously from May to October and are
highly attractive to insects, hummingbirds and butterflies.
Their pungent foliage makes them undesirable to deer.
Cultural Requirement: Full sun and well-drained soils are
required. Fall planting is best to allow winter rooting. Once
established, the plants have an exceptional degree of drought
tolerance. Light pruning throughout the season will pro­
mote branching and additional blooms.
Aslow-release fertilize, such as Osmocote, applied at
planting time and as a topdressing in early spring each year
on established plants, will provide sufficient season-long
nutrition. FoUow label recommendations on application
rate.
Wait until early spring to prune back established plants
because fall and winter pruning may decrease cold hardiness.
Anise Hyssop Hybrids are propagated from cuttings or
root divisions.
Deciduous Tree
Full Sun
Hardiness Zones 4 to 10
Most people associate Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum)
with the Okefenokee Swamp or the Florida Everglades, where
they see it growing in large colonies, called groves, with its
roots submerged in water and its branches draped in Spanish
moss. But you don't have to live in a swamp to grow Bald
Cypress. Although the swamp is its preferred habitat, the tree
is surprisingly adaptable to dry sites as well.
acidic. It's a large, deciduous tree, growing 50 to 80 feet tall
and 20 to 30 feet wide. It has soft-textured, flat needles, 1/2
to 3/4 inch long, spirally arranged around the twigs. They
emerge yellow-green in spring and turn bright green by sum­
mer, then bronze-orange in fall before dropping. As the tree
ages, the bark becomes fibrous and turns reddish-brown, mak­
ing a dramatic statement in the winter landscape.
Bald Cypress is a native American tree with a wide growing
range. It's a common wetland plant from Delaware to Florida
and from Indiana to Texas. It has prehistoric roots in the evo­
lution of our planet, and it likely was a COmmon species in
the landscape when dinosaurs roamed the earth.
Male and female flowers are formed separately on the tree.
The male flowers are drooping panicles, 4 to 5 inches long,
while the female nowers are more compressed along the stems.
Female !lowers develop into round, I-inch cones that turn
brown in fall.
Bald Cypress is a deciduous conifer. It grows to a large,
stately tree, reaching 70 feet or more at maturity, so it's best
used in large, open spaces such as parks or large residential
properties. It's often overlooked as a highway tree, and it's
spectacular when used in clusters of three or more along a
pond or lake. However, its large size may limit its use in small
residential landscapes.
Cypress knees, vertical root extensions, are commonly seen
on trees submerged in water. They aid in oxygen absorption.
Knees do not form on plants growing on upland sites.
Bald Cypress was one of the most highly rated trees among
the more than 200 species in an Auburn University evaluation
program. In addition to being a tough, widely adaptable tree,
it develops an attractive, pyramidal growth form that requires
little pruning.
Cultural Requirements: Bald Cypress has a strong taproot
system and is hard to transplant from the wild. It is best
planted from a container. The tree tends to develop a natural
pyramidal form and requires little pruning. Fertilize estab­
lished trees on upland sites once in spring with a complete fer­
tilizer like 16-4-8 or 12-4-8. Avoid fertilizing trees growing
in standing water because the fertilizer may be harmful to the
biology of the pond or lake.
Plant Characteristics: Bald Cypress prefers sites in full sun.
It adapts to both wet and dry soils, but prefers soils that are
Georgio Gold Medal Winners ore selected ea(h year by the Georgia Plant Selection Commillee, comprised of Green Industry professionals and faculty from The University
of Georgia. The Commillee promotes the production, sale and use of superior ornamental plants in Georgia. For information on other Georgia Gold Medal Winners, visit
www.georgiagoldmedal.com