15 Retailers’ Choice awards handed out at Cultivate’23
The Garden Center Group recently announced winners of the 2023 15 Retailers’ Choice awards at Cultivate’23. There were nearly 70 items nominated, and the panel of judges narrowed it down to these 15 winners.
Bailey Nurseries
Hydrangea ‘Eclipse’
This new addition to the First Editions family is a hydrangea that features the dark purple, almost black foliage and cranberry red blooms. ‘Eclipse’ holds that dark color all season, even after being cut back or when grown in warm climates where other hydrangeas start to go green.
Ball Seed
Peppers From Heaven – Red Sweet Peppers
Judges were amazed with ‘Peppers From Heaven’, a pepper that finally offers consumers a new way to grow sweet peppers. Attractive mounding/trailing habit makes it suitable for hanging baskets. Lots of fleshy fruit turn from green to glossy in color. Compact plants bear fruit all season long with pollinators.
Biostok
Gen Z Plants 2 Tropical Assorted Houseplants
Biostok caught the judges’ attention with three new assortments of small tropicals in 2-inch with focus on the Gen Z consumer. Here’s their description: “With more and more young people turning to indoor plants for companionship and a sense of mindfulness, we wanted to create a program that catered to their unique needs and interests. To make it easier for you to choose from, we have categorized the program into three different packages (Beleaf, Becool, Bebold), which cater to different requirements, including our best selection of 2-inch plants.”
Bloomin’ Easy
Hydrangea ‘Cherry Go Round’
A Plants Nouveau introduction, Bloomin’ Easy says this new addition is small in frame but huge in deep color. Zones 5 to 9, part sun; afternoon shade preferred, and only 2 to 3 feet tall and wide.
Darwin Perennials
Echinacea ‘Double Scoop’ Watermelon Deluxe
These new Deluxe varieties have the branching, flower count and timing of the Sombrero series with even more compact with better branching and a higher flower count than the typical double-flowered echinacea.
Three new flavors are added for 2024 — Watermelon, Orangeberry, and Raspberry Deluxe.
Centaurea ‘Silver Swirl’
‘Silver Swirl’ offers toughness in zones 6 to 9. Judges noted the thick, tough feel of the foliage and the spectacular silver color.
Dewar Nurseries
Edible fruit program
Dewar’s collection of edible fruit plants come in highly decorative pots with both fruit image and information tags.
ForemostCo.
Schefflera
This new selection of schefflera looks nothing like your typical one. Judges were intrigued with its extremely deep serrated leaves and began referring to it as the “Edward Scissorhands” plant.
Green Trade Horticultural
Colocasia ‘Redemption’
Rippled, shiny leaves emerge green and quickly turn black with the help of the sun. As the leaves mature, a neon-pink blotch forms, growing larger and radiating outward like a bright pink starburst in the center of each leaf.
IC3D Printers
3D Printed Decorative Planters
IC3D specializes in 3D printing for manufacturing based out of Columbus, Ohio, since 2012. While they do custom production for huge companies (including Ford, US Air Force and Navy, NASA, and many more), they are creating some unique plant containers.
PDSI
Aspidistra elatior ‘Tokyo Skies’ (Southern Living Plant Collection
Judges remarked their grandmothers had a “cast-iron plant,” and for good reason. It has earned its reputation for decades as a hard-to-kill houseplant, along with being a beautiful outdoor foliage plant within its growing Zones 8 to 10. ‘Tokyo Skies’ brings a totally new look with its attractive variegated foliage to brighten shady locations.
Predictive Nutrient Solutions
My Soil-Test Kit
MySoil Test Kit has a direct connection to not only help the consumer with identifying their soil nutrient condition, but it redirects for needed solutions back to the selling retail garden center and the products that center carries.
Star Roses and Plants
Redbud ‘Garden Gem Amethyst’
Judges said this new ‘cercis Garden Gems Amethyst’ has some of the deepest purple color in its heart-shaped leaves. It is reported to hold this color even in the hottest days of summer, providing dramatic color no matter the season.
The HC Companies
Low profile tray
These trays take up less space than standard trays.
We The Wild
Houseplant Essential Kits
Three new assortments from We the Wild received an award: Revive + Thrive Duo for houseplant vitality; Leaf Care Duo for lush leaves; and Houseplant Essentials for total plant care.
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