We have almost two thousand plants in our range, and around seven to eight hundred of those in stock most months of the year.
That can make choosing plants for your garden a bit of a challenge - so much choice!
So how do you narrow it down? One way is to be guided by the experts, and choose those plants which have been awarded medals. Let's take a look.
That can make choosing plants for your garden a bit of a challenge - so much choice!
So how do you narrow it down? One way is to be guided by the experts, and choose those plants which have been awarded medals. Let's take a look.
Royal Horticultural Society : Award of Garden Merit
The UK's Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has been a global leader in horticulture and botanic research since its foundation in 1804. One of its founders was botanist Sir Joseph Banks, who has around 80 plant species named after him, including our native Banksia.Every year the RHS trials different plant groups and families, growing them side by side so they can be compared easily. The plants are often trialled in more than one location to assess how well they perform in different climates;
and reassessed after a period of years against newer varieties that have been bred in the interim.
AGM plant winners (clockwise from top left) :
agapanthus Double Diamond ,
camellia Sparkling Burgundy,
rose banksiae Lutea,
oleander dwarf Apricot (Oleander)
The judges mark every plant on the following attributes : - excellence for ordinary garden use
- availability
- general health and vigour
- stability and consistency of colour and size
- resistance to pests and diseases
AGM native plant winners(clockwise from top left) :
pandorea (Pandorea jasminoides),
native mint bush (Prostanthera),
snake vine or golden guinea (Hibbertia scandens),
correa Dusky Bells
Royal Botanic Garden Sydney Trial Winner
Since 2019, Sydney's Royal Botanic Garden (RBG) has carried our trials on over two hundred commercial cultivars of plants, to test their suitability for Australian east coast climate gardens. The plants are judged on the following attributes- flower quality
- general health and vigour
- resistance to pests and diseases
kangaroo paw Bush Princess (Anigozanthos),
fan flower Pink Fusion (Scaevola),
NZ Christmas bush Velvet Sky (Metrosideros),
chamomile Calm-o-mile (Chamaemelum)
Chicago Botanic Garden Trials Winner
Chicago Botanic Garden (CBG) trials in temperatures ranging from minus 20 to plus 40 Celsius, which makes it an ideal test for extreme Australian climates too. CBG carries out long-term trials on more than eight hundred plant families; plus trials for green roof culture, American rose varieties, and the yearly All America (AAS) trials for annual and herbaceous perennial plants. The CBG trials are rated on the following attributes- flower quality
- flower novelty and display
- length of flowering season
- resistance to pests and diseases
heuchera Palace Purple,
buddleia White Bouquet,
toad lily (Tricyrtis formosa),
thrift (Armeria maritima)
Champion of Champions
Some plants are so good they are awarded medals and accolades in more than one set of trials. So if you're really struggling to choose your next garden plant, you can't go past these! They include (clockwise from top left) :geranium Rozanne, a fast-growing herbaceous perennial that's not only a multiple winner, but the RHS Plant of the Century too. Many flowering sages do well in garden trials, as they're ripper resilient garden plants; deep purple-blue Mystic Spires (Salvia) comes out on top. Geraniums and salvias would look wonderful planted alongside catmint Walker's Low (Nepeta); it's fast to grow and flower, and local moggies will appreciate it too. The new agave-hybrid Mangave range scores highly in the UK and Chicago and Sydney. Triple accolades for this compact colourful waterwise plant family.
We've chosen Mission to Mars for the strong colouring (planted amongst silvery Senecio chalk sticks) but whichever one you choose you'll be a winner!
