All-America Selections announced that the 2010 The American Garden Award (AGA) competition is now open for voting. AGA is a unique opportunity for the general public as well as professional horticulturists to vote on a specific plant they think has the most appealing garden characteristics. In cooperation with 18 highly respected public gardens throughout the United States, All-America Selections presents the four entries so garden visitors can view the plants in person, then vote for their favorite.
There are a number of ways to vote: by texting a given code to a polling number, by going to www.americangardenaward.com and clicking on the voting button, by using postage-paid voting postcards available at most gardens or by becoming a fan of American Garden Award on Facebook.
For anyone who is unable to visit one of those 18 gardens, online voting is another way to "View and Vote!" All gardens will be planted by the first of June and voting is open until August 31. The winners will be announced in September.
The four entries are:
- Echinacea ‘Prairie Splendor’
- Ornamental pepper ‘Purple Flash’
- Rudbeckia ‘Denver Daisy’
- Zinnia Profusion ‘Knee-High Red’
The participating gardens are:
- Birmingham Botanical Gardens
- Boerner Botanical Gardens
- Cantigny Gardens
- Chicago Botanic Garden
- Chicago Park District
- Cole Gardens
- Dallas Arboretum & Botanical Garden
- Denver Botanic Garden
- Longwood Gardens
- Massachusetts Horticultural Society
- Missouri Botanical Garden
- Oklahoma State University-Oklahoma City
- Oregon State Fairgrounds
- Park Seed Company
- Pier 39 Inc.
- Rotary Botanical Gardens
- San Francisco Botanical Garden
- University of Tennessee, Knoxville