The Pennsylvania Horticultural Society ( PHS ) has shared its list of new Gold Medal Plant victor , now available to the public through most garden retail merchant . The Gold Medal Plant Program was create by PHS in 1979 to celebrate and showcase beautiful , promiscuous - to - grow plant species paragon for home horticulture . Each class , a citizens committee of gardening experts convoke to valuate trees , shrubs , and perennials on various criteria , let in their suitability for home garden in the mid - Atlantic region , their ease of polish , ready commercial accessibility , wildlife economic value , weather tolerance , and pest impedance .
Since the programme ’s origin , PHS has named over 150 Gold Medal Plants . Including this year ’s winners , all plants are indicated for their hardiness in the 5 to 7 hardiness zones , which cover the Mid - Atlantic realm but are also valid in other part .
" We trust that the PHS Gold Medal Plants list will help oneself gardener line up the right species of plants to fit their garden ’s unique needs while also inspiring them to include plant they may not have considered before , " said Andrew Bunting , PHS ’s Vice President of Horticulture . " Each twelvemonth ’s Gold Medal Plant victor include a variety of plant for every garden condition , size , and need . "
2023 PHS Gold Medal Plants
Spigelia marilandicaThis native recurrent blooms in early summer , featuring flushed tubular peak with yellowish throat contain above green leaf . The peak are extremely attractive to hummingbirds . It grows best in mostly full Sunday and average to moist soils . At about 18 - 24 " grandiloquent , it does not " flop " with adequate sunshine . Over time this clump - forming perennial will spread in the garden . It is deer - resistant but not coney resistant and is secure for small space gardens . Hardy in zones 6 through 9 .
Vernonia lettermannii ' Iron Butterfly’The vernonia extract is a native perennial that thrives in a panoptic range of soil conditions . It will also survive hot and dry periods of inundation . This fall - flower perennial starts flower late in the season when bloom in the garden are not ample . Growing to 18 inches tall , the stems are topped with many all right bright purple flowers . The thread - like leaf is showy and turns brilliant gilded hues in the fall . ' Iron Butterfly ' is a great pollinator - attracting plant . It is intrepid in zone 4 through 8 .
Juniperus ' Grey Owl’This native shrub has a prove lead track record as a low - spreading evergreen that prosper in the sunlight . It stomach extreme heat and insensate and withstands poor dirt . It is drouth - insubordinate and has attractive evergreen silvern - blue - gullible foliage . It produces many berry - like bluish cone that attract birds . ' Grey Owl ' grows tight , making it an splendid choice for covering a sunny bank or other large , open country . It is deer resistant , attracts birds , and has wintertime interest . It is hardy in zone 4 through 9 .
Quercus bicolorThis is a multi - season native tree diagram that will survive in both urban and garden options . It put up most soil conditions well than many other oak mintage . Reaching over 100 feet tall with an equal spread , it is a beautiful and stately tree diagram . The acorns are an important source of food for wildlife . The fall color is golden to yellow . Its growth rate is fast at 1.5 to 2 feet per year . The furcate substance abuse resembles that of pin oak , but the branches are shorter and portly . It attracts bird and is stalwart in zones 4 through 8 .
Viburnum dentatum Chicago LustreChicago Lustre ® arrowwood viburnum get its name from its bright , shining green matured foliage . This aboriginal shrub is an ideal flora for hedging . It can rise to a mature size of 12 ' x 10 ' . It blooms in late May - former June with white flower clusters followed by down - blackened yield in the fall . It attracts razzing and wildlife and is hardy in zones 3 through 8 .
Nyssa sylvatica Green GableThis native tree is fuck for its brilliant red crepuscle people of colour and shiny green foliage in the summer . It is shade tolerant and excellent for erosion ascendance . This stately tree will develop to 40'-60 ' tall and wide . This native tree is tough and adaptable and outstanding as a street tree in urban conditions . It is hardy in zones 4 through 8 .
Click here to view the integral catalog
For more selective information : PHS[email protected]phsonline.org
