This time-tested dianthus has held the attention of annual lovers for 15 years. Originally introduced in 1992, ‘Ideal Violet’ colors a garden with 1½-inch single violet blooms. The reason for this “fan club” is cold and heat tolerance. ‘Ideal Violet’ was bred in Valence, the South of France, where winter is quite cold and summer is very hot. This was an “ideal” location to breed a new dianthus. Mr. Guy Lassartesse bred ‘Ideal Violet’ while exploring interspecific crosses between D. chinensis (China pink) and D. barbatus (Sweet William.) He combined the species looking for earliness to bloom and continuous flowering while plants endured cold temperatures. As summer progressed, Mr. Lassartesse found plants that thrived in the sun-baked earth. These crosses he noted and saved. His observations and hybrid crosses resulted in the crème de la crème ‘Ideal Violet’ plants.

These petite plants will reach about 10 to 12 inches tall and branch about a foot wide. In southern climates, ‘Ideal Violet’ can color a fall and winter garden while withstanding considerable cold. Unlike other annuals, ‘Ideal Violet’ tolerates a wide variation in seasonal temperatures. In northern areas, ‘Ideal Violet’ deserves a place in the early spring garden next to pansies and violas. Easy to grow with minimum garden care, ‘Ideal Violet’ is recommended for any container plantings. This variety was the first dianthus to receive the AAS Bedding Plant Award and is offered by PanAmerican Seed Company.

Pansy F1  ‘Majestic Giants Mix’

Originally introduced in 1966, ‘Majestic Giants Mix’ is a flower that has stood the test of time. The plants, sprouting large 4-inch blooms with the traditional pansy face, have been planted by four generations of gardeners. These gardens could be in the North or South and planted in the spring or fall season. ’Majestic Giants Mix’ was the first pansy that did not require cool temperatures for flower initiation. Thus, in the southern states, seed could be sown in the summer and the anticipated fall flowers would occur naturally, without an artificial cool treatment. ‘Majestic Giants Mix’ opened the door for southern fall pansy plantings.

While a small plant, only 6 to 8 inches tall, ‘Majestic Giants Mix’ enhanced its diminutive size with huge blooms. The plant breeder, Mr. Sukeo Miyazaki of Sakata Seed Corporation, met his objectives by providing a plant with consistently large flowers, which was the most difficult objective to achieve. Another objective was to create a hybrid plant. Prior to 1966, most pansies were not hybrids. Since the introduction of ‘Majestic Giants Mix,’ most pansies are hybrids due to increased vigor and freedom of bloom. The hybrid vigor enabled ‘Majestic Giants Mix’ plants to thrive under diverse growing conditions. Adaptable to full sun or partial shade, ‘Majestic Giants Mix’ will perform in a garden or in a container. Another desirable trait is the bright vivid colors. This classic mix offers a wide range of colors from blue, scarlet, cherry red, yellow, and orange to pure white. ‘Majestic Giants Mix’ is an exceptionally long-lived pansy for spring and fall seasons.

Petunia F1 ‘Ultra Crimson Star’

A stellar performance - pure white stars are centered on huge crimson grandiflora flowers. ‘Ultra Crimson Star’ blazed a new path in 1988 as the first AAS Bedding Plant Award Winner. This category tests annuals in the greenhouse and garden. It is a test resulting in two evaluations and scores which eliminates all but the very best entries with clearly superior traits. 'Ultra Crimson Star' passed this test with improved traits such as earliness and the consistent star pattern on flamboyant 3- to 4-inch blooms. Gardeners will find 'Ultra Crimson Star' plants flower freely all season with a minimum of care. Pinching or pruning plants is unnecessary.

Bred by Mathilde Holtrop, of Goldsmith Seeds, her breeding objective was a stable star pattern that would remain constant under stressful plant conditions such as high or low soil fertility. Petunias are one of the few annuals that contain the genetic capability to create a floral “star” design. Using traditional breeding techniques, Mathilde or Tilly, selected parent lines that would result in large grandiflora flowers borne on compact branching plants in addition to her “star” pattern. She met her breeding objective when ‘Ultra Crimson Star’ was introduced as an AAS Winner. With her mentor, Glenn Goldsmith, she discovered the gene that was responsible for the miniature ‘Fantasy’ petunia series, which resulted in another AAS Award for ‘Fantasy Pink Morn.’ Tilly was recognized for her lifetime of breeding achievements with the AAS Medallion of Honor in 1999.

Petunia F1 ‘Wave® Purple’

Flower Judges were awestruck when they saw petunia entry 92F17. Unlike all other petunias in 1992, this entry did not grow vertically but grew along the soil like an ivy ground cover. When a Judge picked up a stem, it had rooted into the ground. By August, the stems radiated in all directions growing three to four feet and hugging the ground with a height of four to six inches. The totally unique plant habit, obvious vigor, and continuous flowering were traits previously unseen. The flower color was debated. Was it rose, magenta or purple? Finally in 1995, the petunia was introduced as an AAS Winner named, ‘Wave® Purple.’

A young flower breeder, Mr. Daigaku Takeshita, with Kirin Brewery Company, Ltd., had an idea to breed a new petunia with traits that would be irresistible to home gardeners. He searched the globe for wild petunia species that were strong plants, easy to grow, free flowering and not susceptible to disease problems. Crossing numerous petunia species, he selected offspring with superior garden qualities. During the crossing and selection phase of breeding, his number one priority was garden performance. After several years, he was asked to prove that his petunias were superior to others on the market. With faith in his abilities, Mr. Takeshita entered into the AAS Trial. His petunia was recognized as an AAS Winner with genuine, credible new traits unavailable in any other petunia on the market. Mr. Takeshita was given the All-America Selections Breeders’ Cup Trophy because of the impact ‘Wave® Purple’ made on annual flowers and the renewed gardening interest in the entire genus.

Tomato F1  ‘Big Beef’

In 1994 gardeners wanted a large, beefsteak-type tomato, but early and loaded with disease resistances so that a neophyte could rely on harvesting big, red, tasty tomatoes. Their dreams came true with ‘Big Beef.’ This AAS Winner exhibited all of these desirable traits.

For over twelve years, ‘Big Beef’ has remained one of the most popular red tomatoes in North America. Almost foolproof, 8 to 12 ounce fruit can be harvested beginning about 73 days from transplanting into warm garden soil. Easy to grow from seed or plants is an understatement. The hybrid vigor is obvious from seedling size to vining plant. ‘Big Beef’ began a trend toward multiple disease resistances packed into plant genes using old fashioned breeding techniques. ‘Big Beef’ is resistant to Verticillium, Fusarium Race 1 & 2, Stemphylium, Tobacco Mosaic Virus, Nematode, and Alternaria Stem Canker.

Colen Wyatt, at Seminis Vegetable Seeds, was one of the most successful home garden vegetable plant breeders in the last half of the 20th century. He bred ‘Big Beef,’ ‘Celebrity’ and ‘Husky Gold’ tomatoes, all very successful AAS Winners. In addition to tomatoes, he bred cucumbers, pumpkins, and winter squash. ‘Early Butternut’ Squash was a 1979 AAS Winner bred by Colen. In 1998 AAS presented the prestigious Medallion of Honor to him for the abundance and superior quality of his vegetable introductions.