Summer reds for your Canadian garden

To celebrate both this past Canada Day and the Year of the Garden, I’ve hand-picked a selection of red flowers from the AAS (All-america Selections) list of all time winners.

These plants have been trialed in test gardens across North America and the winners chosen because of their superior performance. Here in southern Ontario, William Dam Seeds Ltd. in Dundas, Royal Botanical Garden in Burlington and Shell Park in Oakville host AAS trial gardens.

Red, tubular shaped flowers, like the penstemon and salvia, are magnets for hummingbirds, while red flowers in general are attractive to many pollinators.

Penstemon Arabesque Red

Everything about Penstemon Arabesque Red (2014 A exciting hybrid provides superior garden vigour and flowering. Its beautiful red and white bicolour large bell-shaped flowers adorn well-branched plants that attract both hummingbirds and butterflies all summer. Plant Arabesque in full sun in the landscape adding height to the middle of the flower bed or in containers. Remove spent flowers to encourage continuous flowering. Rabbit resistant, but not reliably hardy, mulching over the winter may help

Zinnia Holi Scarlet

This beautiful 2019 AAS winner is named after the famous Holi Festival of Colours because of its vibrant colour! AAS Judges deemed this an “excellent flower” because of the bright solid colour, size, and the number of blooms as well as the disease resistance, which was superior to the comparisons. Holi Scarlet will keep producing fresh, colourful blooms all season long, even through heat, humidity, and drought. Uniform and compact mounding plants will make a stunning mass planting of vibrantly coloured deep red flowers drawing in both people and pollinators. I have grown Holi Scarlet zinnias for the past few years, they never fail to impress and are easy to grow from seed.

Geranium Calliope Medium Dark Red

With an outstanding deep red velvety flower colour and great branching habit, Calliope was unmatched in the AAS Trials when compared to other market varieties. This 2017 AAS winner has a mounded, semispreading growth habit with strong stems supporting the flower heads that are loaded with deep red blossoms. These plants work great in containers, combination plantings, hanging baskets as well as in an inground landscape. Gardeners will enjoy exceptional landscape performance in normal conditions as well as in more challenging high heat and drought conditions.

Salvia Summer Jewel Red

This 2011 AAS Bedding Plant Winner was consistently rated “superior” or “above average” by the AAS judges because of it’s early and generous flower blossoms, continuing from spring to autumn. Additionally, each dwarf and densely branching plant remain a tidy 50cm tall, even at full maturity. The bright red flower spikes are covered with 1.25 cm blooms making it perfect for the bird lover’s garden where the bright red colour acts as a magnet for hummingbirds. As an added bonus, goldfinches swarm the plant for seeds. Even the leaves add beauty with their finer-textured, dark-green colour.

Summer Jewel Red, just 50 days from sowing to the first flower, is approximately two weeks earlier than comparisons. Expect long season performance and superior holding ability in both wind and rain. This annual is ideal for full sun containers, mixed beds, and borders where uniformity is desired.

Echinacea Sombrero Baja Burgundy

2020 AAS Herbaceous Perennial Winner

Sombrero Baja Burgundy will add a bold accent to sunny gardens with its vibrant, deep violet-red blossoms. The beautiful flower colour is without equal among coneflowers and is perfect for cut flowers. After being trialed over three tough winters, the AAS judges noted this standout’s hardiness, sturdy branching, and floriferous blooming habit. Birds and pollinators certainly flock to this deer-resistant beauty making it a dual-purpose plant. Gardeners will enjoy prolific blooms from mid-summer until the first frost. Full to part sun 45-60 cm tall.

Coleus Main Street Beale Street

The first coleus to be named an AAS winner! Main Street Beale Street coleus (2020 AAS winner) is an outstanding variety exhibiting deep red foliage that holds its colour extremely well in the garden. The rich colour doesn’t fade, bleach, or get spotty as the season moves into late summer. The lush, bushy plant grows uniformly and as a huge bonus, does not flower until very late in the season—up to six weeks later than the comparisons! A unique feature of this coleus is that it can be successfully grown from full sun to full shade, making it an ideal foliage item for anywhere in the garden. Homeowners will all appreciate the beautiful

lour and uniform height of this coleus.