Aug 22, 2018

Southern Living Plant Collection Varieties Recognized by Dallas Arboretum

The Dallas Arboretum Plant Trials has recognized three plants from the Southern Living Plant Collection with the FlameProof award.

Each year, the Dallas Arboretum Plant Trials program tests thousands of plant varieties in search of those that thrive in the heat of a Texas summer. Only those plants that score exceptionally high under the extreme conditions are awarded the FlameProof designation.

“Our perennial program not only looks at leaf color, vigor, floral stalk and flowering uniformity (if applicable), but the ability to stay alive for three years and look good doing it,” said Megan Proska, plant trials manager at the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden.

This year, Southern Living Plant Collection’s ‘Sunshine’ Ligustrum (pictured above), Mood Ring Podocarpus, and ‘Lemon Lime’ Nandina received the FlameProof award.

“To be worthy of the Southern Living name, all of our plant introductions offer improvements over traditional varieties,” said Kip McConnell, director of Plant Development Services, Inc., introducers of the Southern Living Plant Collection. “These varieties are among many in our collection that thrive in the hot, humid summers of the deep Southand demonstrate superior landscape performance.”

“The FlameProof award is testament to the rigorous selection process we put our collection through,” said McConnell.

The Southern Living Plant Collection is comprised of plants selected for their ability to solve specific landscape challenges. In addition to heat tolerance, plants are evaluated for hardiness, pest-resistance, and improved ornamental characteristics.