Chelsea Plant of The Year: Three More Finalists

Continuing my run down of all the finalists for the 2011 Plant of The Year award, given at this year's Chelsea Flower Show, we come to shrubs and an ornamental grass.

Hydrangea Avantgarde ('Hedi') is a traditional mophead hydrangea – but with three special qualities. First of all the flower heads, and also the leaves, are unusually large so the impact is impressive. Also, the flowers change colour intriguingly as the age, opening white, they mature to pink (blue on acid soils) then finally to green. Finally, other special feature of Avantgarde is that it not only flowers in the usual hydrangea season, but also flowers again later in the season.

From one of the world's leading rhododendron hybridisers, Hans Hachmann, comes 'Rabatz'. The culmination of a breeding programme begun as long ago as the 1970s, 'Rabatz' features clusters of good deep red flowers which open wide to show off their delicate dark freckles. In this variety, unusually, that rich colouring is combined with a cast iron constitution, 'Rabatz' will take colder winter temperatures than other varieties in a similar shade.

Finally, a very striking evergreen ornamental grass discovered in New Zealand. I wrote it up here back in February. Uncinia rubra Everflame ('Belinda's Find') is a colourfully variegated form of the familiar U. rubra found by the dispatch manager of a wholesale nursery near Auckland. Its purplish green foliage is brightly striped in pink shades and it keeps its colour all year in sun or light shade as long as the soil is not too dry.

Source: Royal Horticultural Society - Chelsea Plant of The Year, Three More Finalists

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