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Winners
Liberty Hyde Bailey Award - Harold Pellett
Given to an individual who has made significant lifetime contributions
to at least three of the following horticultural fields: teaching,
research, communications, plant exploration, administration, art,
business, and leadership.
Harold Pellett is the
executive director of the Landscape Plant Development Center
headquartered in Chanhassen, Minnesota, which he founded in
1990. This national non-profit organization is devoted to
developing durable, stress-tolerant landscape plants for all
regions.
Growing up in his family’s nursery business in Iowa, Pellett
was involved in horticulture from an early age. He received
his doctorate from Iowa State University, focusing his
studies on plant physiology, breeding, and genetics. Pellett
then taught horticulture and conducted research for more
than 36 years at the University of Minnesota. His research
involved the breeding and evaluation of landscape plants,
resulting in more than 25 new tree and shrub introductions.
Among these is the “Lights” series of cold-hardy azaleas.
Pellett’s many accolades include the Award of Merit from the
National Council of State Garden Clubs and the Medal of
Honor from the Garden Club of America. He is also a Fellow
of the American Society for Horticultural Science and the
International Plant Propagators Society.
H. Marc Cathey Award -
Thomas G. Ranney
Recognizes outstanding scientific research that has enriched
the field of horticulture.
Thomas G. Ranney is a
professor of horticultural science at North Carolina State
University. He leads a research program at the Mountain
Horticultural Crops Research and Extension Center in
Fletcher, North Carolina, where he focuses on the
development of new landscape plants. Recent developments
include Calycanthus ‘Venus’ and transgeneric hybrids such as
xSchimlinia floribunda and xGordlinia grandiflora. Ranney’s
research has helped change breeding rules for interspecific
and transgeneric hybrids. He has also helped preserve
germplasm of plants that are extinct or threatened in the
wild. Ranney has received numerous awards, including the
Distinguished Achievement Award for Nursery Crops from the
American Society for Horticultural Science.
Paul
Ecke Jr. Commercial Award - David Salman
Given to an individual or company whose commitment to the
highest standards of excellence in the field of commercial
horticulture contributes to the betterment of gardening
practices everywhere.
David Salman is the president
and chief horticulturist of the retail nursery, Santa Fe
Greenhouses, in New Mexico and its mail-order division, High
Country Gardens, which he founded in 1984 and 1992,
respectively. Both businesses specialize in beautiful and
drought-tolerant plants for western gardens. Widely regarded
as a xeriscaping pioneer, Salman promotes waterwise
gardening though articles published in national magazines
and speaking engagements throughout the country. Salman has
introduced more than 25 plant selections with an emphasis on
native, cold-hardy, and xeric species. He also collaborates
on regional plant evaluation programs such as Plant Select®,
which promotes plants suited to the Rocky Mountain region.
Landscape Design Award - Herbert R. Schaal
Given to an individual whose work has demonstrated and
promoted the value of sound horticultural practices in the
field of landscape architecture.
Herbert R. Schaal is a
principal in the renowned landscape architecture firm EDAW/AECOM
and a Fellow of the American Society of Landscape
Architects.
During Schaal’s more than 30 years at EDAW, he has applied
the principles of landscape architecture, sustainability,
and ecology to a wide range of projects.
In recent years, Schaal has specialized in design of public
gardens, including educational gardens for children and
gardens for healthcare facilities. Among these, some of his
best-known projects are children’s gardens at the Cleveland
Botanical Garden, the Morton Arboretum, and the Norfolk
Botanical Garden.
The more than 50 regional and national awards he has
received have established him as one of the most acclaimed
contemporary landscape architects.
Meritorious Service Award - Francis X. Flaherty
Recognizes a past Board member or friend of the American
Horticultural Society for outstanding service in support of
the Society's goals, mission, and activities.
Francis X. Flaherty owns and
operates Flaherty Iron Works in Alexandria, Virginia, which
specializes in hot hand-forged ornamental metal work. In
2004, Flaherty assisted the AHS in the restoration of a set
of 19th-century White House gates that were discovered at
the AHS’s River Farm headquarters. The restored gates were
featured at the 2005 Philadelphia Flower Show, after which
Flaherty installed the gates at River Farm. Additionally,
Flaherty hand-forged a unique metal design piece for the
AHS’s Green Garage® exhibit, which is being displayed around
the United States, and he continues to provide quality
craftsmanship and support to the AHS.
B.
Y. Morrison Communication Award - Irene Virag
Recognizes effective and inspirational communication -
through print, radio, television, and/or online media - that
advances public interest and participation in horticulture.
Irene Virag is an
award-winning freelance journalist who has contributed a
weekly garden column to Newsday since 1995 and writes
articles for magazines such as Better Homes & Gardens and
Fine Gardening. After earning a master’s degree at
Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, Virag
went to Harvard University on a Nieman Fellowship. She
joined Newsday in the 1980s and won a Pulitzer for local
reporting in 1986. She later became editor of the magazine’s
“Home and Garden” section. Virag is a Fellow of the Garden
Writers Association and has won that organization’s top
award for newspaper writing several times. She is an
inspirational public speaker and the author of Gardening on
Long Island with Irene Virag (Newsday Books, 1999).
Frances Jones Poetker Award
- Renny Reynolds
Recognizes significant contributions to floral design in
publications, on the platform, and to the public.
Renny Reynolds is a renowned
entertaining, gardening, and lifestyle expert. In the 1970s
he founded RENNY: Design for Entertaining in New York City,
an event design firm known for its unique floral
arrangements. Catering to high-profile clients such Yves
Saint Laurent and the White House, the company’s designs
have been featured in publications ranging from House
Beautiful to Horticulture. In 2002, Reynolds turned the
business over to his nephew and co-founded Hortulus Farm
Nursery & Gardens, an 18th-century farm located in Bucks
County, Pennsylvania. He is also the author of The Art of
the Party (Gibbs Smith, 2003).
Professional Award - Holly Harmar Shimizu
Given to a public garden administrator whose achievements
during the course of his or her career have cultivated
widespread interest in horticulture.
Holly Harmar Shimizu has been
the executive director of the United States Botanic Garden
since 2000. During that period, she has overseen a major
renovation of the garden’s conservatory and the development
of the new National Garden that opened in 2006.Shimizu’s
career has included serving as the first curator of the
National Herb Garden at the U.S. National Arboretum in
Washington, D.C., and as the managing director at the Lewis
Ginter Botanical Garden in Richmond, Virginia. For 12 years,
Shimizu was a host on The Victory Garden, a gardening
television show broadcast on PBS and HGTV. She has also
contributed to many books and magazines. Shimizu is on the
advisory board of the American Botanical Council, and has
served on the board of directors of the American Public
Gardens Association.
Catherine H. Sweeney Award - Mrs. Eugene B. Casey
Recognizes extraordinary and dedicated philanthropic efforts
in support of the field of horticulture.
Betty Brown Casey is one of
America’s leading philanthropists. In 2001, after becoming
aware of the dramatic decline of trees in the District of
Columbia since the 1970s, she donated $50 million to endow a
new non-profit organization called Casey Trees, whose
mission is “to restore, enhance, and protect the tree canopy
of the Nation’s Capital.” The organization works to increase
community activism and involvement in the planting and care
of trees through various educational initiatives. It has
developed new mapping and monitoring systems that have
enabled cities and communities around the country to
inventory their trees and map their successes, encouraging
local involvement.
Jane
L. Taylor Award - Michael H.C. Devlin and Valerie R.
Frick
Given to an individual, organization, or program that has
inspired and nurtured future horticulturists through efforts
in children’s and youth gardening.
Mike H.C. Devlin and Valerie
R. Frick co-founded and co-developed the Camden Children’s
Garden in Camden, New Jersey, in 1999. With Devlin as the
executive director and Frick as the director of education,
this husband-and-wife team has created a safe environment
where children in one of the nation’s most dangerous cities
can learn about plants and nature. Devlin and Frick also
operate several other programs, including a Youth Employment
and Training program for at-risk Camden youth through the
Camden City Garden Club, a nonprofit they founded in 1985.
Teaching Award - Laura Deeter
Given to an individual whose ability to share his or her
horticultural knowledge with others has contributed to a
better public understanding of the plant world and its
important influence on society.
Laura Deeter is an assistant
professor of horticultural technologies at the Agricultural
Technical Institute (ATI) of the Ohio State University in
Columbus, where she earned a doctorate degree in 2002.
Deeter employs a variety of teaching styles and methods to
create an informal, interactive learning environment. She
travels extensively, speaking on many gardening topics, and
has authored numerous publications on wide-ranging topics
such as landscape ornamentals, plant identification, and
student-centered learning techniques.
Among the honors she has received are the ATI Distinguished
Teaching Award, the Ohio State Alumni Award for
Distinguished Teaching, and the Perennial Plant Association
Academic Award.
Urban Beautification Award - Nebraska Statewide
Arboretum
Given to an individual, institution, or company for
significant contributions to urban horticulture and the
beautification of American cities.
The Nebraska Statewide
Arboretum (NSA), a nonprofit organization based at the
University of Nebraska-Lincoln Institute of Agriculture and
Natural Resources, is a unique network of more than 80
affiliate parks, arboreta, and other public garden sites
across Nebraska. Founded in 1978, the organization is
dedicated to the greening of every community in the state.
Through its Community Program, the NSA has provided more
than $7 million in matching grants to 228 Nebraska
communities, resulting in more than 850 landscaping
projects. It also provides a range of technical assistance,
including planning, design, plant selection, and water
conservation.
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