Created during the summer of 2000, the Cary Garden is a collection of ornamental trees, shrubs, groundcovers and vines that are noted as outstanding plants for use in landscapes in Vermont. This garden of Cary Award winning plants is the only collection of its kind in New England.

The Cary Award Program is a program to promote outstanding plants for New England gardens. Modeled after the Gold Medal Plant Award of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, the Cary Award highlights home landscape plants that have proven their performance in New England. Plants bearing this symbol have been selected by a committee from across New England as meeting the criteria for this award. 1997 was the first year this award was bestowed.

What are the criteria for the award? They are simple; the plant must be:
*a woody, shrub, tree, or vine *hardy within at least 2 of the 4 USDA Hardiness Zones in New England(Zones 3-6).
*a season extender, with priority given to notable winter features.
*especially appropriate for New England.
*available in the nursery industry.

The purpose of the program is educational: to inform home gardeners which plants would be good choices in their landscape, to instill confidence in the home gardeners’ plant selection, to increase the diversity of plant material utilized by gardeners, landscape designers, and architects.

Cary Award winners are chosen for their hardiness, uniqueness, and their ability to extend the New England growing season. The promotion of new or underused varieties is good for the gardeners, the environment, and the New England industry as a whole.

Clethra alnifolia 'Ruby Spice'

Plant list

Trees
Abies koreana
Acer griseum
Cercidiphyllum japonicum 'Morioka Weeping'
Chamaecyparis nootkatensis 'Pendula'
Cornus mas
Magnolia 'Elizabeth'
Magnolia kobus var. stellata ‘Centennial’
Magnolia x loebneri 'Leonard Messel'
Malus 'Donald Wyman'
Syringa reticulata

Vines & Groundcovers
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi
Hydrangea anomala subsp. petiolaris
Microbiota decussata
Pachysandra terminalis 'Green Sheen'