Nominations for the Great American Gardeners Awards

Nominations are now being accepted for the 2025 AHS Great American Gardeners Awards. Since 1953, the Awards have recognized individuals and institutions that have made significant contributions to the American horticulture. Each year, we solicit nominations from the general public to recognize these top individuals and organizations. We are proud to honor these Great American Gardeners.

This year we are accepting nominations for seven awards:

The Liberty Hyde Bailey Award, our most prestigious award given to an individual who has made significant lifetime contributions to multiple horticultural fields.
The Jane L. Taylor Award, dedicated to individuals or organizations that have supported children and youth gardening.
The Emerging Horticultural Professional Award, which recognizes horticulturists in the early stages of their careers.
The Garden Stewardship Award, for a public garden that embraces sustainable practices.
The B.Y. Morrison Communication Award, which recognizes inspirational communication that advances horticulture.
The Landscape Design Award honors a professional committed to sustainable landscape architecture practices.
The Frances Jones Poetker Award, recognizing significant contributions to floral design. 

We look forward to reading every nomination received and exploring and celebrating the great diversity of horticultural work taking place around the country, We are thankful to our AHS Awards Committee for their time and expertise in reviewing nominations for horticultural excellence. The 2025 committee includes:

Holly Shimizu, committee chair, AHS board member, and former director of the U.S. Botanic Garden (MD)
Dr. David Kopsell, professor of horticulture, Illinois State University (IL)
Kaifa Anderson-Hall, president and CEO of Plants and Blooms Reimagined (Washington, D.C.)
Diane Blazek, executive director, All-America Selections/National Garden Bureau (IL)
Lee Coykendall, former senior education specialist, U.S. Botanic Garden (Washington, D.C.)
Kate Delaney, director of career development, Society of American Florists (PA)
Panayoti Kelaidis, senior curator and director of outreach, Denver Botanic Gardens (CO)
Kelly D. Norris, author, plantsman, and landscape designer (IA)
Nan Sterman, garden designer, botanist, author, and garden communicator (CA)

To learn more about the awards and submit nominations, visit https://ahsgardening.org/gardening-programs/national-awards/great-american-gardeners/