The 2011 Gold Medal winners are:
* Diervilla sessilifolia Cool Splash ‘LPDC Podaras’ (Southern bush honeysuckle)
* Liquidambar styraciflua ‘Slender Silhouette’ (American sweetgum)
* Taxodium distichum var. imbricarium Debonair ‘Morris’ (pond bald cypress)
* Cornus sanguinea ‘Midwinter Fire’ (blood twig dogwood)
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The winners are chosen for their superb eye-appeal, performance and hardiness in the growing region of Zones 5-7. Three are native cultivars to the eastern United States; the fourth, a tough shrub from Europe, is an absolute must for winter interest. They are also judged for their beauty in many seasons, whether it be their foliage, flower or structural form.