Plants with Promise
by Rita Pelczar

Another gardening season will soon be here. See what’s new in plants this year.


What’s new for the garden this year? Nurseries and seed companies are introducing new varieties with qualities they think will capture your interest: bigger, smaller, tastier, hardier; more fragrant, more floriferous, more disease or pest resistant; new flower and foliage colors; different growth habits.

Notable among the new varieties are many that have been selected because they thrive in conditions that are less than ideal. If extended heat waves, lack of rain, or municipal water restrictions were part of your 2007 garden experience, you may want to take a closer look at new varieties that boast increased heat and drought tolerance. On the other hand, if you’ve had to deal with flooding or erratic cold spells, there are varieties that can better handle those environmental stresses, too.
Trial gardens across the country - many located at universities or botanic gardens and arboreta, have grown many of these new varieties, evaluating their performance in their region. The following is a sampling of new varieties that are generating a lot of excitement. Some selections may have been introduced before this year, but their exceptional landscape value has only recently been recognized. Look them over, there are certain to be some that you will want to consider for your 2008 garden.

Annuals and tender perennials
From S&G Flowers (http://www.sg-flowers-us.com) comes Begonia semperflorens ‘Volumia Rose Bicolor’ (USDA Hardiness Zones 0–0, AHS Heat Zones 12–1). A 2008 Fleuroselect Gold Medal Winner, it produces pink and white flowers non-stop from spring to first frost on well-branched, compact plants. With a height of 11 inches and a 13-inch spread, it is recommended both for beds and containers.
A hybrid annual beebalm, Monarda ‘Bergamo’ (Zones 0–0, 12–1), from Kieft Seeds Holland (http://www.kieftseeds.com) offers intense summer color on compact, 19- to 25-inch tall, mildew-tolerant plants. Curved, tubular rose-purple flowers appear from June to August.

Osteospermum ecklonis Asti™ White (Zones 10–11, 8–1) from Goldsmith Seeds (http://www.goldsmithseeds.com) was bred for heat and drought tolerance. A 2008 All-America Selections winner, it is the first single-color hybrid osteospermum that can be grown from seed. The large white daisy-shaped flowers sport bright blue centers and they appear over a long season on uniform, compact plants.

Salvia farinacea ‘Fairy Queen’ (Zones 8–11, 12–1) from Benary (http://www.benary.com) is another 2008 Fleuroselect winner. Recommended for mixed beds, mass plantings, and containers, its fragrant flowers—deep blue tipped with white—bloom from June to October. The compact 18-inch-tall plants are drought tolerant.

Hines Horticulture (www.hineshort. com) is introducing Chrysothemis pulchella ‘Black Flamingo’ (Zones 11, 12–7), a tender perennial in the gesneriad family that grows from a tuberous rootstock. It combines glossy, green to purple foliage and clusters of yellow-orange flowers that bloom from midsummer to fall. Ideal for part to full shade, especially in warm areas, it grows to 18 inches tall.

Interest in annuals grown for their foliage shows no sign of flagging. ‘Chocolate Mint’, a richly colored coleus (Solenostemon scutellarioides, Zones 11–12, 12–1) for shade gardens and large containers, hails from Pan American Seed (http://www.panamseed.com). Its deep chocolate-colored leaves are neatly edged in refreshing green and plants grow 12 to 14 inches tall.

For a taller foliage accent, try one of the new varieties of Hibiscus acetosella (Zones 10–11, 12–1). ‘Garden Leader Gro Big Red’ from Grimes Horticulture (http://www.grimeshort.com) grows five feet tall with deep red leaves, and looks a bit like a tropical version of a Japanese maple. Gardeners in warmer climates may enjoy the three-inch red blooms, but it’s worth growing for the foliage alone. Another selection, ‘Panama Red’, develops deeply cut red leaves on drought tolerant plants that grow four feet tall; its foliage color remains stable throughout summer’s heat. ‘Panama Red’ came through the University of Georgia’s Athens Select™ program ( http://www.athensselect.com), which conducts trials with the goal of identifying heat and humidity tolerant plants.

Perennials and Grasses

Achillea millefolium ‘Apricot Delight’ (Zones 4–9, 9–2), an introduction from Blooms of Bressingham (http://www.bloomsofbressingham.com), immediately caught the eye of garden manager Jo Anne Fischer in trials at Yew Dell Gardens in Crestwood, Kentucky. “‘Apricot Delight’ has exhibited an array of changing peachy tones with great foliage,” says Fischer, who notes that with a mature height of about a foot, it is shorter than a lot of the yarrows, resulting in a stocky, sturdy plant that thrived throughout the humid and extremely dry summer of 2007.

Galen Gates, director of plant collections at the Chicago Botanic Garden (CBG), is excited about the new Baptisia ‘Solar Flare’ (Zones 4–8, 8–1). The result of breeding work by CBG’s Jim Ault, ‘Solar Flare’ is being introduced through Chicagoland Grows® (http://www.chicagolandgrows.com), a program that promotes new plant cultivars suited to the growing conditions of the Upper Midwest. “Its inflorescence is breathtaking,” says Gates. “It starts out a good clear yellow and as the flower fades it turns pink and orange. It’s the only Baptisia that experiences that color change in its flowers.”

From the Landscape Plant Development Center (LPDC, http://www.landscapecenter.org), a non-profit organization headquartered in Mound, Minnesota, comes a clematis for the perennial border. The non-vining Clematis ‘Center Star’ (Zones 4–8, 8–1) has glossy green foliage throughout the growing season and is covered with two-inch, upward-facing, blue flowers for more than a month beginning in early summer. It grows 30 inches tall, and may require staking.

The popularity of coral bells (Heuchera spp.) has yet to peak, if new varieties are any measure….

Shrubs and Roses

This year’s new shrubs include a lovely variegated beautyberry released from the U.S. National Arboretum ( http://www.usna.usda.gov/Newintro/index.html). Callicarpa dichotoma ‘Duet’ (5–8, 8–5) has a rounded form and grows six feet tall in four years. It has been grown at the JC Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh, North Carolina, where Director Dennis Werner notes that its leaf variegation—white edges with green centers - “shows no tendency to burn or discolor even in full sun.”

Monrovia introduces a dwarf smoke bush called Magical® Green Fountain (Cotinus coggygria ‘Kolcot’, Zones 4–8, 8–3). It is compact, growing only four to six feet tall with a six- to eight-foot spread. The seashell pink flowers that are produced over a long season show off well against the purple tinged, deep green foliage.
At CBG, a witch hazel recently introduced by Roy Klehm of Song Sparrow Nursery has made a big impression. Gates says Hamamelis vernalis Autumn Embers™ (‘Klmnineteen’, Zones 4–8, 8–1) is a great selection; its fall foliage is “burgundy red with orange undertones, eventually turning burgundy-purple,” says Gates. And its fragrant, orange to yellow flowers open in February and March.

Proven Winners ( http://www.provenwinners.com) offers several exciting new shrubs including two new weigelas: My Monet™ (Weigela florida ‘Verweig’, Zones 4–8, 8–1), is a 12- to 18-inch dwarf with pink, white, and green variegated leaves and bright pink spring flowers; ‘Eyecatcher’ (Zones 4–8, 8–1) grows to two feet tall with yellow and green variegated leaves and dark red flowers. Pinky Winky™ panicled hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata ‘DVPpinky’, Zones 4–9, 9–1), also from Proven Winners, bears summer flower heads that are 12 to 16 inches long, opening white and morphing to pink, as new white flowers continue to open at the tip.

A new series of low maintenance shrub roses developed in the United Kingdom is making a splash here in the United States as Proven Winners introduces a trio of Oso Easy™ roses: Peachy Cream (Rosa ‘Horcoherent’) with double peach blooms that change to cream; Fragrant Spreader (R. ‘Chewground’) with a low spreading habit and fragrant, single pink flowers; and Paprika (R. ‘ChewMayTime’) with reddish orange single blooms each with a yellow eye.…

Trees and Vines

If a tree with early spring flowers followed by strikingly variegated leaves suits your garden’s needs, check out Cercis canadensis ‘Floating Cloud’ (Zones 3–9, 9–1). Discovered by Don Black, owner of Charlie’s Creek Nursery in Iva, South Carolina, the bright green leaves are thoroughly speckled with white. At the JC Raulston Arboretum it grows side by side with an older variegated redbud, ‘Silver Cloud’. Director Dennis Werner says, “‘Floating Cloud’ shows more pronounced variegation, better resistance to leaf burn, superior plant habit, and the variegation persists later into the growing season. A truly superior form.”

Pyrus ‘Silver Ball’ (Zones 4–8, 8–4) is the first pear tree to be introduced by the LPDC. It’s small for a tree, growing only 12 to 15 feet tall with an equal spread. Its small silvery leaves and white spring flowers contribute to its fine textured appearance. Its half-inch, light brown fruit provide food for a variety of birds.
Bailey Nurseries has introduced a new birch hybrid called Royal Frost® (Betula ‘Royal Frost’, Zones 4–7, 7–1). Its bark is white, but it is resistant to the bronze birch borer that dooms many other white-bark birches…

Vegetables and Herbs

Some noteworthy new varieties of root vegetables make their debut this year. From Johnny’s Selected Seeds comes the sweetly flavored ‘Touchstone Gold’ beet with its vibrant gold interior—a color that is retained in cooking. Thompson & Morgan introduces ‘Honeysnack’ carrot, with creamy yellow, blunt-ended roots that grow four to six inches long.

And if you like colorful cauliflower, Thompson & Morgan offers ‘Graffiti’, a hybrid with deep purple curds. There’s no need to cover the heads because the color intensifies with exposure to light.

For both garden decoration and delicious popcorn for snacking, Botanical Interests, Inc., introduces ‘Strawberry Popcorn’, which grows four feet tall and produces two- to three-inch ears of red kernals perfect for popping.

A hot cherry pepper from Seminis called ‘Big Bomb’ promises to be a heavy and early producer of thick-walled, two-inch, red, rounded fruit on vigorous 24- to 30-inch-tall plants. Pungency is medium.

If you like the flavor of hubbard squash, but are daunted by their enormous size and the far wandering nature of the vines, consider ‘Orange Magic’ from Seeds by Design. It’s a baby hubbard that bears two- to three-pound, sweet, orange-fleshed fruit on semi-bush plants.…

New basil varieties include ‘Queenette’ from Renee’s Garden, which gets top marks both as an ornamental and as an ingredient in Asian dishes. Its aromatic half-inch leaves grow in clusters around purple stems. Burpee’s offers ‘Boxwood’ basil, a tasty variety that doubles as a hedge that will hold its form late into summer.
Another herb with ornamental appeal is ‘Golden Delicious’ pineapple sage…


Photo credits: Osteospermum ecklonis Asti White by All-America Selections. Oso Easy Pechy Cream rose by Proven Winners. Big Bomb pepper by National Garden Bureau.

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