New Plants for 2011

A Parade of Hot New Plants
Irresistible introductions for 2011
By Gary Lewis, M.Sc., Phoenix Perennials and Specialty Plants

The lure
of the garden is strong in 2011, with irresistible new introductions showing up
at your favourite specialty garden shops. Dominating this year’s parade of new
plants are three categories all sporting new hues: the selection of Helleborus, Echinacea, and Heuchera /
Heucherella has never been so diverse.  If these aren’t enough, hardy gardenia,
ever-blooming red hot pokers, pink blueberries and others broaden the palette
of new plant picks.

The
winter and spring garden has changed forever with the vigorous and floriferous Helleborus Gold Collection. Last season
brought the collection’s first introductions, ‘Jacob’ and ‘Josef Lemper’ – improved
forms of the Christmas rose (H. niger)
that begin to bloom in November and December. This spring and beyond, look for
‘HGC Pink Frost’ with rich pink, outward facing flowers and red stems over
mottled foliage, and ‘HGC Cinnamon Snow’ with white flowers accented with pink
and cinnamon over dark green serrated foliage.  Also watch for ‘HGC Silvermoon’ (white flowers, pewter green
foliage), Winter’s Bliss/’HGC Champion’ and Winter’s Song/’HGC Joker’ both with
white flowers with dark pink reverses.

Of the 15
or more new coneflowers, two double-flowered series stand out. The Secret
Series includes ‘Secret Desire’ (pink and orange sunset tones), ‘Secret Lust’
(orange), ‘Secret Passion’ (bright pink), and ‘Secret Romance’ (light pink).
The Cone-Fections series has two new cultivars ‘Raspberry Truffle’ (dark pink)
and ‘Strawberry Shortcake’ (bicolour white and pink).

For those
who prefer classic single coneflowers, the Dream Series shows promise as a
group of strong and reliable performers with good branching and lots of
flowers. Try ‘Daydream’ (yellow), ‘Amazing Dream’ (deep pink), ‘Heavenly Dream’
(white), and ‘Tangerine Dream’ (bright orange). If you’ve had limited success
with coneflowers remember that these prairie plants require poor, dry
soils and full sun.

The march
of new coral bells remains unabated. But they keep getting better! Two new
trailing Heucherella mark the
beginning of something great for borders and containers. ‘Redstone Falls‘ has
copper-red leaves and trails one foot across the ground or over the edge of
containers or hanging baskets. ‘Yellowstone Falls‘ has chartreuse leaves with
deep crimson markings. It can trail three feet. Imagine the possibilities! Also
watch for clumping Heuchera ‘Cherry
Cola’ with red-brown leaves and rusty cherry red flowers.

For
subtlety and beauty in the shade garden try the Japanese forest grass Hakonechloa Fubuki/’Briform’ with striking
white and green striped foliage (it has pink highlights in spring and fall)
perfect for lighting up a dark corner. Or try six different easy-to-grow lady’s
slipper orchids: Cypripedium ‘Dietrich’
(yellow and cream), ‘Gisela’ (pink and dark pink), ‘Sabine Pastel’ (white and
cream), ‘Ulla Silkens’ (pure white, pink flush or speckles), ‘Victoria’ (yellow
with burgundy striping) and Cypripedium ventricosum
‘Pastel’ (ivory white).

Three new
hostas will also create quite a stir. ‘White Feather’ joins ‘Dancing Queen’ (a
Phoenix Perennials favourite last season) both with completely white leaves making
a shockingly awesome punctuation in the spring garden. As the leaves mature
streaks of green begin to appear. Two equally exciting new hostas offer
tri-colour variegation. ‘Ghostmaster’ has leaves with white centres surrounded
with emerald green surrounded again with a blue-green border. ‘Captain’s
Adventure’ has creamy yellow, yellow-green and dark green colours that forms an
elongated maple leaf pattern.

For flare
and excitement in the sun border try a new series of compact, all-summer
blooming red hot pokers. Kniphofia
‘Papaya Popsicle’ has prolific red-orange blooms and ‘Pineapple Popsicle’ has massive
numbers of yellow spikes the colour of freshly sliced pineapple.

Two new
shrubs will offer olfactory and culinary pizzazz, respectively, in 2011. Gardenia ‘Summer Snow’ is Zone 6 hardy
with sweetly fragrant, pure white, double flowers. A blueberry that tiptoed out
last season will be more widely available last year, and is anything but blue. Vaccinium ‘Pink Lemonade’ is, you
guessed it, PINK! Despite the difference in colour, it still has all of the
flavour and health benefits of a regular blueberry, as well as the year round
interest in flowers, fruit, fall foliage and red winter twigs.

Rounding out the festivities for 2011 are five cottage garden favourites
that have been reinvented: the wallflower Erysimum
‘Fragrant Star’ has variegated, evergreen foliage, chocolate-purple buds, and
sweetly fragrant yellow flowers. Centaurea
montana ‘Black Sprite’ (perennial bachelor button) has purple-black flowers
instead of royal blue. The bleeding heart, Dicentra
spectabilis ‘Valentine’ will offer red pendulous hearts instead of pink. A
new cultivar of shasta daisy (Leucanthemum
x superbum) called ‘Lacrosse’ has pure white quilled petals that look like
spoons or lacrosse sticks.  And the
crimson scabious, Knautia macedonica,
gains a new dwarf, variegated form called ‘Thunder and Lightning’ with
white-edged leaves and an endless supply of magenta pompoms all summer long.

Hip! Hip! Hurray! Have fun with
the 2011 parade of hot new plants!

Gary
Lewis owns Phoenix Perennials and Specialty Plants in Richmond, BC, which offers over 4000 different
perennials each year. He serves on the Board of the Perennial Plant
Association, on the Perennial and Bulb Selection Committee of Great Plant Picks,
and works with E-Flora BC.