Perennials for the Picking

Chris Beytes, Bill Calkins, Paul Pilon & Jennifer Zurko

Agastache Summerlong (Darwin Perennials)
The new Agastache Summerlong series was displayed on a giant paint palette, showing that the colors can be used to create art in the garden. The five colors (Coral, Lemon, Lilac, Magenta and Peach) are extremely uniform for landscapes or even big patio pots all timed to bloom together. As the name implies, they flower all season, spring through fall. Zone 7.

Phlox Spring Splash (Darwin Perennials)
Spring Splash blooms later and longer than the regular P. subulata, they said. The collection starts with three pinks: Pink, Lilac and Violet. Zone 4.

Saxifraga Marto (Darwin Perennials)
To my knowledge, this is the first time they’ve offered saxifraga. There are currently four cultivars: Hot Rose, Rose, Red and Red Picotee. The Marto series produces masses of colorful flowers and has a long bloom time in the spring. Hardy to Zone 4.

Lavender Royal Anouk (Darwin Perennials)
The Anouk collection of Spanish lavender gets an upgrade with Royal Anouk, which was selected for needing less chilling requirement, plus larger flowers and bigger flags. There’s also a Burgundy Anouk. Zone 6.

Echinacea Sombrero Mandarin Mambo (Darwin Perennials)
Mandarin Mambo levels up the oranges in the popular 12-plus-color Sombrero series. With improved color and flower power, it’ll replace Tango Tangerine for 2025. Zone 4b.

Buddleia Chrysalis Steel Blue (Darwin Perennials)
The Chrysalis series of buddleia is known for its compact habit and long-blooming, abundant flowers. New Steel Blue has silver-blue flowers and the same rain, heat and drought tolerance as the other five colors in the series. It’s root hardy to Zone 5 and stem hardy in warmer locations.

Digitalis Arctic Fox Lemon Cream (Darwin Perennials)
The second color in the Arctic Fox Digitalis series, Lemon Cream is not only perfect for impulse sales at retail with it’s light yellow flowers, but is also long-flowering and makes a great filler in combos. Zone 5a.

Rudbeckia Dakota Double Red (Green Fuse)
This is an L. hirta species, but from genetics found in Colorado, I believe we were told, giving it extra cold tolerance—to Zone 5. As the name implies, flowers are double and a nice deep red.

Leucanthemum Kilimanjaro (Green Fuse)
Kilimanjaro is mostly associated with the highest single free-standing mountain above sea level in the world, but now in our industry, Kilimanjaro is the world’s largest flowering shasta daisy. It has a vigorous growing habit, allowing it to easily fill out large containers. Its mammoth flowers are eye-catching and daylength neutrality allows Kilimanjaro to be offered any time of the year. Zone 5.

Hosta Old Yeller (Green Fuse)
Green Fuse has their own tissue culture lab and they want to make use of it, so expect more of their products to be available in TC. New offerings include Hosta Old Yeller, which is their first hosta. It sports yellow-green foliage that holds its color. Zone 5.

Carex Moon Falls (Pacific Plug & Liner)
Moon Falls looks to be a solid improvement on existing varieties. Its foliage is green on the edges and cream down the middle, the reverse of PP&L’s Feather Falls. When shown in comparison to other carex with the same foliage pattern, the green was far darker and the habit was much more substantial. Zone 5.

Delphinium Delgenius Kingsley (Pacific Plug & Liner)
The deep-purple flowers covering Delphinium Delgenius Kingsley are semi-double on sturdy stems, blooming May to July. The plants are also deer-resistant, quite hardy and show strong disease resistance, as well. Zone 3.

Phlox Woodlander (DÜmmen Orange)
For the earliest of perennials, there are two new colors in the low-growing groundcover Phlox Woodlander series, Periwinkle and Purple. Periwinkle is a bit taller and/or more vigorous. Zone 3.

Salvia Noble Knight (DÜmmen Orange)
Salvia Noble Knight, which, based on the name, is aimed at the venerable old May Night (Mainacht), which has been around forever and is still popular. The S. nemerosa has the same full foliage and deep blue color, but it will keep on flowering and flowering. This new version of a perennial classic provides lots of notable characteristics, including a full, compact growing habit, large purple to blue blooms, tons of flower power and a long blooming period (upwards of six weeks). Zone 3.

Dianthus Cliff (DÜmmen Orange)
The new hybrid Cliff series offers Pink Spot, with speckled flowers, and Red Spot, with double carnation-like flowers. Zone 3.

Buddleia Little Rockstars (DÜmmen Orange)
The new Buddleia Little Rock Stars collection is more compact, with smaller flower plumes than most other buddleia. But that makes it easier to ship and more floriferous, with four to six flowers when it’s retail-ready, they said. There are five colors in the new collection. Zone 5.

Delphinium Hunky Dory (Syngenta)
It’s an F1 delphinium series with three colors: Blue, Sky Blue and White. Plants have wonderful branching, leading to loads of flowers that all open at once for a good show. Hardy to Zone 4. Pictured: Syngenta’s
Amy Gard’ner (right) and Alicain Carlson feeling Hunky Dory.

Daylily See You Tomorrow (ThinkPlants)
Perhaps the common name of this new introduction should be multi-daylily, as Unex’s new See You Tomorrow Hemerocallis has flowers that last four to five days rather than the typical lifespan of a single day. The flowers hold just on top of the foliage and start out green, mature to yellow and transition to dark yellow. Grows 18-in. tall and is hardy to Zone 4.

Hosta Sorbet (ThinkPlants)
Sorbet is a unique hosta cultivar with bright green foliage edged with crisp icy white margins. However, the most distinguishing feature is the contrasting red petioles that truly catches the eye. Bill described it as having “burgundy speckled stems that looked just like rhubarb.” Sorbet grows 16- to 18-in. tall, produces lavender flowers in the summer and is hardy to Zone 3.

Selaginella Green Spikemoss (Jaldety)
Consumers love soft, touchable plants, so we were happy to see (and feel) Selaginella Green Spikemoss. It’s a fun, little soft mossy plant that can be used indoors or outdoors. Zone 6.

Dianthus Electric Dreams (PlantHaven)
As its name suggests, it has electric pink flowers that illuminates the plant with a non-stop vivid color display from spring to fall. Electric Dreams may have a compact habit, but it offers tons of electrifying flower power. Bred by the famous Whetman Pinks of the UK. Zone 5. GT

GO HERE to watch all the videos in our CAST ’24 playlist on YouTube.