Last week I attended the annual flower trials at
Welby Gardens. Along with a number of fellow landscape professionals, I was invited to view 800 new - or recently introduced - plant varieties (mostly annuals) and vote for my ten favorites. Welby will use the information to help determine which plants to propagate next year. What a concept, eh? Find out what the buyers like, and supply it!
Here are just a few that caught my eye:
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| Osteospermum, 'Peach Magic' from the Serenity series |
This photo doesn't do justice to the iridescence of the upper surface of the flower petals. Plus, check out the rich, golden brown of the undersides. Very cool!
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| Lantana 'Lemon Glow' from the Lucky series |
I love the clean, bright, cheery look of this lantana. Plus, I'm a sucker for color value shifts on the same plant - more bang for your buck!
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| Coleus 'Mars Landing' |
Cool name for an uber cool plant! Looks like an exotic leather or gemstone or - gee! - the surface of Mars. Such a wonderful color palette in one plant will inspire lots of striking container plantings for sure!
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| Supertunia 'White Russian' |
Dude. I am totally fantasizing about an entire garden based on
The Big Lebowski. Seriously, this is a dynamic neutral that will be a great mixer.
And finally, this crazy fiesta coneflower. Not part of the trial, but a showstopper nonetheless.
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| Echinacea 'Double Scoop' |
