What’s New 2016 Annuals 1) Abutilon ‘Biltmore Ball Gown’ and ‘Fairy Coral Queen’ are the 2 varieties of flowering maple we offer for 2016. ‘Biltmore’ has eye catching, unusual red, orange and yellow striped blooms that dangle in the wind. It is an heirloom plant from the Biltmore House and makes an impressive specimen plant reaching to 4 feet. ‘Fairy’ has lovely coral blooms hanging in and around deep green foliage and grows to 2 feet. Both are loved by hummingbirds. 2) Alternanthera ‘Raspberry Rum’ PP#21016 is an upright Joseph’s Coat with bronze foliage with bright pink splotches. It grows to 18” and is amazing in the landscape. 3) Angelonia ‘Serenita® Lavender Pink’ is a variety we got to try last year. The ‘Serenitas®’ are more controlled and a bit smaller than their sister mates, the ‘Serenas®’. ‘Lavender Pink’ has rich pink flowers with a touch of lavender. It will bloom all summer and grow to 14”. 4) Begonia (Elatior) ‘Cottage Salmon’ is a begonia we got by accident but we really liked. The fully double blooms are surrounded by deep green foliage. This shade loving begonia does well in pots and baskets. 5) Begonia (tuberous) ‘Nonstop® Joy Yellow™’ is a new tuberous begonia with the same bloom power as the other Nonstop® family members but with a much better habit for baskets and combination plantings. Availability is limited. 6) Bidens ‘Campfire™ Fireburst’ is a new bidens from Proven Winners® with two-tone reddish orange and yellow flowers. ‘Fireburst’ is easy to grow in sunny places with no need to deadhead for near continuous bloom all summer. Gardeners can expect it to grow up to 12” and it works well in combination plantings. 7) Bougainvillea ‘Flame’ is a new orange-red bougainvillea. We had a few last year in baskets and they were awesome. The plants were covered in blooms all spring. Grow them on the dry side with very little fertilize for best results. 8) Browallia ‘Endless™ Illumination’ has lots of small blue flowers throughout the summer on a neatly mounding plant. It is shade tolerant and we are hoping this will be another alternative for bedding impatiens which are being plagued by downy mildew. 9) Calibrachoa ‘MiniFamous™ Double Amethyst’ and ‘Double Magenta’ have fully double blooms like their mates in this popular series. Both colors are rich and vibrant. 10) Calibrachoa ‘Superbells® Evening Star’, ‘Garden Rose’, and ‘Holy Moly’ are 3 new Superbells® for 2016. ‘Evening Star’ has wonderful lavender flowers with a yellow and dark purple star pattern and throat. ‘Garden Rose’ has rich rose pink flowers and ‘Holy Moly’ has unusual spotted yellow and cherry-red star patterned flowers. All are eye-catching and will add lots of color to your garden. 11) Celosia ‘Dragon’s Breath’ is a new award winning celosia with dark red foliage and deep red plumes. The well branched plant has lots of large red plumes throughout the summer. It is stunning in the landscape. 12) Celosia ‘Fresh Look Yellow’ is a yellow plume celosia with clean, green foliage. The plants with their showy yellow plumes can reach 15”. 13) Coleus ‘Apple Brandy™’ and ‘Velveteen™’ are new to the Colorblaze® coleus line from Proven Winners®. ‘Apple Brandy™’ has chartreuse and brick red variegated leaves and ‘Velveteen™’ has burgundy foliage with fuchsia pink centers. Both will light up your combination pots or your flower beds. 14) Coleus ‘Kong Jr. Scarlet’ is a smaller version of the popular Kong® coleus. ‘Scarlet’ has deep burgundy red leaves with bright chartreuse margins. The leaves are 30% smaller than its larger cousin making it easier to handle but still producing the large colorful foliage. 15) Dipladenia ‘Rio™ White’ is part of the popular Rio™ family. It has bright white blooms with a yellow throat. It will bloom all summer and has excellent heat tolerance. 16) Fuchsia ‘Lisa’ has large, fully double blooms. The sepals are rose pink and the corollas are bluish- lavender. The trailing habit makes for a nice basket or window box. 17) Gomphrena ‘Lil’ Forest™ Plum’ and ‘Pinball™ Snow-tip Lavender’ are 2 new gomphrenas. Gomphrenas are versatile landscape plants blooming all summer with good drought tolerance. ‘Lil’ Forest™’ has an abundance of dark purple button flowers. ‘Snow-tip’ has bright purple blooms blushed white in the center and around the edges. Both grow to 18”. 18) Impatiens (Double) ‘Rockapulco Wisteria’ has lovely purple and white speckled rosebud type flowers. 19) Impatiens (Sunpatiens®) ‘Compact Neon Pink’, ‘Spreading Scarlet Red ’and ‘Spreading Tropical Orange’ are new additions to the popular line of Sunpatiens®. ‘Compact Neon Pink’ has bright, hot pink blooms, ‘Spreading Scarlet’ has scarlet red blooms that are slow to fade in the sun, and ‘Spreading Tropical Orange’ has brightly variegated foliage with rich orange blooms. Sunpatiens® have shown themselves to be good landscape plants blooming up to frost if cared for properly. 20) Lantana ‘Landmark™ Blaze’, ‘Landmark™ Rose Glow’ and ‘Lucky™ White’ are our 3 new introductions of lantana. ‘Blaze’ is a red, orange, and yellow blooming variety and ‘Rose Glow’ has lavender-pink and creamy yellow bicolored blooms. Both grow to 20”. ‘Lucky™ White’ is an upright white blooming variety reaching about 16”. All are tolerant of heat and other stressful conditions in the landscape. 21) Leonotis leonorus (Lion’s Ear) ‘Dwarf Orange’ is a smaller version than the original we have carried for years. This one grows 12-36” and does well as a specimen or in combination planters. The bright orange flowers resemble a lion’s mane when fully emerged. 22) Mandevilla ‘Summer Romance Vining Yellow’ has shiny, clean green foliage and yellow blooms all summer into fall. It is ideal for baskets or containers and hummingbirds love them. 23) Petunia ‘Glow Rose Stardust’ is an early flowering, deep rose-purple and white star petunia. Unusual colors make this a great choice. 24) Petunia (Supertunia®) ‘Pink Star Charm’ and ‘Violet Star Charm’ have cheery star patterned blooms. Both are bright, eye-catching plants that can be used in combination plantings or by themselves. 25) Petunia (Supertunia®) ‘Picasso in Blue™’ is a new addition to the Picasso petunias from Proven Winners®. It is brightly colored with the signature lime green edging around the blooms. 26) Petunia ‘Sweetunia Johnny Flame’ and ‘Sweetunia Orange Flash’ are 2 unusual petunias from Red Fox. ‘Johnny Flame’ is an eye-catching deep burgundy/hot pink bicolor and ‘Orange Flash’ is a hard to find orange petunia. Both have plenty of medium sized blooms and do well in containers and combination plantings. 27) Petunia ‘Easy Wave® Yellow’ is one of the latest colors of the Easy Wave® collection. Cheery yellow blooms cover the plants throughout the summer. 28) Salvia ‘Mojave Red’ is a scarlet sage that grows around 12”. ‘Mojave’ has attractive deep green foliage topped with red spikes through the summer. It has excellent heat tolerance for our area. 29) Verbena (Superbena®) ‘Sparkling Amethyst’ and ‘Sparkling Ruby’ are both bicolor blooming verbenas. Amethyst is lavender-purple and white and Ruby is a ruby red and white bicolor. 30) Vinca ‘Victory Blue’ and ‘Victory Lavender’ are 2 new bedding vincas. ‘Blue’ is a purplish-blue with a white eye and ‘Lavender’ is a lavender-blue with a white eye. Both have large flowers on 10” plants. Hardy Ferns 1) Japanese Holly Fern (Cyrtomium falcatum ‘Rochfordi’) has glossy green foliage and a graceful habit. The evergreen, clumping fern grows to 30” and is hardy in zones 6-10. 2) Radiance™ Autumn Fern (Dryopteris erythrosora ‘Radiance’) is a new version of the popular Autumn Fern. The new spring foliage of ‘Radiance’ brightens the garden with beautiful shades of orange, red and rose. The colorful foliage lasts for weeks before turning a deep green. It will grow to 30” and is hardy in zones 5-8. Grasses & Grass-like Plants 1) Andropogon gerardii (Big Bluestem) is a native prairie grass that reaches 4-6 feet. Known to be easy to grow and adaptable, it is ideal for naturalizing and commercial landscapes. The foliage changes with the seasons turning a reddish bronze in the fall. The plumes appear in late summer and persist into fall. It is hardy in zones 4-9. 2) Liriope ‘Purple Explosion™’ PP#21352 is a new green monkey grass. It is a heavy bloomer with deep purple bloom spikes rising above compact mounding plants. It is hardy to zone 6. 3) Pennisetum ‘Cassian’ is dwarf fountain grass growing about 3 feet. It has nice fall color and is hardy in zone 6. 4) Pennisetum ‘First Knight’ PP#25515 is an annual fountain grass with deep, dark purple/black foliage. It can grow over 4 feet. It may be an annual, but it grows fast and performs well in the landscape. Hemerocallis (Daylilies) 1) ‘Passionate Returns’ PP#20002, ‘Red Hot Returns’ PP#13499, and ‘When My Sweetheart Returns’ PP#13480 are 3 members of the popular ‘Happy Ever Appster®’ family. All 3 are early to mid-season with long bloom times and reliable re-bloom into fall. ‘Passionate’ has ruffled, fragrant, rose-red blooms. ‘Red Hot’ has brilliant cherry red blooms with an apple green throat and ‘Sweetheart’ has ruffled, peachy yellow blooms with a large pink eye. All 3 are heavy bloomers and excellent performers. Edibles and Herbs 1) Cilantro/Coriander ‘Calypso’ is a new vigorous and high yielding variety that does well in our hot summers. Trials by several growers show ‘Calypso’ being as much as 3 weeks slower to bolt than ‘Santo’. 2) Dill ‘Compatto’ is a compact dill that is very flavorful and excellent for pickling. Since it grows only about 18”, it is suitable for container growing as well as in the ground.