Top 10 New Plant Introductions

Well, it’s that time of the year again when I have finally finished booking our plants for the 2025 season, and now I get to share some of the best new introductions that you can look forward to. While hydrangeas are topping the list again, they have dominated my yearly picks in the past and I wanted to show you a few other options. These will include a number of lesser-known species such as deciduous azalea and Abelia, reintroduced as colourful and compact varieties. As always, there are new roses, but breeding has focused on intense flower colour that is going to hold up in the brightest of exposures.

So now that I have your undivided attention, here are my top 10 plant introductions for 2025.

Abelia x grandiflora ‘Poco Loco’

(📸: Proven Winners)

Imagine a dwarf (2-3’ tall and wide) semi-evergreen shrub that naturally grows in a rounded form and sports intense yellow to orange spring foliage which morphs to a pinkish green in summer. Then add to that fragrant pink bell blooms that are produced all summer long and cold hardiness that allows it to be grown in containers. This all adds up to create a very versatile shrub for your garden.

Hardy to USDA zone 6.

Clematis ‘Franziska Maria’

(📸: Evison Clematis)

This compact (6-8’ tall) Evison clematis blooms from early summer to autumn, producing large double to semi-double flowers of an intense bluish-purple. The blooms are 4-7” wide and accented with purple-tipped stamens. ‘Franziska Maria’ is also a good specimen for container culture.

Hardy to USDA zone 4.

Rhododendron ‘Electric Lights Red’

(📸: First Editions)

Last year’s record-breaking cold winter was very hard on deciduous azaleas, so the timing of this new hardy variety couldn’t be better. This cultivar explodes into a dazzling display of intense fire engine red flowers in early spring, just after the leaves emerge. It grows 4-5’ tall by 3-4’ wide and prefers part to full sun.

Hardy to USDA zone 4.

Poncirus trifoliata ‘Snow Dragon’

(📸: MK Lascelle)

This variegated form of ‘Flying Dragon’ hardy orange is simply beautiful to look at and the relative slow growth rate and cold hardiness makes it a great candidate for containers or bonsai. It produces small, seedy golf ball-sized oranges that can be used for marmalade or zest in cocktails. The good news here is that you don’t have to wait until spring, because they have already arrived at the nursery.

Hardy to USDA zone 5.

Hosta ‘Gigantosaurus’

(📸: Proven Winners)

In the past, all those giant hosta like ‘Empress Wu’ or ‘Big Daddy’ sported little variegation but with ‘Gigantosaurus’ you get bulk with heavily corrugated blue leaves beautifully contrasted by golden-yellow margins. These are followed by prominent pale lavender blooms in early summer. This new variety grows a massive 3’ tall by 6’ wide.

Hardy to USDA zone 3.

Helleborus ‘Rio Carnival’

(📸: Walters Gardens)

This Lenten Rose introduction from Walters Gardens features single creamy-yellow blooms (2.5-3” wide) that are heavily spotted in a contrasting burgundy red, which also silhouettes the stamens. These are borne in abundance from late winter through to spring, with the overall display lasting six weeks or more.

Hardy to USDA zone 4.

Cornus kousa ‘Akatsuki’

(📸: Heritage Seedling)

You are definitely going to say ‘wow’ when you finally see this Korean Dogwood in bloom. This variegated sport of ‘Satomi’ features cream margins on the foliage with matching variegated pink bracts with thin white edges. Expect pink highlights in the leaves and avoid planting in the hot afternoon sun to negate scorch. Slowly grows 10-15’ tall and it is in stock right now.

Hardy to USDA zone 5.

Rosa ‘Winning Streak’

(📸: Star Roses)

Here’s a low maintenance rose with intense cherry red blooms irregularly streaked in yellow that just refuses to fade in the hot sun. This compact (2’ tall and wide) floribunda will fit in the smallest of urban gardens and the flowers are produced all summer long.

Hardy to USDA zone 6.

Syringa ‘Bloomerang Purpink’

(📸: Proven Winners)

Another of the repeat-blooming lilacs from Proven Winners with heavy displays of fragrant purplish-pink blooms in spring, summer, and early fall. It is also quite disease resistant, grows 3-5’ tall by 3’ wide, and is very cold hardy.

Hardy to USDA zone 3.

Paeonia x ‘Orange Victory’

(📸: Greenworks)

We are going to be carrying a full line of Itoh peonies with this new introduction being our centerpiece. Expect intense orange petals with red flares and contrasting bright yellow stamens. These lightly scented blooms make great cut flowers, and the plants are very long-lived, upwards to 50 years.

Hardy to USDA zone 4.

For the past few months, I have been busy collecting and booking the best dogwoods, magnolias, hosta, hellebores, and peonies from numerous wholesale nurseries to offer you carefully curated collections that we will be offering online in the near future. So, keep an eye out for this unique opportunity!