An ideal rose, not-too-hot chillies and an ipomopsis that's irresistible to hummingbirds. We asked expert plantspeople, nursery owners, designers and garden experts to pick new plants that they are particularly excited about this year. The result is a list of remarkable, recently-bred beauties that everyone will want to feature in their borders. Here's what they are and where you can get them.
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ANEMONE FRILLY KNICKERS (= ‘FP007’)
Rosy Hardy
Hardy’s Plants
Bred by us, and launched in 2020, Anemone Frilly Knickers is full of surprises. It looks as good from the back as the front. With semi-double blooms, each white, finely frilled petal is suffused with pale lilac. The back of the petals are brushed with deeper violet. It flowers between July to September and prefers part shade, but can cope with more sun, if the soil is sufficiently moist and humus-rich. It is a clump-forming perennial, which does not run around.
60cm x 45cm. RHS H6. Available from Hardy’s Plants.
In the second year Ipomopsis rubra shoots up an unbranched stem and explodes into a tower of the most brilliant red flowers imaginable
ROSA TOTTERING-BY-GENTLY (= ‘AUSCARTOON’)
Michael Marriott
Rose expert
Our garden is divided into two, my half being mainly very informal, with most plants of wild origin or looking very much as if they were. I’m going to plant Rosa Tottering-By-Gently, which, with its single, soft yellow flowers and musky fragrance, is very much in the style of the species. It is extremely healthy –
crucial as I never spray anything in the garden. The flowers are produced from June through to the autumn and if not deadheaded are followed by a superb crop of orange hips that will last right through the winter. Depending on pruning, it will grow to 1.2-2m tall and will be happy in most soils.
1.25-2m x 1.25-2m. RHS H6, USDA 5a-9b.
Available from David Austin Roses.
Here are more beautiful roses
CAPSICUM BACCATUM ‘PEPPAPEACH STRIPEY’
Rob Smith
Gardening columnist and presenter
There are some fantastic new chillies available for home gardeners. Chilli ‘PeppaPeach Stripey’ is an amazing new cultivar from American growers Matt Layton and Rich Blood of Pepper Guru, with beautifully striped fruits that aren’t too hot; perfect for stuffing for a tasty snack with a kick. You’ll need
a greenhouse for this beauty, but then it’s up to you if you grow them in containers or the border. If you’ve previously grown chillies, you’ll have no problems with this new cultivar; just give it plenty of sun and warmth. Incredibly beautiful, productive, and not too hot – what’s not to love?
75cm x 60cm. USDA 10a-12.
Seeds available from Welsh Dragon Chilli and Towns-End Chilli and Spice.
Schizachyrium scoparium ‘Ha Ha Tonka’ has dense, blue-green foliage, with fine hairs that give it a soft glow that’s just magical
COSMOS BIPINNATUS ‘APRICOT LEMONADE’
Graham Rice
Garden writer
We’ve seen the introduction of some novel new cosmos in recent years, including ‘Cupcakes’ with its unique bowl-shaped flowers. But for delicate and intriguing colour in borders, large containers and especially for cutting, then look for ‘Apricot Lemonade’. The jagged soft apricot petals, shading to pink at the base, are pale lavender on the backs. At just 60cm high, and with the same feathery foliage as other
cosmos, ‘Apricot Lemonade’ is ideal among roses – plus, I suggest a row specifically for cutting. 60cm x 40cm.
Seeds available from Thompson & Morgan, Sarah Raven, Suttons.
IPOMOPSIS RUBRA
Derry Watkins
Owner, Special Plants
I would happily grow this very hardy biennial, which thrives from Texas to Canada, just for the mound of featherfine grey leaves in its first year. But in the second year it shoots up an unbranched stem and explodes into a tower of the most brilliant red flowers imaginable in July and August. These are irresistible to hummingbirds in the USA, and attractive to bees and butterflies here in the UK. The height seems very variable. Grow in full sun in well-drained soil. Easily the most exciting plant I have grown recently. 90cm-1.8m x 15-45cm. USDA 6a-9b.
Seeds available from Special Plants.
SCHIZACHYRIUM SCOPARIUM ‘HA HA TONKA’
Sheila Jack
Garden designer
Schizacyrium scoparium ‘Ha Ha Tonka’ is a collaboration between plantsmen heroes Piet Oudolf and Cassian Schmidt. Schmidt was on a botanising trip to the US and collected little bluestem seed in Ha Ha Tonka State Park, Missouri. Back in Germany, he sowed the seed and began crossing the offspring. He and Oudolf made the selections over time, and this cultivar was the result. I first came across it on a visit to Oudolf’s own garden in 2018 It’s still hard to find, but I’m looking forward to including it in meadow/
prairie-style plantings. It has dense, blue-green foliage, with fine hairs that give it a soft glow that’s just magical. It suits drought-tolerant, dry conditions and low-fertility soil, and has a stiff, upright habit and wonderful autumn colour.
50cm-1m x 1m. RHS H6, USDA 3a-9b.
Available from Hayloft Plants.
AGAPANTHUS POPPIN’ PURPLE (= ‘MP003’)
Chosen by Simon Sutcliffe,
How Green Nursery
This new Agapanthus is a fantastic cultivar with an abundance of purple-black buds that open into vivid purple. It doesn’t end with the interesting flower colour – it’s a very fast grower and has a very long flowering period, from July to September. It reliably reblooms. It is ideal in containers and in the border,
in full sun and well-drained soil.
Height x spread: 60cm x 50cm. RHS H4, USDA 6a-10b†
Available from How Green Nursery (wholesale only), Farmer Gracy, Crocus and J Parker’s.
SESLERIA ‘SUMMER SKIES’
Stefano Marinaz
Garden designer
This recent introduction from Knoll Gardens is growing beautifully on my allotment, where I experiment with new plants. It’s somewhere between the hybrid Sesleria ‘Greenlee’ and Sesleria autumnalis. It has an upright habit with relatively stiff, blue-grey foliage and creamy white flowers. It is semi-evergreen, which is great for giving a lush, green feel to a garden and is great for dry sites. Grasses are so important for the planting palette as they cover the ground, suppressing weeds and retaining moisture but still allowing perennials to emerge and flower. Having a sturdy and short grass is a great option to combine with many, many perennials for full sun; we’ve started using it in our projects as a matrix plant with echinaceas, sedums and agastaches. I’ve observed that it can take a bit of dappled shade too.
40-60cm x 60cm. RHS H7, USDA 5a-9b. Available from Knoll Gardens
DAHLIA ‘ADAM’S CHOICE’ AND ‘KING ARTHUR’
Sarah Raven
Grower and writer
Dahlia ‘Adam’s Choice’ (above) is a beautiful new cultivar that my husband Adam and I discovered on a visit to Dutch breeders. We’ve bred it on and now have a few for sale and for the garden at Perch Hill. It is an Anemone Group dahlia with toffee-apple pompoms and a rich and lustrous old tapestry feel. 90cm x 60cm. RHS H3, USDA 7a-10b.
The dark, chocolate flowers of Dahlia ‘King Arthur’ look as though they have been cut from silk velvet. It sat firmly at the top of all our notebooks when on our dahlia hunt last autumn. Exclusive to us, everything about this dahlia is irresistible. 90cm x 75cm. RHS H3, USDA 7a-10b.
Both available from Sarah Raven.