Plant Trends You Can Grow With

New choices that meet the needs now —and in the future.

By Arricca Elin SanSone

Buzzwords you’ll hear more and more regarding plant choices: low-maintenance, downsizing, drought-tolerant and edible landscape. We interviewed leading growers and landscape pros to gather top picks among new plant offerings you can use to update your designs and bedding selections and enhance your reputation as an expert in smart investment and sustainable landscape practices.

Low-maintenance plantings

The biggest trend in plantings is not necessarily new, but it’s definitely what clients in both private and commercial settings want. “Clients are asking for low-maintenance landscaping,” says Patrick Beam, a landscape architect and owner of 9th Avenue Designs in Cleveland, Ohio. “People want plants that don’t require deadheading, special fertilizing and pruning.”

Clients are also seeking more longevity from plantings. “Color has to last longer,” says Jeff Gibson, landscape business manager with Ball Horticultural Company. “The numbers of turns are down at the commercial level. We used to see early spring, summer, fall and sometimes winter. But now your color may have to last from May to September or from October through spring.”

Annuals with staying power are in demand. Redhead coleus (Solenostemon hybrida) is a good example of a recent introduction that lasts all season, performs in sun or shade and has a strong punch of color. Angelonia (Angelonia angustifolia ‘Serena Blue’ or ‘Archangel Raspberry’) is another new low-care performer that tolerates heat, drought and a wide range of conditions, with big, bright blooms that thrive all season.

New sizes

You don’t always have room to plant an oak with a 50-foot spread. “One of the overlying trends we’re seeing is that ‘small is good,’” says Jonathan Pedersen, marketing manager with Bailey Nurseries in St. Paul, Minnesota. “For example, it’s cheaper for developers to fit more homes per acre, resulting in smaller yards. The plant material has to shrink, too.”

Archangel Raspberry

Old favorites such as hydrangea, which can overwhelm a space, don’t work in compact yards, so smaller varieties are booming in popularity. Accordingly, shrub introductions this year include Little Lime Hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata ‘Jane’ PPAF), about a third the size of the original hydrangea, with lime-green flowers that turn to pink. Miniature versions of other standbys include Lo & Behold Blue Chip Butterfly Bush (Buddleia x ‘Blue Chip’ PP19991), which is just 2 to 3 feet wide and tall.

New shapes