Colorado State University Announces 2016 “Top Performing” Perennials

Posted by James E. Klett, Professor, 

Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Colorado State University

The following seven perennials were recently selected by the Perennial Trial Garden Sub-committee as being superior after 3 years of growth and two winters.  Plan to utilize these in your designs and home gardens in 2017 and I think you will be happy with the results.

WINDWALKER® Big Bluestem from Plant Select®

(Andropogon gerardii  'P003S')

This is an ornamental grass with great multi-season interest with beautiful soft blue foliage that changes to a dark maroon lavender that persists even into the winter.  The plant adds impressive height to the border with a narrow growth habit that reaches about 6’ tall.  This is a great choice for a xeriscape area, as it can thrive with little or no supplemental irrigation.  Avoid overhead watering and over-fertilization to maintain compact plants and prevent lodging.

Alexander’s Great Brunnera from Terra Nova Nurseries, Inc.

(Brunnera macrophylla ‘Alexanders Great’ ^PP25,789)

This is a unique Brunnera of “monster” growth proportions which is an excellent choice to add structure to the garden.  The large size also helps show off the heavily silvered leaves resulting in a dramatic statement for the garden.  It makes a great foliage plant for shady areas but also has a good display of blue flowers that creates a light, airy appearance.  It can be used as a very attractive groundcover that is about knee high, but also makes a striking specimen.  This is one of the few perennials that was selected for the “Too Good to Wait” award in 2015 and did not disappoint during the 2016 season. Make sure to give this plant ample space to show off its naturally uniform mounding habit and beautiful flowers.

 

Carnival Rose Granita Heuchera from Darwin Perennials

(Heuchera x hybrid 'Carnival Rose Granita'^PPAF)

One of the best in the Carnival series, Rose Granita is unique among Heuchera in that the foliage reflects light and even seems to glow at times.  Its foliage has a composite of pink, purple and green, combined with a silver overlay that seems to change with the angle of the sun as well as the season for a truly mesmerizing appearance.  Beautiful from a distance, this plant only gets more impressive up close as the leaf variation starts to come into focus.  Use in mass plantings or as a small specimen in the shade.  The plants have a very uniform growth habit and a light pink flower that complements the foliage nicely.    

 

Forever Purple Coral Bells from Terra Nova Nurseries, Inc.

(Heuchera 'Forever Purple'^PPAF)

Aptly named, Forever Purple’s leaves are a deep, rich purple color that is maintained all season without fading.  The best and most vibrant purple leaved Heuchera currently on the market sports glossy foliage that seems to make the color “bounce” off the leaf.  It is grown mostly for attractive foliage which also has fluted edges.   Plants have good vigor and a very uniform growth habit.  It would make a great choice for shady areas or combos.

 

Summerific® Cherry Cheesecake Rose Mallow from Walters Garden/Proven Winners

(Hibiscus x ‘Summerific® Cherry Cheesecake’)

Saucer sized flowers are a stunning contrast of rich cherry-red and bright white which gives a very tropical or exotic feel to the landscape.  This selection is rated highly for its ability to produce huge flowers evenly over the entire plant.   Plants are very uniform and healthy with foliage that reaches all the way to the ground.   Be patient with this hibiscus as it comes up very late in the spring, but is well worth the wait when the showy flowers start to open in late July. 

 

CrazyBlue Russian Sage from Darwin Perennials

(Perovskia atriplicifolia 'CrazyBlue'^USPP25639)

Besides the prolific blue flowers, this entry is noted for a very attractive growth habit that is smaller than the species and is not susceptible to lodging even with overhead irrigation.  Growth habit improves with age and with time makes a very attractive compact mound of silver gray foliage.  Plants appear dense with good branching and have a very long bloom period.  This selection thrives in a dry location and maintains a slightly more compact habit.

 

Glamour Girl Garden Phlox from Walters Garden/Proven Winners

(Phlox paniculata ‘Glamour Girl’)

This variety is described as “One of the best garden phlox introduced in a very long time”.  The period of bloom is impressively long and provides the garden with abundant vibrant salmon colored flowers.  Flower color did not fade and the plants create a very upright and uniform overall appearance with no lodging.  This selection seems to be fairly mildew resistant when compared to other garden phlox in the trials. 

 

Class of 2015 - “Too Good to Wait” Award

The Perennial Trial Garden Sub-committee likes to award the ‘Top Performer’ designation to superior plants that have been in the ground 2 winters and 3 growing seasons. This category is to acknowledge an upcoming plant that has been in the ground one winter and two growing seasons and shows excellent performance thus far in the trial. The following plant impressed the Perennial Trial Garden Sub-committee so much that they designated the category name: “Too Good to Wait Performer”.

 

Kahori® Border Pink from Bartels

(Dianthus ‘Kahori’)

Prolific blooms cover the plants at peak bloom and creates a mat of vibrant pink flowers.  This entry is superior for a long period of bloom and exceptional uniformity.  It looks great in ground beds and would make a beautiful border, but is a great choice to use in containers since it is always in bloom.  This selection remains very compact and has great heat tolerance during the peak of summer temperatures.

 

2015-16 Cool Season Trials Yield Top Picks for Off Season Color

Posted by James E. Klett, Professor, Colorado State University, Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture.

One hundred and sixteen varieties were evaluated in the 2015-16 Cool Season Trials from planting in mid-October 2015 through April 2016. At the end of the observations, eight plants were selected by the Annual Trial Garden Committee as top-rated performers. All varieties were monitored and observed weekly during the trial period. Plants were watered when the soil was dry and the temperature above 40 degrees Fahrenheit, but we had good snow cover for about two months of the trial period.  The eight winners are listed below.

Best of Show Pansy

Cool Wave^® Frost from Pan American. This is a spreading type of pansy and would be excellent for hanging baskets. This variety had good flower cover producing many blooms in a multi-color pastel blue and white.

Best Blue/Violet Pansy

Inspire^® Plus Marina from Benary. This pansy had a soft blue color with a contrasting eye of golden yellow. This is a traditional more upright type pansy with a very uniform habit with short pedicels and upward facing flowers.

Best Yellow Pansy

Freefall^® Golden Yellow from Flora Nova. This is again a spreading variety that would be excellent for baskets. The flowers are a clear golden yellow with prominent darker whiskers in center flower. It again provided excellent flower cover over the entire plant.

Best Orange Pansy

Spring Matrix^® Orange Deep from Pan American. This is a new category for 2015-16 since we had a lot of orange pansy entries. It is a traditional more upright growing pansy with deep orange, frilly flowers. This variety overwintered extremely well.

Best Violas

Pan American Seed Company’s Sorbet^® XP Series dominated in each of the categories in this year’s cool season trial.

Best of Show and Best Blue Violet Category

Sorbet^® XP Beaconsfield Improved won in both of these categories because of its eye-catching bicolor viola with a deep blue/violet center that faded to a lighter blue/violet with a nice bright orange eye. It had excellent flower cover and overall would add great curb appeal.

Best Yellow Viola Category

Sorbet^® XP Yellow Blotch from Pan American. The flower color was a deep yellow with a nice chocolate blotch. It had very uniform growth habit with strong flower stems and a very even flower cover.

Best White Viola Category

Sorbet^® XP White Blotch. This variety had a very uniform and consistent growth habit with many flowers with very large flowers for a viola. The flower color was white with a bluish blush.

Best Novelty Viola

This is also a new class this year with Sorbet^® XP Orange Jump Up winning the honor. Flowers were a stunning contrast of deep violet and vibrant orange and flowers showed no sign of fading.