10 Perennials You Should Know About
PROVEN WINNERS PERENNIALS
Each variety offers something different; from improved disease resistance and reblooming to more compact habits, stronger performance, and reduced maintenance. We also take a look at what goes into developing these plants and why those improvements matter on real landscape projects.
When you're choosing perennials for a landscape, there's more to consider than just flower color.
How long does it bloom? Will it flop? How does it handle disease? Does it hold up in the landscape? And, maybe most importantly, how much maintenance will it require once it's planted?
That's where plant breeding can make a difference!
From plants bred for better habits and disease resistance to varieties that bring longer bloom times and improved performance, here are 10 Proven Winners perennials worth knowing about!
1. Orange Smoothie Daylily
Daylilies are a landscape staple, but Orange Smoothie brings some improvements that make it stand out.
One of the biggest is its ability to rebloom. Instead of having one main flush of flowers and calling it a season, Orange Smoothie can continue producing flowers later in the season. For contractors, that means more color without having to replace the plant with something else.
2. Whipped Cream Dianthus
White flowers can be tricky. As they age, they can start to look less than ideal.
Whipped Cream was selected with that in mind. Rather than the flowers quickly turning brown or looking tired, this variety holds its appearance better.
It's a good example of how breeding isn't always about creating something completely different. Sometimes it's about taking a familiar plant and improving one small trait that makes a big difference in the landscape.
3. Royal Raspberry Agastache
Agastache has become a popular perennial for pollinator-friendly landscapes, and Royal Raspberry brings plenty of color and presence to the planting.
This one is highlighted for its vigor and overall performance, making it one to keep in mind when you're looking for an Agastache that can really fill a space!
4. Golden Needles Coreopsis
Coreopsis is another landscape favorite, but Golden Needles offers improvements in areas where some older varieties can struggle.
One of the goals behind this variety was better disease resistance, helping the plant maintain cleaner foliage and perform better throughout the season.
For landscape installations, that's a big deal. A plant that continues looking good after it's been installed is much more valuable than one that only looks great when it first goes in.
5. Pink Lemonade False Indigo
False Indigo, or Baptisia, is known for being a long-lived perennial. Pink Lemonade adds a different look with its unique flower color while still bringing the durability you'd expect from Baptisia.
It's also a great reminder that new breeding doesn't necessarily mean replacing an old favorite. The goal is often to add something new while maintaining the traits that made the plant valuable in the first place.
6. Cat's Pajamas Catmint
Catmint is one of those plants that can work incredibly well in the landscape—but not every variety performs the same way.
Cat's Pajamas was bred with earlier flowering and a compact habit in mind.
That can mean more usable color in the landscape and a plant that's easier to fit into tighter spaces.
7. Cat's Meow Catmint
If you like the idea of Cat's Pajamas, Cat's Meow takes the concept a little further.
It's a compact catmint with a tidy habit and strong flowering performance. Josh also compared it to older, familiar catmint varieties such as Walker's Low, highlighting how newer breeding can improve the way a plant fits and performs in a landscape.
For designers and contractors, it's worth knowing that there are options beyond the traditional go-to varieties.
8. Treasure Trove Rudbeckia
Rudbeckia is another perennial that can be a workhorse in the landscape, but some varieties can develop black spotting on the foliage.
Treasure Trove was selected for improved disease resistance, along with strong flowering and fall performance.
It's a great example of choosing a plant based not only on what it looks like when it's in the pot, but on how you want it to perform months after installation.
9. Denim 'n Lace Russian Sage
Russian sage can bring great texture, color and pollinator value to a planting, but habit and maintenance can be concerns with some varieties.
Denim 'n Lace offers a shorter, more compact habit, helping it stay more manageable in the landscape.
That matters when you're trying to reduce maintenance and avoid plants that constantly need to be cut back, supported or corrected.
10. Violet Riot Salvia
Salvia is another landscape staple, and Violet Riot is part of a newer generation of salvias bred with improved performance in mind.
Along with the Profusion series, Violet Riot was discussed as an example of breeding that focuses on traits like reblooming and improved garden performance.
It's the kind of plant that can give you the familiar look of salvia while bringing something more to the table.
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Why Does Plant Breeding Matter?
It's easy to look at a new perennial and think, "It's just another version of something we already have."
But there's a lot happening before a new variety ever makes it to the market.
At Walters Gardens, thousands of seedlings are evaluated through multiple stages of testing. Research farm can evaluate around 35,000 individual seedlings, with plants going through multiple winters and additional landscape and trial evaluations before a variety is selected.
The goal isn't simply to make a plant that looks different. It's to improve something.
Maybe it blooms longer. Maybe it doesn't flop. Maybe it has better disease resistance. Maybe it stays more compact. Maybe it handles a particular environment better. Or maybe it simply requires less maintenance.
For landscape professionals, those improvements can add up.
"The right plant isn't always the newest plant. But knowing why a plant was bred can help you make a better choice for the job."
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