Must-Grow New Perennials for 2013

Double-flowered, nicely mounding EverLast dianthus earned its name because of its continuous flowering ability all season. Starting early, this hardy dianthus blooms with vigor and can even take a little cold weather. It continues to rebloom even after temperatures start to drop in later summer. The EverLast series features double dianthus in several colors: White, Burgundy Blush, Lavender, Lilac, and Orchid.

Name: Dianthus EverLast Series

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 12 inches tall and 14 inches wide

Zones: 5-9

Grow It With: Lambs'-ears

Source: Visit ballhort.com for more information.

Add plucky pink color to your fall flower garden! Compact and flower-covered, 'Pretty Lady Julia' is the newest member of the Pretty Lady series of Japanese anemones. Unlike other Japanese anemones, this perennial is a prolific bloomer. It is packed with double, 2-inch-wide, medium-pink flowers, each dotted with a lemon-yellow center. 'Pretty Lady Julia' is a long-lived garden perennial, so you'll enjoy her beauty for many years. This compact anemone is also ideal for containers.

Name: Anemone hupehensis 'Pretty Lady Julia'

Growing Conditions: Full sun or part shade and moist soil

Size: To 18 inches tall and 24 inches wide

Zones: 5-9

Grow It With: Mums

Source: Visit bloomsofbressinghamplants.com to find a retailer near you.

Photo courtesy Blooms of Bressingham

Bring on the butterflies! Monarda, also called bee balm, features frilly, nectar-rich flowers that entice pollinators such as butterflies and bees. 'Pardon My Purple' features fuchsia-purple flowers that bloom in midsummer. This petite perennial -- it grows 10-12 inches tall -- is ideal for placing in the front of a flower border; it creates a vibrant edging. Try it in containers, too -- especially for the up-close butterfly-viewing potential.

Name: Monarda didyma 'Pardon My Purple'

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 12 inches tall

Zones: 4-9

Grow It With: Butterfly bush

Source: Visit provenwinners.com for more information.

Swirling hibiscus blooms add a magical, tropical feel to patios and decks. This new hardy hibiscus produces spellbinding 9- to 10-inch-wide flowers. Oblong buds unfurl into clear pink flowers that bear a dark red throat with red streaks. The foliage is equally showy: purple, maple-leaf-shape leaves. A good landscape addition, 'Electric Wizard' grows just 3 feet tall. Its small stature and big blooms also make it a stunning container planting. 'Electric Wizard' is drought-tolerant.

Name: Hibiscus 'Electric Wizard'

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 3 feet tall

Zones: 4-9

Grow It With: Roses

Source: Visit flemingsflowerfields.com for more information.

Photo courtesy National Green Centre

Ring in 2013 with this brand-new bellflower! Large, pendent rose-pink flowers are borne on slender stems. 'Ringsabell Mulberry Rose' starts to flower in late spring. The eye-catching color is a bonus to any garden -- especially cottage gardens. The flowers look like little fairy caps and stand above the green foliage. This campanula doesn't spread like others of its type. Use in beds and borders, of course. And tuck this little beauty into containers, too!

Name: Campanula 'Ringsabell Mulberry Rose'

Growing Conditions: Full sun to partial shade

Size: To 6 inches tall and 15 inches wide

Zones: 5-9

Grow It With: Blue bellflower

Source: Visit skagitgardens.com for more information.

This showy hibiscus has huge deep-red flowers, but its dark purple maple-shape leaves are what makes it a standout in the garden. 'Midnight Marvel' produces 8- to 9-inch flowers from midsummer until frost. Hibiscus, also called rose mallow, is a native to the Southeast United States and excels in a number of conditions, from swamps to marshes to meadows. It will bloom its heart out in hot weather, too. 'Midnight Marvel' makes a stunning border.

Name: Hibiscus 'Midnight Marvel'

Growing Conditions: Full sun or partial shade

Size: To 4 feet tall and 4-1/2 feet wide 

Zones: 4-9

Grow It With: Turtlehead

Source: Order it now from White Flower Farm. 

Photo courtesy perennialresource.com

You might not have considered using perennial geraniums in containers, but this new compact geranium will make you try it: 'Azure Rush' is a great choice for patio planters and window boxes. The single clear-blue flowers bloom from May until frost. In extremely hot areas, place 'Azure Rush' geranium in partial shade. The plant is compact and vigorous, and you'll love its lovely mounding habit, which also makes it a good choice for edging plants in the front of a bed or border. 

Name:  Geranium 'Azure Rush'

Growing Conditions: Full sun or part shade and well-drained soil

Size: To 18 inches tall and 24 inches wide

Zones: 5-8

Grow It With: Coreopsis

Source: Visit bloomsofbressinghamplants.com to find a retailer near you.

Photo courtesy Blooms of Bressingham

Compact and citrusy! 'Julia' is a bright orange coneflower that's a member of the Butterfly Kisses series of dwarf varieties. Ideal for tight spaces, this pumpkin-color flower grows just 15 to 18 inches tall. It starts flowering in early summer and cranks out bloom after bloom all season. Bees and butterflies love this flower -- and it also makes a stunning addition for bouquets. Heat- and drought-tolerant coneflower is a must-have for the gardener interested in a low-maintenance landscape. Coneflower is an American native, and deer will generally pass it by.

Name: Echinacea 'Julia'

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 18 inches tall and 24 inches wide

Zones: 5-9

Grow It With: Coreopsis

Source: Visit greatgardenplants.com for more information.

Photo courtesy perennialresource.com

A fun, fluffy -- even freaky -- Shasta daisy, 'Freak!' will garner lots of attention in your garden. The fluffy 2- to 2-1/2-inch-wide flowers feature layers of white petals. The long-blooming flowers smother the compact, well-branched plants. Dark, toothy leaves make the white blooms pop. Plant in partial shade in really hot climates. 'Freak!' is ideal in garden beds -- especially cottage gardens -- but also excels in containers. Flowers bloom from June through frost. To encourage reblooming, remove faded blooms. Makes a great cut flower.

Name: Leucanthemum x superbum 'Freak!'

Growing Conditions: Full sun or part shade and well-drained soil

Size: To 13 inches tall and 21 inches wide

Zones: 4-8

Grow It With: Phlox

Source: Visit bloomsofbressinghamplants.com to find a retailer near you.

Colorful blooms, colorful leaves! 'Hypnotic' is a hardy hibiscus that bears 10- to 11-inch-diameter white flowers veined with rose pinstripes. But the blooms aren't the only attraction: 'Hypnotic' also features distinctive purple maple-shape leaves that look stunning even when the plant is not in bloom. Heat-loving 'Hypnotic' is an ideal plant for any sunny garden spot -- in the landscape, flower border, or cottage garden.

Name: Hibiscus 'Hypnotic'

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 3-1/2 feet tall

Zones: 4-11

Grow It With: Roses

Source: Visit flemingsflowerfields.com for more information.

Photo courtesy National Green Centre

You don't need a crystal ball to foresee a gorgeous garden in your future -- you just need to plant the brand-new hardy hibiscus called 'Crystal Ball'. This 4- to 5-foot-tall, shrubby perennial bears luxurious 11-inch-wide white flowers. Plants are hardy: They withstand drought, excessive heat, and even floods. 'Crystal Ball' was bred with increased pest resistance, too. Use this showy perennial shrub in a mass planting (what a wonderful hedge!) or in a corner of a cottage garden.

Name: Hibiscus moscheutos hybrid 'Crystal Ball'

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 5 feet tall

Zones: 5-9

Grow It With: Roses

Source: Visit flemingsflowerfields.com for more information.

Photo courtesy National Green Centre

A brilliant red coreopsis (most varieties are yellow), 'Mercury Rising' is a hot little number for beds and borders. A member of the Big Bang Series, this hardy perennial blooms from early summer through early fall -- sometimes even to frost. The wine-red flowers feature a golden button center. If you're planting a butterfly garden, 'Mercury Rising' is a must. Small flowers and airy foliage make this a beautiful addition to any flowerbed.

Name: Coreopsis 'Mercury Rising'

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 18 inches tall and 24 inches wide

Zones: 5-9

Grow It With: Perennial geranium

Source: Order now from greatgardenplants.com or White Flower Farm.

What a showy coneflower! The pompomlike, fully double center is skirted with a frill of slender single petals. The cranberry color of this flower is simply electric in the garden. Beneath all its extraordinary good looks, 'Double Scoop Cranberry' boasts all the other great characteristics of coneflowers: drought tolerance, easy care, and attractive to butterflies. Flowers bloom from late spring through late summer. Plant extra for cutting, because 'Double Scoop Cranberry' is beautiful in a bouquet.

Name: Echinacea 'Double Scoop Cranberry'

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 26 inches tall and 22 inches wide

Zones: 5-9

Grow It With: Russian sage

Source: Visit ballhort.com for more information.

Here's something you might not have seen before: a bright yellow coneflower! 'Cleopatra' is named after the lovely yellow butterfly with the same name, a perfect moniker for this sunny, butterfly-attracting coneflower. Single flowers measure 3 inches across; petals stand out horizontally from the center so they look full and sunny. The orange cone at the center of each bloom is also very showy. Coneflowers are native to the United States and offer winter food for gold and purple finches.

Name: Echinacea 'Cleopatra'

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 18 inches tall and 16 inches wide

Zones: 4-8

Grow It With: Bee balm

Source: Order now from greatgardenplants.com or White Flower Farm.

Photo courtesy perennialresource.com

One of the darkest red hibiscus flowers around, this compact, well-branched perennial will look stunning in a cottage garden, mixed with landscape shrubs, or in a container. 'Heartthrob' produces near-black, glossy buds that unfurl to deep red 8- to 10-inch-wide blooms. The 4-foot-tall plant is covered with flowers. 'Heartthrob' is a stunner when it blooms in mid- and late summer. It's deer-resistant, too.

Name: Hibiscus 'Heartthrob'

Growing Conditions: Full sun to partial shade

Size: To 4 feet tall and 6 feet wide 

Zones: 4-9

Grow It With: Asters

Source: Visit perennialresource.com for more information.

Photo courtesy perennialresource.com

Coneflower has definitely evolved over the past several years. 'Passion Flute' offers an unusual look with its quilled petals. This petal pattern started with 'All That Jazz', a pink coneflower. Now 'Passion Flute' offers a vibrant yellow version. The fluted petals radiate from the golden-yellow center like rays from the sun. The flowers reach up to 4-1/2 inches across, and bloom time is mid- to late summer. 'Passion Flute' is a member of the Let's Boogie series of coneflowers. Coneflowers are among the easiest to grow, because they are drought-tolerant. Their faded flowers offer winter food for birds, so they are a requisite flower for nature lovers.

Name: Echinacea 'Passion Flute'

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 3 feet tall and 2 feet wide

Zones: 4-8

Grow It With: 'All That Jazz' coneflower

Source: Visit perennialresource.com for more information.

Photo courtesy perennialresource.com

Compact, erect, and covered with bright pink pompom flowers, 'Butterfly Kisses' deserves special space in your perennial border or container garden. The flowers are fragrant, measure 3 inches across, and are held like little umbrellas above the deep green foliage. If you love the pompom-type of coneflower, this new introduction deserves a try; it's a member of the Conefections series. Attractive seed heads offer seeds for birds and winter interest. It's a butterfly magnet, too.

Name: Echinacea 'Butterfly Kisses'

Growing Conditions: Full sun or partial shade and moist but well-drained soil

Size: To 18 inches tall and wide

Zones: 4-8

Grow It With: Ornamental grasses

Source: Order now from White Flower Farm.

Photo courtesy perennialresource.com

If you love Russian sage but don't like the way large plants flop over, try PEEK-A-BLUE, a shorter version that grows just over 2 feet tall. The lacy, silvery leaves look lovely with the lavender blue flowers. PEEK-A-BLUE blooms from midsummer into early fall. The flowers add airy-cool color to beds and borders -- and also attract hummingbirds. Deer aren't interested. It's a great choice for urban or small-space gardens.

Name: PEEK-A-BLUE Perovskia atriplicifolia 'WALPPB'

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 28 inches tall and inches wide

Zones: 4-9

Grow It With: Coneflower

Source: Visit perennialresource.com for more information.

Photo courtesy perennialresource.com

If you are looking for a groundcover that is as colorful as it is hardy, plant sedum 'Cherry Tart'. Growing just 6 inches tall (yet spreading up to 18 inches), this adorable little sedum has cherry-red leaves from spring through fall. In late summer, this groundcover is smoothed with 5-inch-tall brilliant pink flower heads. Use in the landscape or in succulent bowls or mixed-flower containers as the edging option.

Name: Sedum 'Cherry Tart'

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 6 inches tall and 18 inches wide

Zones: 4-9

Grow It With: Other sedums

Source: Visit greatgardenplants.com for more information.

Photo courtesy greatgardenplants.com

Sedums are a joy of gardening -- they are easy-care, drought-tolerant, and come in a wide range of foliage and flower colors. This new upright sedum offers all that and a bit more. It changes looks every season: In spring, small blue-green serrated leaves emerge, growing into a perfect low mound -- a great asset to the front of the border. As the plant matures, the leaves turn lighter green. In late summer, this beauty joyously blooms -- the compact mounds are covered with a dome of pink star-shape flowers that develop into deeper pink seed heads. In every season, 'Pure Joy' has a showstopping number to wow your garden.

Name: Sedum 'Pure Joy'

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 12 inches tall and 20 inches wide

Zones: 3-9

Grow It With: Ornamental grasses

Source: Visit provenwinners.com for more information.

The sunny faces of coneflowers capture the spirit of the plains. This new coneflower, which has garnered an award for 2013 from the All-America Selection (AAS), features flowers in a mix of colors: purple, pink, red, orange, yellow, cream, and white. Excellent in perennial borders and mass landscape plantings, this butterfly-attracting flower will also bring in other pollinators.  Coneflower is drought- and heat-tolerant, and deer dismiss it.

Name: Echinacea 'Cheyenne Spirit'

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 2 feet tall and wide

Zones: 4-9

Grow It With: Coreopsis

Source: Order now from greatgardenplants.com or White Flower Farm.

Photo courtesy greatgardenplants.com

You'll love this soothing new coneflower because of its lovely glow. 'Evening Glow' features single flowers with horizontal yellow petals that are flamed with orange streaks (and there's a hint of pink in there, too). The cone center is a large and dark. Use this showy coneflower in perennial borders or cutting gardens. It even excels in containers. 'Evening Glow' flowers from spring through summer.

Name: Echinacea 'Evening Glow'

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 26 inches tall

Zones: 4-9

Grow It With: Russian sage

Source: Visit greatgardenplants.com for more information.

Photo courtesy greatgardenplants.com

Absolutely the color of a slice of ripe cantaloupe, 'Supreme Cantaloupe' coneflower is gorgeous for bouquets. The young brown-eyed flowers with a frill of double petals resemble gerbera daisies. This ambitious coneflower blooms nonstop all summer and into fall, enticing butterflies and bees. The seed heads are also attractive to finches that feed on them during the winter. Coneflowers are American natives; they are deer-resistant and one of the easiest plants to grow.

Name: Echinacea 'Supreme Cantaloupe'

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 30 inches tall and 24 inches wide

Zones: 5-9

Grow It With: Russian sage

Source: Visit greatgardenplants.com for more information.

Photo courtesy greatgardenplants.com

One of the hardiest lavenders! This hybrid lavender flowers in midsummer, a little later than English types, and has exceptional winter survival. Plants form a mound of silver foliage, above which long spikes of purple-blue flowers wave. This lavender is ideal for cutting fresh for bouquets and sachets, and it also dries well. Lavenders prefer well-drained soil, so plant in a raised bed if your soil is claylike. 'Phenomenal' is a butterfly-attracting flower that's ideal for nature gardens, herb beds, and cutting gardens.

Name: Lavandula x intermedia 'Phenomenal'

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 32 inches tall and wide

Zones: 5-9

Grow It With: Roses

Source: Visit greatgardenplants.com for more information.

Photo courtesy greatgardenplants.com

Pale lavender bells cover this tall perennial. The 2-inch-long flowers grow in clusters. The buds are deep purple, then open to lighter lavender -- and the combination of buds and blooms on the plants gives a two-tone effect. Talk about floriferous! Up to 30 blooms appear on each shoot from spring through summer. Plants don't self-seed, so you won't be digging up starts the following spring. This campanula makes an excellent cut flower. It's a great choice for romantic cottage gardens.

Name: Campanula ‘Iridescent Bells’

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 30 inches tall and 18 inches wide

Zones: 5-8

Grow It With: Coreopsis

Source: Visit burpee.com for more information.

Photo courtesy burpee.com

It looks like a gorgeous tall yellow iris! The 5-foot-tall 'Gone with the Wind' blackberry lily flowers all summer, then produces clusters of blackberry-like seed in autumn. 'Gone with the Wind' is a cross of the dwarf iris 'Hello Yellow' and the taller wild blackberry lily, which bears orange flowers. If you have a spot in your garden for a beacon of a yellow iris, give 'Gone with the Wind' a little space.

Name: Belamcanda 'Gone with the Wind'

Growing Conditions: Full sun

Size: To 6 feet tall and 3 feet wide

Zones: 5-8

Grow It With: Coreopsis

Source: Visit plantdelights.com for more information.

Photo courtesy plantdelights.com

Add a kiss of blue to your beds, borders, and containers. Amethyst Kiss is a brand-new spiderwort that features larger flowers in larger clusters -- with bluer flowers -- than other varieties. Amethyst Kiss blooms from May through fall. During the heat of summer, its bright blue flowers may close up in early afternoon. Spiderwort is a reliable bloomer and easy-care perennial.  

Name: Amethyst Kiss Tradescantia  'Radtrad'

Growing Conditions: Full sun to light shade

Size: To 18 inches tall

Zones: 5-9

Grow It With:  Perennial hibiscus

Source: Learn more at conard-pyle.com

Photo courtesy National Green Centre