In terms of best new traditional perennial plant for 2013, I have to say it was Echinacea ‘Cheyenne Spirit.’ I know, shocked, right? This was a surprise for me for many reasons. Echinacea, AKA Purple Coneflower has been over-hyped for years. Every year there was a new color: mango, papaya, watermelon; and every year there was a new flower form: double, crested; droopy or upright petals–it seemed like the breeders could not leave this poor daisy alone. Some of the new introductions were really offensive with short little petaloids that made the flower look like a chrysanthemum with a buzz cut. And they were pricey. They were patented and trademarked and you couldn’t propagate them without a licence. These patented varieties were clones, mostly done by tissue culture, so not all the varieties, or even very many of the varieties were strong growers. They were the poster children for perennial excess. We grew them, reluctantly, because we felt we had to. They got so much media attention, the public would look for them, ask for them, and expect us to have them in the nursery.
That’s why, when I saw the new Echinacea ‘Cheyenne Spirit’ was a seed grown variety, promising the best of bright colors, I was skeptical. I read ” shades of red, orange, purple, scarlet, cream, yellow and white,” and thought, hmm, if I plant one hundred seeds, most will be purple-pink and a few will be one of the more unusual colors. I wondered if the plants would be strong growers in the garden. Imagine my surprise when they were all good colors! Deep vibrant colors, mostly red-orange, but a few warm yellows, too. Not a pale pink in the bunch. They bloomed quickly, and I planted a couple in my own garden. Here’s one blooming a few weeks after I planted it.
We sold out of these in August and I wish we’d had more for our fall sale. We’ll definitely be growing this plant again. After it bloomed in the garden, it spent some time adding a lot of new leaves at the base and it looked really good going into the winter. Hummingbirds really like echinacea, and so do song birds. Goldfinch and house finch go after their seeds in the late fall, hummingbirds drink the nectar in the summer and early fall. Now isn’t the time, but before we open in spring, I’ll give you my best advice on how to grow Echinacea purpurea. It took me years to figure out what this plant wants. I would see it in gardens from Pueblo to Westcliffe, flourishing, and mine always looked like little stunted mutants.
The best new plant was a surprise, so, also, was the worst new plant…. We were pretty excited about the tomato called Indigo Rose. It was a cherry tomato, with indigo blue fruit that promised the most anti-oxidants of any tomato EVER. The pictures of it were quite enticing. And when I started the seeds I liked how the plant itself looked, really sturdy and deep green leaves with a hint of indigo to the leaves! Then the tomatoes formed and they were spectacular. Shiny, deep blue, almost black. Lovely. But…they never seemed to get ripe. We kept trying them, and then spitting them out. Not ripe. Not sweet. Blech! Finally, in our friend Barbara’s garden, we saw some turning rosy red. Oh, I get it, I said to myself. Indigo Rose! I’m nothing if not quick. But they still didn’t really taste all that great, even ripened. We’re sorry for those of you who grew this in your garden last year. We try to offer only the best, but sometimes in our rush to have something new, we sell a plant that is not going to live up to expectations. Indigo Rose was certainly one of those.
To end this post on a positive note, I want to mention my favorite new wildflower, Hymenoxys scaposa. It’s new to us at the nursery, but of course it’s not new like the varieties above…it’s a species native to the Southwest, very drought tolerant, and it blooms all summer long. It’s not a big plant, only about 10″ tall, but its yellow daisy flowers are very showy. It would work in a xeriscape, a rock garden, a container garden, and certainly in a garden for pollinators. Butterflies love it. Loved by butterflies, ignored by deer and rabbits–you have to try this one!
If any of you would like to post on our Facebook page about your favorite (or least favorite) plants for the year, we’d love to read about them. https://www.facebook.com/PerennialFavoritesColorado
