Proven Winners Plants for Spring Planting!

It's my favorite time of the year again!!  When Proven Winners sends me some of their wonderful plants to plant in my Southeast Tennessee Garden!  Do you remember last year - Spring Planting with Proven Winners?  I'll have to walk around the garden and show you how some of my favorites from last year are doing.  But for now, let's move right on into this year's shipment.  I will start with annuals.

First up we have Supertunia Vista Fuchsia Improved Petunia.  I am super excited about these because last year, my supertunias were show stoppers!  Literally people would stop walking and come up and ask me what kind they were - here's my post on them from last year - Gorgeous Supertunias!  See how gorgeous they were?!  So you can imagine how excited I am to get these electric fuchsia colored supertunias!   These will grow 12-24" tall with a 24-36" spread. They like full sun and are heat tolerant.  These bloom from spring into fall.

Our next annual is the Quicksilver Artemesia.  I love the lacy texture and cool silver foliage.  When you are looking for a companion plant, this one is perfect, it goes with just about everything!  It will get about 6-10" tall and spread about 12-30" making it perfect for containers or in front of taller blooming flowers.  It will be the perfect addition to my cottage style front bed!

I love the bright yellow flowers on the Bright Lights Yellow Osteospermum.  It tolerates cool springs, so I love that I can plant it early.  It will also thrive in summer heat, making it perfect!  It will bloom all the way from spring to fall, getting around 8-12" tall with a 8-12" spread.  It has low water needs and stays neatly mounded.  It will be available in garden centers next spring.

I was thrilled to see Superbells Hollywood Star Calibrochoa in my shipment!   These are my favorite plants to put on our mailbox!  They grow 6-12" tall with a 12-24" spread.  They bloom from spring into fall!  This variety has fuchsia pink flowers with a deep purple star pattern around it's bright yellow throat.  It takes full sun, average moisture, good drainage, heat tolerant, great in containers.  It will be available next year.

Our last annual is the Graceful Grasses Prince Tut.  You have to click on that link to see a photo of it when it's blooming with these gorgeous textured plumes.  This grass will get 30-48" tall with a 24-36" spread.  It likes partial sun to full sun and consistent wet soil.  It will grow in shallow water.

Next up is the perennials:

I don't have any ornamental grasses in my yard so I am excited to try Prairie Winds Apache Rose, which is available in Garden Centers this year.  It is a durable grass that will stand up to wind and rain, growing about 4' tall with a 2 ½' spread.   I am especially intrigued by the rosy-red leaf tips in the fall.  It's great for landscapes and can be used as a thriller in large combination planters.

I have some perennial white phlox in my garden, so I am so happy to have this lovely light lavender pink flowered variety, Opening Act Blush, available at garden centers this year!  It's dark green glossy foliage stays beautiful all summer long, it is not effected by mildew that can bother some tall phlox.  It is 18-20" tall with an 18'20" spread.  It likes full sun and average moisture.  It attracts butterflies and hummingbirds with it's fragrant flowers and makes a good cut flower.

I am always thrilled to add bee balm to my garden, and am really excited about this "Pardon my Cerise" Monarda didyma.  It produces dark cherry pink flowers on compact plants and is disease resistant.  It stands 14-18" tall and spread 10-12".  It takes full sun to partial shade and average to consistent moisture.  It is loved by butterflies and hummingbirds with it's fragrant flowers and makes a good cut flower.

Ending with the shrubs:

We start the shrub category with Let's Dance Blue Jangles hydrangea.  It is a big leaf hydrangea that blooms on old and new wood.  It stands 2-3' tall and wide.  It likes partial sun to full sun and a moist soil.  It is a reblooming hydrangea with heavenly blue flowers in a acid soils and vivid pink in alkaline soils.  I can't wait to see what color mine will be!

If you've followed my garden posts for a while, you know that I love Rose of Sharons!  They are my most favorite shrub.  I probably have almost 20 of them in my yard (they provide a living fence down both sides of my backyard).  So, I was crazy thrilled to get this Purple Pillar Rose of Sharon.  I am so intrigued by it.  It forms more of a pillar shape, standing 10-16' tall and 2-3' wide.  Anywhere you need a little privacy or an upright accent plant, this would be perfect.  It has purple flowers with red centers summer through fall.  It likes full sun and is heat and drought tolerant, no pruning required.

Last we have "Aphrodite" sweetshrub.  This shrub bears wine red, magnolia-like flowers first in midsummer and then repeats in early fall.  It is very fragrant, with an apple-like scent.  It gets 5-6' tall and wide.  It likes partial to full sun and you can prune it after flowering.  I'm really excited about this one, I love the look of the flowers!

Whew!  There you have it.  I'd love to thank Proven Winners for sending me these plants to try out in my garden!  I will keep all of you posted throughout the summer with their progress.