Looking for some cool plants to add to your garden?
Here are a dozen of the most interesting newly-available plants to keep an eye out for.
Monstera Esqueleto is a gorgeous new houseplant known for its bold, unique foliage. Introduced in 2023 by NGB member Costa Farms, it has large, fenestrated leaves up to 3 feet long, which make it look like a giant Swiss cheese plant.
This plant is ideal for adding a tropical touch to your indoor space. It’s a climbing species that can be trained to grow up a wall or other structure using a totem or moss pole. Monstera prefers well-draining soil, medium to bright indirect light, and can grow its largest leaves when trained vertically. It’s important to let the top couple of inches of the potting mix dry before watering.
Average to above-average humidity levels are best for this tropical plant. In arid conditions, the leaves may develop brown, crispy tips and edges. The growing plants and their coir/moss poles can be misted with a spray bottle when grown in indoor spaces (although a whole-house humidifier tends to be more effective).
These unusual houseplants come from the Central American country of Costa Rica. The scientific name of Monstera Esqueleto is listed as Monstera sp., as there is “some mystery around the origin of this plant” (source: Costa Farms) and its exact species within the plant kingdom. It may be a Monstera epipremnoides or perhaps an unidentified species. We’ll look forward to seeing how this cool plant is classified!
Golf Beauty Billy Buttons is an up-and-coming plant known for its bright, round blooms. The spherical 1-inch flowers are bright yellow and resemble golf balls (hence the name “Golf Beauty”). This new cultivar was introduced in 2022 by NGB member Danziger Flower Farm.
Cut flower gardens are a huge gardening trend right now, and these unique blooms, in particular, are now popping up all over the place. This is the same plant often seen in vases in mid-century modern decor, so don’t forget to harvest and dry some blooms to enjoy year-round. Outdoors, it works well in stand-alone containers, garden beds, and also as a thrilling addition to combined planters.
Billy Buttons has an upright habit, growing up to 12-18 inches tall. The long and skinny foliage is silvery-green. These unusual plants prefer loamy soil and can handle direct bright light outdoors. They are heat tolerant and have a long blooming season.
The scientific name for Billy Buttons is Pycnosorus globosus (syn. Craspedia globosa). This species is native to eastern Australia. This tender perennial can be grown as an annual in temperate cut flower gardens.
JeanGenie™ Blue Spruce is a new evergreen introduced in 2023 by NGB member Monrovia Nursery. It’s a dwarf evergreen tree that grows up to 15 feet tall and 8 feet wide, with a tidy pyramidal shape. This manageable full size makes it ideal for home landscaping as it provides year-round interest and privacy without towering over nearby structures.
JeanGenie™ Blue Spruce has striking, bright blue-green needles and creamy-hued new growth, providing year-long interest in the landscape. It’s a low-maintenance slow grower (3-4 inches per season) and prefers partial to full sun, with a hardiness of Zones 2-8.
The scientific name for Blue Spruce is Picea pungens. The species is native to the Rocky Mountains region of the USA.
Waikiki ROYAL HAWAIIAN Colocasia is a bold foliage plant that just became an All-America Selections winner and Green Thumb Award winner. With this new 2023 introduction, you don’t need to visit botanical gardens in Hawaii to see truly tropical foliage!
Its large and sturdy leaves have pink veins, white centers, deep burgundy stems, and a glossy surface. The multicolored leaves resemble caladium, but colocasia is generally easier to grow. Waikiki produces these striking colors earlier than other variegated leaf colocasia, making this interesting plant a stand-out addition to the Royal Hawaiian® Series.
The plant has an upright habit, grows up to 24-36 inches tall, and prefers wet to moist soil and full to partial sun. It’s drought and heat tolerant, can be grown in containers or beds, and has a garden spacing of 12-15 inches. The deep-green glossy foliage with white markings and vivid pink veins adds a touch of the tropics.
The scientific name for Colocasia is Colocasia esculenta. This species is native to warm climates in Southeast Asia. Remember to keep this plant warm in temperate climates.
Brad’s Atomic Grape Tomato is a colorful cultivar for the vegetable garden. Introduced in 2022 by Seeds by Design, this variety is already a sought-after favorite on YouTube and Instagram.
These tomatoes are known just as much for their unique appearance as they are for their old-fashioned flavor. The elongated, pointed fruit has lavender stripes when immature and turns striped green/blue over a red/brown background when ripe. The interior of the fruit is green and turns to blushed red as it ripens.
The plant needs consistent watering and full sun. Staking/caging is recommended due to its indeterminate habit. The plant can be grown in containers or beds and has a harvest time of 75 days after transplanting. Harvested tomatoes are sweet and delicious and can be used in salads or eaten as a snack (they look lovely displayed in a bowl).
As a smaller cultivar, this grape tomato has a short growing season (making it perfect for those of us in cooler climates). While we can’t all enjoy the warm temperatures of Solanum lycopersicum’s native South America, these fun fruits are a great way to introduce kids to homegrown veggies in the summertime.
Zulu Prince Cape Daisy is a new annual flower introduced in 2022 by NGB member Botanical Interests. It’s a reliable bloomer that attracts bees, birds, and butterflies from midsummer to fall.
Also known as Monarch of the Veldt, the Cape Daisy thrives in poor soil and hot, dry conditions. The flowers are 2-3 inches in size. They have a double layer of large outer white petals with purple and yellow inner rings and a purple-black center. Cape Daisy flowers follow the sun throughout the day.
The plant grows up to 18-24 inches tall and prefers dry to normal watering and full sun. The plant is drought and heat tolerant, pollinator-friendly, and is a good choice for a hot and dry planting site. Deadheading is optional but can encourage more flowers and keep the plant tidy.
The scientific name for Cape Daisy is Arctotis fastuosa. This species is native to Namibia and the Cape Provinces of South Africa. In your own garden, it can attract pollinators and bring a touch of whimsey to your annual display.
Fignomenal™ Fig is a new dwarf cultivar that’s ideal for urban gardening, both indoors and outdoors. Introduced in 2022, the plant has an extremely dwarf and low-mounding habit. This cultivar gives lots of fruit, with sweet, medium-sized figs that are deep brown on the outside and pink-red on the inside.
As a potted plant, Fignomenal™ is the perfect alternative to the Chicago fig. Fignomenal™ plants produce fruit throughout the year and require little maintenance. The plants can even bloom and produce fruit in the first year after transplanting.
Fignomenal™ plants grow to reach about 2-3 feet tall and wide. They are hardy to Zone 6b and prefer full to partial sun. They have green foliage and typical fig-shaped fruit with a classic fig flavor.
The scientific name for edible fig is Ficus carica. The native range of this species is from the Eastern Mediterranean region into Central Asia.
Fairytrail Bride Hydrangea is a new cascade hydrangea – the first of its kind to be offered for sale in North America. This hybrid was introduced in 2022 by NGB member Spring Meadow Nursery – Proven Winners ColorChoice, and is known for its unique horizontal growing habit that produces abundant blooms on each trailing stem.
Fairytrail Bride (‘USHYD0405’) was named Plant of the Year at the 2018 Chelsea Flower Show. It can be grown in containers, hanging baskets, or garden beds (Zones 6-9). Give the plant a minimum of 6 hours of sun for the strongest stems and the most abundant flowers, and avoid pruning except to remove any dead wood.
The plant has a mounded, spreading, and trailing habit, growing over 36 inches tall and spreading 2-3 feet wide. The summer-borne florets have a frilly, lacey look. The foliage is green, and the blooms are white/cream.
The scientific name for cascade hydrangea is simply Hydrangea x. This hybrid was developed in Japan by Ushio Sakazaki (source: Spring Meadow Nursery).
Main Street Beale Street Coleus is an annual ornamental known for its deep red foliage. This outstanding coleus variety holds its color well throughout the season and does not fade, bleach, or become spotty in the heat of summertime. Main Street Beale Street Coleus was named an All-America Selections winner in 2020.
The plant has a bushy and upright habit, growing up to 24-36 inches tall. It can be grown successfully in full sun to full shade, making it ideal for any location in the garden. It’s heat, rain, and wind tolerant. Coleus prefers normal watering and can be grown easily in containers or pots.
The scientific name for coleus is Coleus scutellarioides (syn. Solenostemon scutellarioides). This species is native to Southeast Asia and the northern regions of Australia.
Bauer Lettuce is a new oakleaf lettuce variety with a compact habit. The dense, uniform, heads are made up of sturdy leaves with wavy edges. This cultivar is sweet and crispy and can be grown in-ground, in containers, in raised beds, or even in window boxes. Bauer Lettuce was named an All-America Selections winner in 2022.
This variety has a compact habit, growing under 12 inches tall with a spread of 8 inches. Lettuce is cold-tolerant and can be planted as soon as soil can be worked in the spring. It can be direct-seeded or transplanted out as baby seedlings (spaced 6-8 inches apart).
‘Bauer’ has a days-to-harvest range of 34-58 days. The heads should be harvested at mini to medium size for the best flavor. Plant multiple successions can be throughout the season for a continuous harvest.
The scientific name for lettuce is Lactuca sativa. This species is native to Western Asia.
Back in Black Sedum is an upright perennial with near-black leaves. It is tolerant of both heat and drought and is pollinator friendly. This hybrid cultivar was introduced by NGB member Walters Gardens in 2022 and was a 2022 Green Thumb Award winner.
Back In Black Sedum is the perfect way to introduce natural dark purple foliage into your garden. Some of the most interesting plants in the world have black foliage or flowers (think dragon arum, raven zz plant, elephant foot yam, black bat flower), but also tend to be expensive, hard to find, and often difficult to grow. Thankfully, Back In Black Sedum is downright easy to grow in your garden.
This sedum is hardy to Zone 3-9. It grows 18-24″ tall with a garden spacing of 26-30″. It should be grown in average to poor, well-drained soil in full sun to light shade. Its sturdy foliage can store water, making it naturally drought-tolerant.
White Knight Philodendron is a trendy and easy-to-grow climbing houseplant that features variegated heart-shaped leaves streaked and splashed in white. This plant makes a perfect neighbor to a ‘Pink Princess’ and is a must-have for those who collect variegated cultivars. The White Knight Philodendron was introduced by Costa Farms in 2023.
Philodendron requires normal watering, and I keep mine a bit on the damp side. In terms of light, choose bright, indirect light to prevent sunburn of the white-variegated foliage. This tropical plant is most commonly grown indoors and requires staking to climb.
‘White Knight’ is a fascinating houseplant for indoor spaces. Your philodendron will likely enjoy the same growing conditions as snake plant, zz plant, peace lily, jade plant, prayer plant, money tree, and other plants that grow indoors with bright indirect light.
Written by: Mary Jane Duford
Gardening Blog: Home for the Harvest
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