What shrubs will enliven landscapes in 2021? Proven Winners, a leading worldwide plant brand, has launched its introductions for the year. And while the colorful blooms of annuals and perennials are always dazzling, here are just a few shrub introductions that also caught our eye.
Got shade? Get Stonehenge Dark Druid yew!
Yews are one of the most useful landscaping plants, thanks to their year-round beauty and shade tolerance. Stonehenge Dark Druid brings a new size and shape option to the palette of yews, naturally growing as an appealing little mound of soft, fern-like evergreen foliage. It’s ideal as a substitute for boxwood, as a specimen, or even a container plant.
Space saver! The Fine-lined Buckthorn
A new lush and full (all the way to the ground) version of the best selling hedge known for its space-saving and setting of far fewer fruits than weedy buckthorns. (Zones 2-7.)
For a sweet smell ~ Baby Kim Lilac
Yes, you have space for a delightfully fragrant lilac! Baby Kim lilac is a very small lilac, but boy, does it pack in a lot of flower power. Enjoy glossy, dark green foliage, an abundance of fragrant purple blooms that don’t fade to white, and a useful rounded habit that fits into just about any sunny spot. It brings all the joy of lilacs into a neater, tidier package so you can enjoy this classic flowering shrub no matter how much – or how little – space you have.
Need a WOW factor? Velvet Fog Smokebush is smoking’ hot!
The Velvet Fog smokebush has an abundance of flowers. You get more of what this perennially popular flowering shrub does best: big, showy, smoky seedheads in summer. The red-pink plumes make a really nice, appealing contrast with the blue-green foliage. Fantastic planted as a specimen or hedge, thanks to its lush, full branching and form.
For Color~ Wee Bit Grumpy big leaf Hydrangea.
Wee Bit Grumpy hydrangea will put a smile on your face! Its color is really something you must see to believe: in acidic soils, its big, full blooms take on a moody, dramatic deep purple-blue. They appear amid a neat, tidy mound of compact foliage that resists disease and stands up better to cold weather than conventional hydrangeas.
For Rebloom ~ Perfecto Mundo Reblooming Azalea
In a perfect world, azaleas would bloom for months instead of just weeks, have big, full flowers with pure and true colors, and resist pests and diseases – and that’s exactly what Perfecto Mundo™ azaleas do. This innovative series from award-winning plant breeder Dr. Tom Ranney of NCSU combines peerless performance with lacebug resistance, a pest that threatens azaleas in many areas.
Perfecto Mundo Double Purple azalea brings a deeply saturated purple to the line, along with ruffled, double flowers. Look for them to begin their colorful bloom in spring, along with other azaleas, then after a brief rest to create new growth, put out new flowers from mid/late summer until frost.
And for those tough spots ~ Tortuga™ Juniperus communis
Yes, indeed! Tortuga juniper is simply one of the toughest evergreens. Simply plant this handsome native juniper in a sunny, well-drained spot and watch it beautify your yard all year long. It naturally grows as a low-mounded groundcover, with pleasing emerald-green foliage. Readily withstands cold, sun, drought, deer, rabbits, air pollution, and even black walnut trees.
Ready to get some of these beauties in your landscape? We would love to help you come up with a plan and get it installed!
