The news for the spring garden: 10 never-before-seen plants that will get people talking

According to a study presented at international green exhibition Myplant & Garden in Milan, among the 19 million “permanently” green inches in Italy, two profiles stand out: the enthusiasts, who willingly give in to the temptation to buy herbs and plants for the balcony and apartment even at the supermarket, and then the experts, who frequent garden centers and specialized retailers and spend more hours a week cultivating orchards and gardens. Both, however, are animated by curiosity for the new. What is meant, therefore, when we speak of a “new plant”? They range from freshly selected varieties, to hybrids obtained through crossings, up to the unusual species once known to collectors and now introduced into cultivation on a larger scale. Right away, our selection of “new entries” seen at the recent show gardening professional

The green rose that wasn’t there

Green is today the most sought-after color by cut flower hybridizers, because it conveys a feeling of freshness. As part of this trend, ‘Veggie’ is the most beautiful rose obtained so far. It has romantic-looking corollas, i.e. very open, up to 10 centimeters wide, with very fleshy petals of a lime shade on the outside and cream on the inside, with many stamens in the centre. Hybridized in Holland, it is grown in Ecuador with Fair Trade certification and it stays beautiful for about a week… But let’s remember that in spring, with temperatures above 20 degrees, it’s easy and fun to get a rose plant from a stem (we don’t do it with patented varieties): we get a piece of branch with two knots from the lower part of the stem, we eliminate the lower pair of leaves, insert the cutting in the earth, water well and cover the pot with a plastic bag, until we see a sprout appear.

A Lilliputian agave for windowsills

Distinguishing marks: very small. It’s called Agave pumila ‘Nana’, it comes from Mexico and is very compact, with a rosette of triangular green-blue leaves overlapping each other; the whole plant reaches 5 centimeters in diameter and can be satisfied with a slightly larger pot, where it is kept in a mini format: a perfect botanical jewel for a rain-sheltered windowsill. But be careful: if we remove it from the container and plant it in the ground, at the age of 8-10 this rarity undergoes a metamorphosis and its leaves become narrow and long, up to 30 centimetres. Like other succulents, we must cultivate it in direct sun for at least half a day, watering it every ten days until autumn, only if the soil is dry. With temperatures close to zero, let’s take it away to a cool and ventilated place and keep it dry until spring.

The cyclamen with fan-shaped flowers

Made in France, the cyclamen ‘Albanico’ is medium in size, with an incredibly sumptuous appearance. In fact, in the center it has a bouquet of flowers which have the particularity of having the petals open like a fan, fringed, with a very marked contrast of colour: intense magenta, violet or salmon towards the inside and white towards the edges. Seen from the front, when the vase is placed on a windowsill, these cyclamen seem to be made of ruffles and a stem is enough in a small flower vase to bring joy even to the home. The flowering season is from September to April; then like the other remontant cyclamen, ‘Albanico’ it goes to rest and we have to keep it in the shade and almost dry until September, before watering and fertilizing again. The minimum temperature tolerated by this variety is 6°C, therefore we must keep it on the balcony or in sheltered positions.

The mountain coconut palm

If we have a garden in coastal areas, mountain coconut is certainly the plant that will amaze everyone with its “wow effect”. Endemic species discovered in Madagascar in 2004, where it survives with a small population at about one thousand meters of altitude, Beccariophoenix alfredi it has been put into cultivation in the United States in recent years; it has a dense and somewhat “liberty” appearance, very similar to that of the coconut palm. As an adult, it reaches 15 meters in height, with fountain-shaped fronds up to 4.5 meters long each. However, unlike the real coconut, this palm tolerates cold much better, down to -4°C, -6°C, for this reason we can grow it in most of the Italian microclimates and the nurserymen predict that it will become a popular palm in the gardens of the whole Mediterranean. Likes sandy soils and requires full sun. A curiosity: the lemurs, which disseminate the plant, are greedy for its fruits, red and round.

The African daisy in 3D

African Daisies Osteospermum – also known as dimorphotheque – or those that they open in the sun and then close in the evening, they have become popular in recent years as balcony plants and flower beds because they resist heat and drought well, but also salt and wind. Now there’s something new: the ‘Nanuk’ variety is part of the new 3D series, i.e. with double flowers, full of petals even in the centre, of a pure white colour: a rarity for this species, which normally has blue reflections. More, the flowers of ‘Nanuk’ have the particularity of always remaining open. The variety forms a very compact and remontant bush, perennial in areas where it does not freeze. Perfect in seaside locations, requires full sun. We will obtain the best results by transplanting the osteospermum into large pots, preferably terracotta ones.

The Paris geranium with butterfly flowers

For lovers of Parisian geraniums there is a novelty that will be noticed from a distance on the benches of nurseries. The new Pelargonium peltatum ‘Glacier Amethyst’, in fact, is ready to surprise with simple flowers larger than usual that have very open petals, like small butterflies in flight; they are deep pink in color and completely cover the plant. Very resistant to heat, this ivy geranium has a compact growth and tolerates drought well; thanks to these characteristics, as well as in hanging baskets and railing boxes, we can plant it in sunny flowerbeds along the paths as a ground cover species, where it tends to form dense spots of color to be observed from above, perennial in the milder regions.

The terracotta-colored lisianthus

Lisianthus is among the most common stems for sale in flower shops, but the ‘Bigsun Terracotta’ variety is totally different from the corollas we are normally used to seeing, those in the shape of a bellflower in colors from white to pink to blue. The new Dutch hybrid, as the name implies, has large flowers, up to 13 centimeters in diameter, with many turns of curled petals in an unprecedented brick-terracotta shade, with golden reflections towards the center. These autumn nuances will also bring lisianthus into the bouquets of those who love the warmest palettes… Let’s talk about flowers with a large yield that once in a vase last up to fifteen daysbut let’s remember that to make them last we must clean the lower part of the stems well so that there are no immersed leaves (because they would create rot) and we replace the water every day.

The dwarf cane with a tropical look

The guinea canesup to two meters tall, with exuberant leaves and very colorful flowers, they are an essential ingredient in tropical-style gardens and borders. The miniature versions – varieties up to 40 cm tall, including the flower – are a recent introduction. The latest addition, available this spring, is called ‘Cannova Red Golden Flame’, particular for the two-coloured petals, red with yellow margins. This bulbous loves full sun and we can plant it in flower boxes or in the ground, together with perennial herbaceous plants of the same height, to be sure they don’t shade it. Over time, it continues to expand, forming new seedlings thanks to the underground stems. It tolerates the summer heat and the sun well; manages to flower as early as May and continues to blossom until the first frosts, when the plant disappears to be reborn in spring. However, we must remember to cover the soil with a thick layer of dry leaves to protect the roots from frost.

The coral bean, a heat-proof creeper

Very fast growing climber, the Kennedia rubicunda And one of those unusual looking Australian plants once the preserve of collectors, but now ready to go into any garden. Among its many virtues, the extreme resistance to heat and sun. It has branches that twist around the railings and stakes, glossy green leaves that recall those of beans and coral red flowers with a particular parrot’s beak shape that bloom in spring. It requires full sun and we can grow it outdoors in areas with winter temperatures above 5°C; elsewhere let’s keep it in a vase to take it to a veranda during the cold months. It grows on any soil and, like beans, it is able to nourish the soil thanks to the symbiosis with nitrogen-fixing bacteria that live on its roots, therefore nearby plants also benefit from its proximity. If we want to reseed it, we scratch the peel of its seeds by rubbing them on a wall and then immerse them in hot water for a few hours before putting them on the ground.

The cornflower of the Adriatic, a silver cloud

A silver cushion for sunny flowerbeds: Ragusina centaury it is part of a very current group of plants, perfect for xeriscaping, i.e. for projects without an irrigation system in dry Mediterranean areas. Once it was widespread in some Italian Adriatic regions, today it grows wild on the cliffs of Dalmatia and this says a lot about its resistance to the sun and dry conditions. In fact, the climate crisis invites us to reconsider even our most resilient native plants as precious resources for gardens. Cultivated for its beauty combined with its resistance to global warming, the Centaurea ragusina is proposed as a ground cover species and for large planters, but it is also perfect on dry stone walls, where it creates large masses of silver colour, up to 45 cm high and twice as large, with sculptural leaves up to 30 centimeters long that grow very tightly and are topped with cornflower-like yellow flowers; they feed bees and butterflies from late spring to early summer. Let’s cultivate it in full sun, in stony or well-drained soils, protected from humidity and frost.