23 Great Plants Most New to Wisconsin in 2023
A hummingbird feeding its young
Watch a hummingbird feeding its young in the nest.
Dave Kalman, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
New plants appear every year, and they are always amazing. But some gardeners like to go the tried-and-true route.
For those who want the best of both worlds, many new and recently introduced plants are proving to be great additions to area gardens.
Some new plants I’ve loved are petunias and sun ferns; Both came out last year and can be found at area garden centers.
The petunia is Supertunia Vista Jazzberry, part of the Vista series of proven winners. It’s a vibrant fuchsia/purple color, and when I put this annual in a large hanging basket in the sun, it filled up quickly, and the color was so intense you could see it from a distance.
Artemisia SunFern Olympia is a perennial plant that comes from Darwin Perennial. This plant looks like a fern but thrives in full sun with lush foliage so it looks like a small shrub.
Here are 21 additional plants — annuals and perennials — that garden experts suggest for our area, giving you a total of 23 plants for 2023.
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Yearbook
Colorblast Double Purple Mousse Rose
Zana Crowe, educational horticulturist at Hayden Gardens in Cedarburg, said she likes this newer variety of purslane.
“It’s a stellar performer. We grew it in our front-of-store containers last summer, and it was the most impressive annual we’ve ever had in those planters. This plant produces delicate double flowers that open a gorgeous purple rose, with the center aging to The orange color of the sunset, creating a stunning multi-coloured effect.The flowers also stay open much longer than older types of moss roses.
To the sun. Available at Hayden Gardens, 8504 State Highway 60, Cedarburg.
Supertonia Mini Vista Midnight
Crow also loves these petunias, a new color this year in the Supertunia Mini Vista series.
“It is a deep, royal purple with a near black throat. Like the other plants in the series, this sun-loving plant grows vigorously, blooms continuously without any deadheading, and is unfazed by heat and humidity. Midnight has been included in ‘best of’ lists from many test gardens College in 2022. I love the entire series because it comes in a wide range of colors.
Available AHayden Gardens.
Pink Globe Amaranth Truffle
This gomphrena plant “is a pollinator magnet that is distinguished from older varieties by its larger flowers and more prolific blooms, but mostly by its ability to bloom continuously without deadheading,” Crowe said. A long-lasting cut flower that can be dried to provide winter color in potpourri or dried arrangements.
Available at Hayden Gardens.
Colorful Katiana
Ron Peterson, head grower at Milaeger Stores in Racine and Sturtevant, loves this newer pot of Alstroemeria (also known as princess lily).
“It has variegated leaves and a stunning array of red flowers. We grow six species of Alstroemeria in our greenhouse. I love it because you don’t see it here very often, and it’s high-performing and easy to care for,” he said.
This sun-loving plant does best in pots, blooms all summer, grows 12 to 15 inches tall, and becomes bushy.
Available at Milaeger’s, 4838 Douglas Ave., Racine, and 8717 Durand St., Sturtevant
Mirage Blue Salvia
Peterson also recommended this annual, which likes sunny locations.
“Mirage Blue has small flowers. They are shorter than many salvias, reaching 15 to 18 inches tall, and the flowers are the most brilliant blue. They begin blooming in early summer and extend until frost. You can put them in pots, but they can be potted,” he said. “It’s pretty down to earth. “It’s also a great attractant for hummingbirds and honeybees.”
Online at Meleager.
Augusta Lavender Heliotrope
Janine Standard, director of media and public relations at Proven Winrs, an online firm in DeKalb, Ill., that represents breeders, likes this company.
“It’s about two years old. It’s amazing. It’s 12 to 24 inches tall, it has purple flowers with yellow centers, it tolerates extreme heat and drought, and it’s loved by bees and butterflies,” she said.
Part from the sun to the sun. available aArea garden centers.
Rockin’ Deep Purple Salvia
This annual sage, in the Rockin’ Salvia series, has been improved for 2023. It is deer-resistant and likes partial sun to full sun, Standard said.
“It’s more flowery, and a little shorter, so it matches the rest of the colors in the series. It has really dark stems, so the purple really stands out. The bees, butterflies and hummingbirds come back every year,” she said.
Available at area garden centers.
Clown around the stadium
Standard loves this newest plant in the “Heart to Heart” series for shady spots.
“This plant really caught my attention because it has ruffled leaves. They usually have smooth leaves. The leaves are pink, cream, orange and green,” she said. It reaches a height of 15 to 20 inches.
For shade, available at area garden centers.
Suncredible yellow sunflower
“I have to buy at least two of them this year,” Standard said. “They came out about three years ago and have won 48 garden awards.”
Suncredible Yellow has 4-inch-wide flowers that are yellow with a brown center. They look great in containers, grow 2 to 3 feet tall, are deer-resistant, and attract bees and butterflies, she said.
To the sun. Available at an area garden centers.
White Dragon Begonia Wing
The Dragon Wing line of begonias has been around for a while, but white is a new color this year, said Katie Rotella, public relations director for Ball Horticulture in West Chicago, Ill., a plant breeder that supplies plants in southeastern Wisconsin. .
“It has glossy green leaves with a bright white flower. It gives an elegant, formal look to the garden and is great for moon gardens because it captures any type of moonlight or twinkling lights,” she said.
It’s a durable plant that bounces back when neglected, making it useful for new gardeners, she said.
Shade to the sun. Available at area garden centers.
Beacon Violet Shadows Impatiens
This is a new member of the Beacon Impatiens line.
“It’s a bright purple color, and it looks great in the landscape,” Rotella said. “It has a tropical appearance and has a gentle mounding habit.”
This plant, like others in the line, is not susceptible to powdery mildew, grows about 18 inches tall, and does best in full shade or morning light, she said.
Available at area garden centers.
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Perennial plants
Color towers Azure Snow and designer Moulin Rouge Salvias
Crowe said great things happen with sun-loving perennial sage plants.
“While older varieties are still great performers with their exceptionally long flowering period and resistance to deer and rabbit browsing, newer varieties are offering some exciting improvements in flower size and color,” she said.
The Azure Snow Salvias produce eye-catching two-tone blue and white flowers, while the Fashionista has large, pink flowers that attract hummingbirds, she said.
Available at Hayden Gardens
Vernonia Summer Ironweed’s Swan Song
This newly introduced plant provides the ancient ironweed origins with improvements in form and habit.
“Irongrasses are stately natives of North America that bloom in the fall, providing welcome color to the gardener and a valuable food source for pollinators late in the season,” Crowe said. “The native species (V. fasciculata) is 6 feet tall, so it’s expensive.” Great for many gardens. Its southern cousin (V. lettermanii) is shorter and has fine-looking foliage but tends to taper outward from the center. Summer Swan Song combines the best of both with narrow foliage, abundant purple flowers, a 36-inch height, and an upright structure that resists outward drooping.
For the sun, available at Hayden Gardens.
The dark side of the moon Astilbe
Megan Hirsch, perennial grower at Milaeger’s, suggested this new astilbe.
“This is my first astilbe plant that has dark purple/chocolate leaves with a bright lavender flower. This combination makes the colors pop,” she said.
It is hardy and easy to grow, blooms in late summer and reaches a height of 20 to 22 inches. It won the 2023 Green Thumb Award in the Perennial Division from the National Garden Bureau.
Shade to partial sun. Available at Meleager.
Introduction to Purple Nepeta
This nepeta, also known as peppermint, is new for 2023. At about 3 feet tall, it is taller than most nepeta, and it attracts pollinators.
“I saw it last summer in the experimental gardens at Darwin Perennials in West Chicago,” Hirsch said. “My eye immediately went to it because it is a very unique purple color and has lots of flowers. Nepeta is known to spread everywhere, but this plant has a neat, beautiful habit.
To the sun. Available at Meleager.
Midnight Masquerade Party
Hirsch loves this newer penstemon—also known as the beard—for its deep burgundy leaves set off by lavender and white flowers. It blooms in early to mid-summer, grows 36 to 40 inches tall and attracts pollinators.
“I saw it in a booth at a garden event last year. It’s amazing. It’s tall, and the burgundy leaves look so pretty compared to the other plants,” she said.
To the sun. Available at Meleager
Salvia Blue by you
This sun-loving sage is about 4 years old but is a 2023 pick across America.
“It’s a typical blue/purple salvia, and it appears in the spring and lasts all season,” Rotella said. “But sometimes Salvia nemorosas fall off. This is updated with a quick cutting back. You can get several seasons of color with this plant.”
“It’s great for pollinators, very heat tolerant, hardy to zone 4B (generally across southern and central Wisconsin), and deer resistant. You can plant it and forget it.”
Available at area garden centers
Echinacea Cheyenne Soul
Rotella recommends this plant for its colors. It is a mixture of red, orange, purple, crimson, cream, yellow and white flowers.
“In a one-gallon pot, you might get three different colors,” Rotella said. “The bigger the pot, the more colors.” They are hardy to Zone 4 and will attract sparrows and native birds that will eat their seed heads.
To the sun. Online at Area garden centers.
ligularia bottle rocket
These newer ligularia are good for shady, moist areas, said Barb Balgwin, technical customer service representative at Walters Gardens, a wholesale grower in Zealand, Mich., that supplies plants to the Milwaukee area.
“It can grow along the edge of a pond in the shade,” she said. “In the summer it has beautiful yellow flowers that sit right above the foliage. Its stems are chocolate colors and have green leaves.
Ligularia blooms in midsummer, reaches 34 inches high and 28 inches wide, and is hardy in zone 4.
Available at area garden centers.
Denim and lace wise
Elgwyn recommended this new Russian sage for full sun and well-drained soil.
“Something amazing. It blooms from mid-summer to mid-fall. Its leaves are very lacy, and it has bright sky-blue flowers with a light purple calyx. It’s deer-resistant, attracts pollinators, has a gentle mounding habit, and can reach 32 inches high and 38 wide,” she said. inch”.
Available at area garden centers
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