Most popular new plants in Britain

The latest edition of the Royal Horticultural Society’s Plant Finder came out earlier this month. You know the story: over 70,000 plants, over 700 nurseries, the last word in correct plant names and, for European gardeners, sources for all those 70,000+ plants. It’s indispensable for gardeners across the world – just to help us all get the names right.

There are over 4,100 new plants in the 2008/2009 edition and the top two, judged by the number of nurseries stocking the newcomers, are Brunnera macrophylla ‘Mr Morse’ and Salvia x jamensis ‘Hot Lips’, than any other newcomers.. More nurseries are stocking these two new introductions than any others.

Brunnera macrophylla ‘Mr Morse’ looks like a white-flowered version of the very popular blue-flowered ‘Jack Frost’. The foliage is the same – brilliant silver with narrow green veins – it’s just the flowers that are different. Great in shade, even dryish shade, and deer resistant too.

‘Mr Morse’ originated with Belgian plant breeder Chris Ghyselen. He crossed his own ‘Inspector Morse’, which is like ‘Jack Frost’ but with a fraction more green in the leaves, and white-flowered ‘Betty Bowring’. The result is ‘Mr Morse’. It’s new in Britain this year and available from eighteen British nurseries. In the US you can get it from Garden Crossings and other suppliers.

Salvia x jamensis ‘Hot Lips’ is amazing, dramatic bicolored flowers on twiggy shrubs broader than their 90cm (3ft) height. Tony Avent, on the Plant Delights website, explains its origin. “This wild selection… was introduced by Richard Turner of California after the plant was shared with him by his maid, who brought it from her home in Mexico.” Tony lists it as a form of S. microphylla but the RHS considers it a form of S. x jamensis (a hybrid of S. greggii and S. microphylla). Tony also points out that the flowers become more red in high summer when the nights are warm and, as you can see from the picture, the markings can vary from flower to flower.

’Hot Lips’ is available from fifteen British nurseries and Wyevale Garden Centres. In the US you can get it from Plant Delights and many other nurseries.

Comments

[Martha/All the Dirt on Gardening]

I saw hotlips last year in Tulsa at the zoo. We visited in October and it was blooming its heart out by the front door of a building in half shade.

It is hard to get in the U.S. (not in the nurseries here) but should be bigger on the scene as nurseries catch the wave.

It's a sweet plant and I want it.
Martha

[Graham Rice]

A number of US mail order nurseries have 'Hot Lips'. In addition to Plant Delights it seems to be listed by Joy Creek, Magnolia Garden Nursery, Logees, Annie's Annuals, Big Dipper Farm and more - it's even on eBay! I hope you find it.

[Debbie Lefkowitz]

This plant has been available in the SF bay area for at least 5 years. I bought mine at a San Francisco Botanical Society Plant sale. They were the first in the US to propagate the plant after it's discovery in Mexico.

My experience has not been so favorable. The plant often reverts to a pure white or pure red form after the initial bloom. It will return to the red and white bicolor form the following year but still very annoying. It's also pretty aggressive, seedlings pop up all the time. It is certainly easy to grow requiring pretty much no attention on my part.

It's very easy to find in the San Francisco region. Annie's Annuals, Berkeley Hort and the SF Botanical Society all carry it and I'm sure other nurseries do as well.

Cheers,

Debbie Lefkowitz

[Graham Rice]

Yes, that salvia roots so easily from cuttings (and produces so many of them) that it's got around quickly. In fact I'm surprised it took so long to arrive in Britain. Interesting to hear it's so extremely inconsistent in its coloring as you say.