Plant Select: New Plants for 2025 + Recent Favorites
Every year, Plant Select introduces a new collection of beautiful, waterwise and resilient plants. Plants are tested and evaluated for 3-5 years at Denver Botanic Gardens, Colorado State University, and public and private gardens across the Intermountain West.
We’re excited to share our new plants for 2025! You’ll also find some of our fave introductions from the last few years that have become more widely available. (It can take a few years for plants to build up availability.)
New plants for 2025
Rocky Mountain goldenrod
Solidago multiradiata
Many goldenrods flower late in the season and grow large, but not Rocky Mountain goldenrod! This dwarf goldenrod adds vibrant color to waterwise gardens in late spring.
Rocky Mountain goldenrod is native to much of the western United States. The National Wildlife Federation and Dr. Doug Tallamy recognize it as a “keystone plant” for several eco-regions in the Intermountain West. Keystone plants feed and host “significant numbers of butterflies, moths, and pollen specialist bees.”
Our thanks to Richard Anderson and our collaborators in Utah for bringing this drought-tolerant gem to Plant Select!
Full sun. Zones 4-9. Clay, loam, gravel or sandy soil. Elevation: Up to 8500 feet.
RAMBLER™ mountain fleabane
Erigeron formosissimus 'P022S'
RAMBLERTM mountain fleabane produces lavender, daisy-like flowers in May and June. Plant it in full sun or part shade in nearly any well-draining soil.
Mike Kintgen, curator of alpine collections at Denver Botanic Gardens, selected this native mountain fleabane for its short stature and its ability to grow at elevations up to 13,000 feet.
Ideal for rock gardens, naturalistic landscapes, waterwise pollinator gardens and high elevation gardens.
Full sun to part shade. Zones 4-9. Well-draining soils. 10″-12″ tall and wide. Elevation: Up to 13,000 feet.
PINK ON REPEAT™ lilac
Syringa pubescens subsp. microphylla 'Cheyenne'
A reblooming littleleaf lilac? Yes, please! PINK ON REPEAT™ produces enchanting pink flowers from mid-May into early June. Then, in late summer, it produces an additional wave of blooms, filling the air with lovely fragrance.
PINK ON REPEAT™ is a wonderfully fragrant, pink-flowering lilac in a moderate size. (The Goldilocks of lilacs — not too big, not too small.)
And it’s tough! It adapts well to our tricky western soils and erratic weather. This lilac has grown at the Cheyenne horticultural station in Wyoming for decades with natural moisture only. While it can tolerate drier conditions, it looks the best with moderate water.
Full sun. Zones 4-8. Clay, loam, gravel or sandy soil. Height: 5-6 feet. Width: 8-9 feet. Elevation: Up to 6,500 feet.
More waterwise perennials (from recent years)
Meadow blazing star
(aka, Rocky Mountain blazing star)
Liatris ligulistylus
Bring on the butterflies with meadow blazing star! This straight-species native plant attracts butterflies and native bees in late summer with its rosy-purple flowers. Birds often enjoy the seeds in the fall and winter.
Meadow blazing star doesn’t love being grown in a pot, so it may look floppy or dull at the garden center. Don’t let this fool you! It’s a beautiful addition to a garden.
HALF PINT® pineleaf penstemon
Penstemon pinifolius 'Compactum'
HALF PINT® is a compact penstemon and a waterwise delight. Native to Arizona and New Mexico, this early summer bloomer has orange-red trumpet flowers that attract hummingbirds. The flowers rise above a tidy mound of soft, needle-like, evergreen foliage.
This plant grows best in full sun with a bit of elbow room for maximum heat and sunlight. It thrives in small-textured, rock mulch. Ideal for rock gardens, park strips (inferno strips) and fronts of gardens.
SARADA'STM Greek mountain tea
Sideritis syriaca ‘P023S'
SARADA’S™ Greek mountain tea is a drought-tolerant perennial with soft, silver-gray foliage and pastel yellow flowers that start blooming in early summer.
If winter temps stay mild enough, it keeps its silver-colored foliage through much of winter, adding year-round interest.
SARADA’STM Greek mountain tea stays compact, doesn’t run and resists disease. And it’s typically both rabbit and deer resistant.
Pink Cotton lamb's ear
Stachys lavandulifolia
Pink Cotton lamb’s ear produces fluffy clusters of pink flowers (in late spring and early summer) and low mats of soft, attractive foliage.
Resistant to nibbling rabbits and deer, this perennial is a superior selection of a Turkish wildflower. Ideal for garden borders and waterwise gardens.
It pairs beautifully with SARADA’S Greek mountain tea, as well as penstemons and Old World salvias.
Leprechaun Southernwood
Artemisia abrotanum 'Leprechaun'
Many gardeners dream of flowers, but foliage plants — like Leprechaun Southernwood — can add attractive structure, contrast and breathing room to gardens.
‘Leprechaun’ is a compact selection of Southernwood, growing to 2-3’. Plantsman Kelly Grummons shared this emerald gem with Plant Select. It grows at elevations up to 8,500′, and it’s very tolerant of sun and shade.
This lush, vibrant-green foliage plant could even be used as a waterwise alternative to boxwoods.
Ultra Violet salvia
Salvia 'Ultra Violet'PP 21,411
Ultra Violet salvia is an exciting addition to the Plant Select program from Horticulturist Lauren Springer. Hardy to zone 5, this western salvia is more cold hardy and compact than many of the Salvia greggii types on the market. Better Homes and Gardens magazine lists it as a top perennial for dry sites.
It has iridescent, deep purple flowers that bloom from July into fall. This low-water, western salvia is rabbit resistant and deer resistant.
EVERSILVER™ creeping germander
Teucrium 'Harlequin’s Silver'
EVERSILVERTM creeping germander offers a carpet of silver foliage all year. In early summer, it gets charming, purple flowers. In the winter, its silvery foliage keeps its color, adding interest to winter landscapes.
EVERSILVERTM doesn’t need any deadheading. Once its roots are established, it’s very heat and drought tolerant. And typically, it’s rabbit and deer resistant. A great problem solver for tough spots in your landscape!
WAGGON WHEEL® bluemat penstemon
Penstemon caespitosus 'P022S'
Native to Colorado and Wyoming mountains, WAGGON WHEEL® bluemat penstemon is a low-growing, rabbit resistant penstemon. This plant tends to grow in a circular shape, like a wheel.
WAGGON WHEEL® has vibrant, kelly-green foliage. It keeps its leaf color through fall and much of the winter — great for winter interest. In the early summer, purple-blue flowers appear like tiny gems across the foliage.
Tushar bluemat penstemon
Penstemon xylus
Tushar bluemat penstemon is a tiny, tough and rabbit-resistant penstemon from Utah’s Tushar Mountain range. It has lavender flowers from June to July and blue-silver foliage. This penstemon’s foliage is nearly evergreen. (It drops its inner leaves in March as new growth appears.)
This xeric, straight species penstemon is happy in gritty soils and full sun. Its size makes it ideal for rock gardens, troughs and crevice gardens.
DREW’S FOLLY® hardy snapdragon
Antirrhinum sempervirens 'P020S'
While snapdragons may remind you of annuals… DREW’S FOLLY® hardy snapdragon is actually a hardy perennial in USDA zones 5-8. This perennial blooms so heavily in late May and June that its leaves are almost completely masked with colorful, pink flowers.
DREW’S FOLLY® is a natural addition for a rock garden, the edge of a patio or a garden border. It thrives in many soils, including clay.
WINTER FIRE® sedum
Petrosedum rupestre 'Rice Creek'
WINTER FIRE® sedum is a succulent groundcover. It transforms from a rustic summer green, to an ember-like color in the fall, to dark burgundy in the deep winter. If you’re looking for winter interest, this is an essential plant!
This sedum looks lovely along pathways and around shrubs—it can act as a fire-retardant mulch. With its low stature and high moisture content, it’s a natural addition to firewise landscapes.
Bellina pink cornflower
Psephellus simplicicaulis
Bellina pink cornflower is a well-behaved, small-scale groundcover that produces bright pink pincushions from spring through summer.
Bellina spreads slowly—eventually to 18” or more across. It has frilly, matte green leaves. The showy, bachelor button-type flowers have pale pink centers. A delightful plant for rock gardens, borders or even cut flowers!
Waterwise shrubs and trees (from recent years)
Dwarf leadplant
Amorpha nana
Dwarf leadplant is a compact, native shrub. It blooms spikes of purple, honey-scented flowers in June. It’s deer resistant and cold hardy through USDA zone 3.
A member of the pea family, this western dryland shrub has a beneficial relationship with soils. It looks green and healthy even in the most impoverished soils. Perfect for challenging, full sun spots in your landscape.
HOT WINGS® Tatarian maple
Acer tataricum 'GarAnn'
HOT WINGS® Tatarian maple is a small, ornamental tree. Many cold-hardy maples struggle in alkaline soils, but HOT WINGS® is an exception. This drought-tolerant maple is unlikely to develop chlorotic, washed-out leaves. It has rich, green foliage and a different leaf shape than traditional maples.
HOT WINGS® offers beauty from season to season, but it may win the most hearts in July when it’s covered with showy, red helicopters (aka, samaras). It’s a showstopper!
Tidy littleleaf peashrub
Caragana microphylla 'Tidy'
Tidy littleleaf peashrub is a large shrub or small tree, depending on how you choose to train it. It was selected for reduced suckering, making it a perfect courtyard tree with a Southwestern look.
This littleleaf peashrub takes heat, intense cold, poor soil and xeric conditions. It adds graceful beauty year round, including winter when its stems are cloaked with a dusting of snow.
SILVER TOTEM® buffaloberry
Shepherdia argentea 'Totem'
Grab this plant when you see it. It’s still building availability!
SILVER TOTEM® is native to states across the western United States and central plains. It has an upright, columnar growth habit, making it a great fit for many uses, from accents, to privacy hedges, to colonnades.
In the spring, SILVER TOTEM® buffaloberry produces small clusters of tiny yellow flowers before its narrow, silvery green leaves emerge. It’s ideal for sunny, dry locations. It tolerates heat and drought, but does equally well in moist conditions.
CRYSTAL FROST™ Arizona cypress
Hesperocyparis arizonica 'Fandango'
Grab this plant when you see it. It’s still building availability!
CRYSTAL FROSTTM is a native tree that was selected from a higher elevation along the Arizona/New Mexico border. It’s extremely heat tolerant, extremely drought tolerant, and it can handle winter temperatures down to -20 degrees Fahrenheit (zone 5a).
CRYSTAL FROSTTM Arizona cypress has blueish-silver needles and an open, feather-like growth. It prefers well-draining soils. (Don’t plant it in clay.)
Where to buy Plant Select plants
Visit our tab—Where to Buy—to find a grower or a garden center that offers Plant Select plants locally or online. And be sure to ask for these plants when you visit!
