Try something that you don’t often see in your neighbours garden for this summer. There are many new varieties of traditional plants like this fancy Auricula or new seed packets on sale.
Horticultural suppliers are always breeding new stock and launching plants when they have built up salable stock levels. My guess is that the multi-coloured Coreopsis will be popular this year. The Limerock series is being pushed by the RHS with Lavender Pink ‘Passion’, Apricot Pink ‘Dream’ and Ruby Red ‘Ruby’ available at £14.99 each (not quite a snip).

Gerbera ‘Sweet Hardies’ are the new form of hardy Gerbera. Up to now the flowers have been smaller and less attractive than the tender types.

Frilly petaled Roses are being imported from USA for this years Chelsea show. If  Harpageant ‘Easy Does It’ catches the eye, with its range of colours that blend through Red, Peach and Apricot at different stages of the flowers life, then I would seek out one for my garden.

Variegated Impatiens Masquerade has unusual lime green and green foliage to offset the red flowers. According to Thompson Morgan ‘The regal, gold-lined foliage of Busy Lizzie Masquerade will give interest way before the scarlet-red flowers open. By mid-summer, you’ll have a knockout display – plants make a great specimen for decorative pots as well as bedding and borders.’ but then they are trying to sell  plants at about £2 each.

White flowers with a distinctive crimson edge make Begonia ‘Crispa Marginata’ a potential shock and awe plant. The crimped petals enclose contrasting golden stamens to create a particularly eyecatching display.

Let us know what new plants you have tried and how they faired.