Do you peruse plant catalogs to see what new varieties are available for the upcoming year? Man, I do. Here are 11 new shrubs that are available for 2025 that look like they could be absolutely amazing additions to your garden.
Jump to:
- 1. Red Zepplin® Sweetshrub
- 2. Easy As Pie™ Cherry
- 3. Curl-Leaf Mountain Mahogany
- 4. Just Chill™Double Mauve Camellia
- 5. Winning Streak™ Rose
- 6. Brew-Tea-Ful™ Tea Camellia
- 7. Funyella™ (Clematis)
- 8. Spice Cowboy™ Viburnum
- 9. Hydrangea Incrediball® Blush
- 10. Golden Child™ Arborvitae
- 11. Bountiful™ Belle Blueberry
- Conclusion
1. Red Zepplin® Sweetshrub
Calycanthus floridus var. purpureus‘Red Zeppelin’
Just look at those burgundy leaves! Red Zeppelin sweetshrub bears stunning burgundy-red foliage that adds drama to the garden all season long. The small orange-red flowers add a sweet fragrance to the garden – hence the name “sweetshrub.” Sweetshrub adapts to various growing conditions, thriving in both sun and partial shade – but placing it in the sun will give this plant the most vibrant foliage. Deer resistant. In fall, leaves turn yellowish-orange for additional color and interest. Zones 4 to 9.
Introduced by Spring Meadow Nursery.
2. Easy As Pie™ Cherry
Bush Cherry
Prunus x
If you love fresh cherries but you’re short on space, meet Easy As Piebush Cherry. It’s not a cherry tree – it’s a cherry shrub, growing only 3 to 4.5 feet tall and wide, and it delivers an abundance of juicy, tart cherries every summer. This small shrub is easy-growing, and it doesn’t need the spraying or pruning that traditional cherry trees require. With its manageable size, it fits neatly into any sunny spot in your garden, and it's easy to cover it with bird netting when Mr. and Mrs. Robin start picking your ripe cherries. No pollinator? No problem—this cheery cherry shrub is self-pollinating. It also prospers as part of an edible hedge. Spring brings a charming snow of white and pink blossoms, while the vivid yellow-orange fall foliage livens up your yard in fall.Hardy in Zones 3 to 8.
Introduced by Spring Meadow Nursery.
3. Curl-Leaf Mountain Mahogany
Cercocarpus ledifolius
High Country Gardens has been doing their part for water conservation and environmentally-friendly gardening practices by developing an incredible selection of water wise and native plants that really stand out in the garden. This shrub is no different.
Curl-leaf Mountain Mahogany (Cercocarpus ledifolius) is a resilient shrub native to the western United States. One specimen that was cut down was 1,350 years old – so it’s definitely long-lived. It thrives in harsh environments such as the high desert and rocky slopes and is extremely drought-tolerant. Mountain Mahogany fixes nitrogen into the soil, and this venerable evergreen has a spicy aroma. After it blooms, it bears seeds with curious-tailed fruits that add extra interest to the landscape. Zones 6-10.
Available from High Country Gardens.
4. Just Chill™Double Mauve Camellia
I live in an area where I can’t grow camellias, alas, so I don’t cover them in these articles as often as I should. This camellia should be a delightful addition to the garden for those who live in zones 7-9. Just Chill Camellia adds Fall and Early Winter color to your garden with semi-double pinkish-mauve flowers that contrast beautifully against the dark-green foliage. Grow it as a specimen or plant as a border or hedge. Give it in moist, well-drained, acidic soil (they do not prosper in alkaline soils) in full or partial sun. For best results, trim the camellia after it has finished blooming. Deer resistant.
Available on preorder from Creekside Nursery.
5. Winning Streak™ Rose
'Meiwentar'
From the house of Meilland comes another perfect beauty of a rose. Winning Streak™ is a compact and bushy Floribunda rose that features cherry red and fuchsia petals striped with different shades of yellow. No two roses are alike! The red ages to hot pink in the sun, and it blooms in long waves from late spring well past frost. The cupped blooms offer a light fragrance. Glossy, dark green foliage resists insects and diseases, so it can make a good landscape rose.
Available from Menagerie.
6. Brew-Tea-Ful™ Tea Camellia
Camellia sinensis
To quote Neil Diamond, “Think you're growin' your own tea! Good Lordy.” Well, guess what? Now you can.
Brew-Tea-Ful™ Tea Camellia allows you to grow your own fresh tea. Grow and harvest green tea, black tea, and aromatic blossom tea from the young leaves and blossoms on this wonderfully helpful camellia! For those of you who are waiting for zones 7 to 9 to travel north to you, this tea camellia works well in patio containers or can be grown inside if you have lots of light. Its blossom is a small white single camellia, fragrant.
To harvest, pick the first two leaves and a bud from the end of the stems. Pick only leaves that are soft to the touch. It takes a lot of leaves to make tea because they will shrink during processing, so if you’re a real do-it-yourself tea fan, you might grow this camellia in a hedge. Here’s a good blog post about how to make your own tea.
Available at Camellia Forest Nursery.
7. Funyella™ (Clematis)
I really want to buy this one. Funyella® clematis has unique bell-shaped blooms and a delightful grapefruit scent, and just look at those canary-yellow flowers with soft pink accents! I don’t see nearly enough of the yellow clematises, so this is a treat. From spring to midsummer, these whimsical flowers dangle gracefully from burgundy stems. Grow it on pergolas or mailbox posts, or send it scrambling up through your shrubs. However you grow it, this versatile vine is a showstopper. Unlike many clematis varieties, Funyella blooms on old wood, so they can be trimmed and don’t need to be cut back hard.
Available through Plant Addicts and Proven Winners Direct.
8. Spice Cowboy™ Viburnum
Koreanspice viburnum (Viburnum carlesii) is a popular shrub already known for its clusters of fabulous flowers, but Spice Cowboy takes this favorite shrub to the next level. It bears giant snowballs of white blooms that will waft their delicious spicy-sweet fragrance all over your yard. The original species throws its scent far and wide, and so will Spice Cowboy.
However, this variety has another trick up its sleeve. In fall, its leaves turn a fiery orange-red and put on quite a show. Spice Cowboy can be shaped into a petite tree or a large shrub. This fast-growing gem is perfect for gardens in Zones 4 to 8 and fits beautifully in spaces with full or partial sun.
Available at Grow Joy.
9. Hydrangea Incrediball® Blush
Incrediball® Series-Smooth Hydrangea
These days, it’s hard to look at a hydrangea and think, “I wish these flowers were even larger.” Well, guess what! Incrediball Blush bears buckets of blooms bigger than a dinner plate. These gigantic mounds of flowers in white and silvery pink cover the hydrangea like fluffy pink clouds, and these colors will linger for a long time, eventually aging to an attractive green. The shrubs are tough and reliable as the Annabelle variety, and they’re hardy to zone 3.
If you’ve had trouble with hydrangeas freezing to the ground in the past, no worries. The Incrediball blooms on new wood. Give it a good layer of mulch year-round to protect the roots.
Available at Bluestone Perennials.
10. Golden Child™ Arborvitae
Thuja occidentalis 'Mirjam'
A slow-growing sport of 'Danica,' this arborvitae is a compact, rounded evergreen shrub with yellow summer foliage that’s resistant to scorching. In winter, it develops a light bronze cast. A low-maintenance option for borders or containers. Zones 5-9.
11. Bountiful™ Belle Blueberry
Bountiful Belle brings the blueberries in summer, but can be grown as a decorative ornamental with colorful foliage in icy rose on pink stems. The attractive foliage and compact size make it a lovely way to incorporate edible plants into an ornamental landscape. Zones 7-9.
Conclusion
Plant breeders are creating an incredible array of plants that are pure eye candy while also showing superior disease resistance and hardiness. It’s fun to try out new varieties and see which plants end up being total winners in the garden. Which new plants do you want to try? Let us know in the comments below.
Judy White
I would love to see the shrubs from a further view so I can actually imagine it in my garden. Thank you