2018: Year of the Coreopsis
Earlier this summer, the National Garden Bureau announced its “Year of the” crops for 2018. As always, NGB has selected crops that are easy to grow and genetically diverse with plenty of varieties to choose from. In the annuals category, 2018 will be Year of the Calibrachoa. But today I’d like to focus on the perennials category and one of my landscape favorites — 2018 will be Year of the Coreopsis.
I think choosing coreopsis was an excellent decision. I’ve definitely seen an increase in new introductions in the coreopsis category over the past few years (one of my personal favorites being ‘UpTick Cream & Red’, pictured above).
Perennials continue to trend upward at the consumer level, so I’m excited to see more coreopsis in gardens — from backyard plantings and patio containers to public gardens and commercial settings. Coreopsis plants are low-maintenance and long-blooming crops that can survive dry conditions. Besides their obvious strength, they are extremely attractive providing bright sunbursts of color.
Next month, NGB will be providing photos of numerous varieties on its website and also will offer PDFs of fact sheets, flyers, handouts and signage. You should definitely take this opportunity to promote coreopsis at your garden center.
If you need some inspiration for the 2018 season, here are some recent coreopsis introductions to consider:
‘Moonswirl’
Dümmen Orange
‘Rosanna’
Danziger
‘Solar Dance’
Cultivaris
‘UpTick Gold & Bronze’
Darwin Perennials
Have you seen an increase in demand for coreopsis varieties? Which ones are your favorites? Will you be taking advantage of the Year of the Coreopsis program for 2018? Shoot me an email at [email protected], and let me know. I’d love to hear from you.
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