10 Great Landscape Plants - Snow Princess^®

I really wanted to call this series of articles "10 Plants Every Gardener Should Try in the Landscape," but this seemed a bit long for a title. Whatever you call them, these 10 plants should be great in landscapes in almost any climate. They were chosen to be heat tolerant, to need little to no supplemental water and to be easy to care for with no deadheading needed. I've grown them all (most of them repeatedly) and love them!

1. Artist^® Blue Ageratum
2. Lo & Behold^® 'Blue Chip' Buddleia
3. Senorita Rosalita^® Cleome
4. Graceful Grasses^® King Tut^® Cyperus
5. Diamond Frost^® Euphorbia
6. Dolce^® Heuchera
7. Illusion^® Midnight Lace Ipomoea
8. Luscious^® Citrus Blend^™ Lantana
9. Snow Princess^® Lobularia
10. Supertunia^® Vista Bubblegum Petunia

Every once in a great while there is a new plant introduced that so totally redefines a well-known garden stalwart that the perception of the whole class is changed forever. Snow Princess^®, the Genus Lobularia - commonly known as alyssum, is one such plant. Many of you are familier with older alyssums. Alyssum was a great plant to put out before threat of frost had passed. It would flower like crazy as long as the temperatures were cool. However, at the first hint of heat and humidity the plants would fry and die.

Snow Princess^® changed all of that. She is truly heat tolerant, thriving in summer conditions all over the U.S. and Canada. We heard from a nursery in Miami, Florida that she bloomed through the summer in their trial. I'm still amazed by her blooming through the summer in Miami! I was impressed enough by her ability to thrive in heat in my garden here in Missouri, but Miami has a whole new level of heat and humidity. This lady is no dainty diva, she loves a good challenge.

Snow Princess^® is super vigorous. So vigorous in fact, that careful plant selection is necessary when growing her in combination planters. If she is paired with plants that aren't vigorous enough Snow Princess^® will simply swallow them up and keep on growing. She seems to be less likely to eat other plants for lunch when planted in the landscape, but it is a good idea to give her elbow room anyway. Since many plants can't keep up with Snow Princess^® in combinations, you will want to choose vigorous plants that can match her performance. I would look at using, Supertunia^® Petunias, Superbells^® Calibrachoa, Superbena^® Verbena, Coleus such as our ColorBlaze^® series, Graceful Grasses^® ornamental grasses, Illusion^™ Ipomoea and/or Luscious^® Lantana. 

Snow Princess^® is fragrant - not just a little bit fragrant, she is truly, wonderfully fragrant. If you watch small children, they will almost invariably smell flowers because they know flowers should smell good. So often this isn't true, but it's great when you can get an incredibly fragrant plant.

Snow Princess^® is also nicely cold tolerant - capable of withstanding frost in the fall.  She is well-branched and doesn't need deadheading. She will do best with full sun - a minimum of six hours of sun a day will work, but more sun is better. She does not take well to drought, especially in containers. Her one and only drawback is that in containers you will need to water often to keep her happy. This can make it challenging to grow her in small pots or hanging baskets. However, in large pots that are easier to keep hydrated she will do quite well. While she can do very well in containers; I think landscapes are perhaps the best way to utilize her.

Let me count the ways I love Snow Princess^®. She is vigorous and vigor often translates into garden performance. She is heat tolerant and cold tolerant. She is wonderfully fragrant and easy-to-care for. She is well-branched and puts on a true floral show. Really, what's not to love?

Vital Stats:

Type:Annual

Sun/Shade:Prefers full sun - a minimum of 6 hours of sun a day, more is better

Height:Short, 4-6 inches

Spacing:8 to 10 inches

Habit:Trailing, Spiller - trails over the side of a container

Bloom Time:Planting to Hard Frost

Uses:Use in landscapes and large containers

Artist^® Blue Ageratum hybrid 'Agsantis' USPP15,289, Can. 2050; Lo & Behold^® 'Blue Chip' Buddleia hybrid USPP19,991, CPBRAF; Senorita Rosalita^® Cleome hybrid 'Inncleosr' USPP19,733, Can. 3290; Diamond Frost^® Euphorbia 'Inneuphdia' USPP17,567, Can. 2830; Illusion^™ Midnight Lace Ipomoea batatas 'NCORNSP-011MDNTLC' USPPAF, CPBRAF; Luscious^® Citrus Blend^™ Lantana camara '2003.301' USPP19,706; Snow Princess^™ Lobularia hybrid 'Inlbusnopr' USPPAF, CPBRAF; Supertunia^® Vista Bubblegum Petunia hybrid 'USTUNI6001' USPP17,730, Can. 2871