If there’s one event we look forward to every year, it’s Cultivate.
This is the largest horticulture trade show in North America, where growers, breeders, and plant companies unveil what’s coming to garden centers in the seasons ahead. It’s one of the first opportunities to see brand-new introductions before they ever reach home gardeners.
This year, we had the chance to walk the show floor with the teams from Proven Winners, Walters Gardens, Leafjoy, and the brand-new Proven Harvest collection to get an early look at the plants they’re most excited about for 2027.
From colorful annuals and improved shrubs to exciting edible varieties and unique houseplants, there are plenty of new introductions worth adding to your wish list.
Here are our favorites.
Annuals continue to get better every year, and this year’s introductions focus on exactly what gardeners want: longer bloom times, better heat tolerance, and lower maintenance.
Felicia has always been loved for its beautiful sky-blue flowers, but older varieties often faded once summer heat arrived.
Sea Spray changes that.
It begins blooming early in spring and continues flowering well into fall, even during hotter weather. Better yet, the spent blooms clean themselves up, so there’s no need for constant deadheading.
To keep it blooming its best, feed it regularly throughout the season with a quality fertilizer.
This double-flowered calibrachoa features rich magenta blooms that pair beautifully with almost any color combination.
Whether you’re planting blues, yellows, pinks, or whites, this versatile variety fits right in and produces an incredible display in containers and hanging baskets.
One of the most eye-catching calibrachoas we saw, Double Mardi Gras combines smoky purple, gold, and bronze tones for a color combination unlike anything else.
If you enjoyed Holy Smokes calibrachoa, this variety offers a similar dramatic color pattern with fully double flowers.
Finding plants that thrive in shade while still producing nonstop flowers can be challenging.
Sun Pendants Hot Pink delivers exactly that.
Designed primarily for shady gardens, it also handles some sun in northern climates and continues blooming even through intense summer heat, making it an excellent choice for hanging baskets and containers.
One of the most exciting annual introductions was actually something that behaves like a perennial in many gardens.
Outshine Orchid Salvia is hardy to Zone 6, meaning many northern gardeners may see it return year after year.
Its soft orchid-colored blooms and long flowering season make it a beautiful addition to sunny borders.
Walters Gardens introduced several outstanding perennials that combine pollinator appeal, improved performance, and season-long interest.
If lavender struggles in your heavy or clay soil, Nectar Ninja Hyssop is an excellent alternative.
With fragrant foliage, spikes of blue flowers, and continuous reblooming throughout summer, it attracts bees and butterflies while thriving where lavender often fails.
Ornamental grasses continue to grow in popularity, and Candy Floss stands out for its airy clouds of pink blooms in late summer.
Unlike many muhly grasses, this selection is hardy down to Zone 6, making it accessible to many more gardeners.
This new persicaria combines bright golden foliage with deep rosy-red flower spikes that bloom from midsummer all the way until frost.
In full sun, the foliage develops its brightest golden color while adding movement and texture to perennial borders.
Heliopsis is already known as one of the toughest summer perennials, but Forge & Fire improves on previous varieties with excellent mildew resistance.
Its double flowers feature warm bronze and yellow tones atop dark stems, creating weeks of colorful blooms for the middle or back of the border.
Shrubs remain the backbone of most landscapes, and Proven Winners introduced several exciting improvements to some already popular favorites.
Traditional Vitex can grow into large trees, but Featherman stays compact at just 3 to 5 feet tall.
Its finely textured foliage has a pleasant fragrance and may help discourage deer, mosquitoes, and ticks, making it a great choice near patios and outdoor living spaces.
If we had to pick one shrub we’re most excited about, this would be it.
Reminiscent Ginger Rose combines everything gardeners hope for in a modern rose:
It’s one of those plants that looks great even when it’s not in bloom.
Reblooming hydrangeas have been around for years, but Let’s Dance Hot Stepper takes things a step further.
Instead of producing one flush of flowers and waiting months for another, this hydrangea begins developing new blooms while the first flowers are still finishing.
The result is nearly continuous color throughout the growing season.
Gardeners love smooth hydrangeas, but heavy flowers can sometimes flop after summer storms.
Incrediball Stormproof solves that problem.
Its stronger stems hold blooms upright through rain and wind while the more compact habit makes it easier to fit into today’s landscapes.
Want to grow beautiful hydrangeas next season? Start with our complete Hydrangea Guide for everything you need to know. And if you’re ready to take your hydrangeas to the next level, Eric and Christopher’s Hydrangea Handbook & Worksheets will walk you through creating the hydrangeas of your dreams.
Houseplant lovers have plenty to look forward to in 2027. Leafjoy is introducing several exciting varieties that combine unique foliage with the easy care today’s indoor gardeners are looking for.
If you’re already a fan of the classic White Wizard Philodendron, this new tricolor version takes it to the next level.
In addition to the familiar white variegation, you’ll also see striking splashes of yellow throughout the foliage, making every leaf completely unique. Best of all, it offers the same easy-care growing habit that has made White Wizard so popular.
Fittonias are making a comeback, and it’s easy to see why.
Available in an incredible range of colors—from deep raspberry to bright pink and tricolor foliage—these compact plants are perfect for terrariums, desktops, and small spaces.
One of the most surprising features? Once the soil is removed, they can even be grown with their roots submerged in water while keeping the foliage above the surface.
Chosen as Leafjoy’s 2026 Houseplant of the Year, Shining Star Hoya continues to impress with beautiful multicolored foliage.
While mature plants can eventually produce fragrant flowers, the attractive leaves make this plant worth growing even if it never blooms.
One of the most unique introductions we saw was Lepismium cruciforme.
Its flattened, leathery stems create an architectural look that’s unlike almost any other houseplant. Because the foliage stores moisture, it’s also forgiving if you occasionally forget to water.
One of the biggest announcements from Cultivate was the introduction of Proven Harvest, a brand-new collection of edible plants developed specifically for modern gardeners.
Rather than focusing only on production, these vegetables and herbs combine ornamental beauty with improved genetics for containers, raised beds, and small-space gardens.
Some of our favorite introductions include:
The breeding behind Proven Harvest focuses on plants that establish quickly, produce earlier, and thrive in containers, making growing your own food more accessible than ever.
If we had to narrow everything down, these are the plants we’re most excited to grow in our own garden:
Every year, plant breeders continue to push the boundaries of what’s possible, and the upcoming 2027 introductions are some of the most exciting we’ve seen.
Whether you’re looking for annuals that bloom longer, shrubs with improved performance, unique houseplants, or compact edible varieties for raised beds and containers, there are plenty of exciting new plants to look forward to.
We’ll definitely be adding many of these to our own garden, and we can’t wait to show you how they perform once they’re available.
These introductions are expected to begin arriving at garden centers during the 2027 growing season. Availability may vary depending on your region and local retailers.
For us, the standout is Reminiscent Ginger Rose thanks to its exceptional disease resistance, repeat blooming, fragrance, and healthy foliage.
Yes. It continuously produces new blooms throughout the growing season rather than waiting until late summer or fall for a second flush.
Yes. Many Proven Harvest varieties were specifically bred for raised beds, containers, patios, and other small-space gardens while still producing excellent harvests.
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