Proven Winners ColorChoice introduces new shrubs for 2027 retail

Earlier this summer, the GIE Media Horticulture Group received a sneak peek at Proven Winners ColorChoice Flowering Shrubs’ new introductions. These plants are ready for growers in 2026 and will arrive at retail in 2027. Here are a few highlights.

Sasquatch Dark Green arborvitae

Sasquatch Dark Green Arborvitae was selected in Quebec by Alain Brodeur, a plantsman who took hundreds of Thuja 'Nigra' seedlings and kept growing them until he could find one that was seedless.

Thuja 'Nigra' is known as an incredibly hardy plant with the best resistance to winter burn. However, the knock on it was that it was very messy.

“It had lots and lots of little teeny tiny cones, and whenever it sends all of its energy into making those cones, it slows down its growth and makes it less full,” said Natalie Carmolli, public relations specialist for Spring Meadow Nursery. “Because this one does not produce cones, it’s more vigorous, and it’s fuller.”

Sasquatch reaches 20 to 30 feet tall and 6 to 10 feet wide. It's hardy in Zones 2 to 9.

Silverstone cotoneaster is a new addition to Proven Winners ColorChoice Flowering Shrubs' Deer Proof collection. The plants in this collection have all been rated as rarely damaged by deer, and they will have the Deer Proof insignia on their tags and on the container.

Silverstone has a fuzzy silver coating on its leaves and red berries. It is drought-tolerant and resistant to fire blight. Developed by John Ruter at the University of Georgia, this selection grows 2 to 3 feet tall and 4 to 6 feet wide. It's hardy in Zones 5 to 10.

Let’s Dance Hot Stepper is the newest hydrangea in the Let’s Dance series. It is a hybrid of H. macrophylla and H. serrata. Breeding that mountain hydrangea toughness into Hot Stepper lets it thrive all the way down to Zone 4. And the bigleaf breeding gives the plant dome-shaped blooms with fertile florets in the center and sterile florets surrounding them.

The other advantage to this specific hybrid is that it sets buds lower down the branch instead of only on the terminal ends of its branches. Budding at leaf nodes further down the stem allows the plant to still flower through typical deer damage or pruning mishaps.

Jade Turtle is a cherry laurel with large, rounded dark green leaves and a dense, bowling ball habit that does not require pruning. It can be used as a boxwood replacement for Southern or Southeastern growers. Its glossy foliage has shown resistance to shot-hole disease, which is a typical malady for tree-form Prunus.

This plant was selected by Minier Nursery in Angers, France. New growth appears coppery red, and it grows 3 feet tall and wide. It is hardy in Zones 6 to 9.