Looking for color that won’t quit? Scaevola is one of the best summer annuals. Plants perform beautifully in full sun, even in 95-100°F stretches. Once established, they handle dry spells and humidity, blooming continuously until frost. They’re also salt tolerant, which is great for coastal markets and your poolside planters.
Bred in Australia, our Surdiva scaevolas have the widest color range with the most controlled vigor. Plants are loaded with fan-shaped blooms, providing concentrated color in landscape beds, containers and hanging baskets. They’re low maintenance, no deadheading required. They also make great fillers that spill with a semi-trailing growth habit. Choose from dark or light blues and purples, pink or a frosty white.
Carpet of Color
Landscape designers love using Surdiva in their color schemes. As an annual groundcover, they make the perfect low-growing border to offset taller plants. Each summer, we look forward to our plantings at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden. Surdiva White was so bright it looked like a snow drift in August!
We also loved Surdiva Purple paired with our Granvia Peachy Keen strawflowers – two summer survivors!
Combo Companion
Surdiva varieties are controlled-vigor scaevolas. They won’t overtake a mixed planter and play well with others. If you want a wilder, traditional scaevola, there are other varieties on the market, but the breeding trend is more controlled.
Mixed with other bedding plants, Surdiva is the friend who makes everyone else look good! We like to plant them at the base of our Sun Parasol mandevillas, whether they be a bush type like Sunbeam or a classic trellised viner like Sun Parasol Giants.
Our favorite primary color scheme (red, blue and yellow) is our Bee Daring combo with Beedance bidens, Surdiva Blue Violet and Surfinia Deep Red.
Surdiva Blue Violet and White are also excellent choices for red, white and blue combos, which are very big this year for our nation’s 250th.
We also like Surdiva White in an all-white combo for fresh, clean elegance.
Three of a Kind
What’s great about the Surdiva series is all the colors are well matched to mix for a nice summer hanging basket or container. Our Disco Diva combines Surdiva Fashion Pink, Blue Violet and White.
Bluesy Diva combines Sky Blue, Blue Violet and White.
Just swapping out one color creates a different look and white is essential to make the other two colors pop. Two additional shades to try are Purple and Lilac Mist.
Seeing Stars!
One new sister line to Surdiva is Stardiva. Each flower is star shaped instead of a fan.
Stardiva varieties are bred by Suntory Flowers but exclusive to Proven Winners in North America. Look for them at your favorite garden retailer in the Proven Winners pot. Color assortment may vary internationally.
By Natalie Carmolli, Proven Winners® ColorChoice® Shrubs
Also known as Althea in the South, this hardy hibiscus is the plant that shows up when everything else in the garden is running out of steam. Big, tropical looking blooms and weeks of flowers. Rose of Sharon is a great plant, particularly this time of year. To learn more Click here for an interesting article.
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