Chicagoland Grows®
Plant Introduction Program

Chicagoland Grows® Plant Introduction Program

Established in 1986, the Chicagoland Grows® Plant Introduction Program is a unique partnership between the Chicago Botanic Garden, The Morton Arboretum, and the Ornamental Growers Association of Northern Illinois (OGA) which is dedicated to developing, selecting, and growing a diversity of plants that are well adapted to Midwestern landscapes and beyond.

Herbaceous perennials and grasses developed at the Chicago Botanic Garden and trees and shrubs developed at The Morton Arboretum provide the program with a pipeline of new landscape plants for the horticulture industry and home gardeners alike. The regional OGA nurseries and a network of additional nurseries, both national and international, are licensed to propagate, grow, and sell new cultivars that are deemed worthy of introduction to retailers, landscape contractors, and other consumers. Proceeds from sales of the program’s introductions support plant breeding work at the Chicago Botanic Garden and The Morton Arboretum, ensuring that new plants will continue to be brought to market.

Chicagoland Grows® partners, whether regional, national, or global, are licensed to grow our beautiful, useful, and cold-hardy plants through Plants Nouveau, a marketing company that functions similarly to a sports agent, but for plant breeders. By connecting our cultivars with the best suited growers and propagators, Plants Nouveau helps to maintain a consistent supply chain of plants. Information about our plants can be found in each cultivar’s respective Plant Release Bulletin and on the Plants Nouveau website, both linked in the list below.

To become a licensee or request further information regarding any of our cultivars, please contact Angela Treadwell Palmer. Please note that Plants Nouveau doesn’t sell plants.

Plants Nouveau

Commercial Releases

Release name

Plant Release Bulletin

Link

Panicum 'Blue Lime' 

Bulletin 58

N/A

Baptisia ‘Last Dance’

Bulletin 57

https://www.plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/baptisia-last-dance

Amsonia ‘Blue Behemoth

Bulletin 56

http://www.plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/amsonia-blue-behemoth

Symphyotrichum oblongifolium ‘Cotton Candy’

Bulletin 55

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/aster-oblongifolius-cotton-candy

Symphyotrichum ‘Billowing Violet’

Bulletin 55

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/aster-billowing-violet

Symphyotrichum ’Billowing Pink’

Bulletin 55

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/aster-billowing-pink

Symphyotrichum ericoides ‘Bridal Veil’

Bulletin 55

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/aster-bridal-veil

Vernonia ‘Summer’s End’

Bulletin 54

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/vernonia-summers-end

Teucrium chaemaedrys subs. nuchense ‘Pride of Georgia’

Bulletin 53

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/teucrium-pride-of-georgia

Amsonia ciliata var. tenuifolia ‘Verdant Venture’

Bulletin 52

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/amsonia-verdant-venture

Eupatorium maculatum ‘Summer Snow’

Bulletin 49

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/eupatorium-summer-snow

Phlox ‘Perfectly Puzzling’

Bulletin 48

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/phlox-perfectly-puzzling

Panicum ‘Bad Hair Day’

Bulletin 47

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/panicum-bad-hair-day

Veronica ‘Blue Sprite’

Bulletin 46

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/veronica-blue-sprite

Vernonia ‘Summer’s Swan Song’

Bulletin 45

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/vernonia-summers-swan-song

Vernonia ‘Summer’s Surrender’

Bulletin 45

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/vernonia-summers-surrender

Phlox ‘Early Bird’

Bulletin 43

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/phlox-early-bird

Phlox ‘Pink Parasol’

Bulletin 43

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/phlox-pink-parasol

Phlox ‘Running with Scissors’

Bulletin 43

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/phlox-running-with-scissors

Phlox ‘Plumtastic’

Bulletin 43

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/phlox-plumtastic

Phlox ‘Strawberries and Cream’

Bulletin 43

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/phlox-strawberries-and-cream

Baptisia australis Prairieblues ‘Blue Mound’

Bulletin 42

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/baptisia-australis-blue-mound

Baptisia Prairieblues ‘Lavender Rose’

Bulletin 42

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/baptisia-lavendar-rose

Baptisia Prairieblues ‘Lunar Eclipse’

Bulletin 42

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/baptisia-lunar-eclipse

Baptisia Prairieblues ‘Mojito’

Bulletin 42

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/baptisia-prairieblues-mojito

Baptisia Prairieblues ‘Royal Purple’

Bulletin 42

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/baptisia-prairieblues-royal-purple

Baptisia Prairieblues ‘Sandstorm’

Bulletin 42

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/baptisia-prairieblues-sandstorm

Baptisia Prairieblues ‘Spilled Buttermilk’

Bulletin 42

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/baptisia-prairieblues-spilled-buttermilk

Baptisia Prairieblues ‘Sunny Morning’

Bulletin 42

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/baptisia-prairieblues-sunday-morning

Tradescantia ‘Tough Love’

Bulletin 39

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/tradescantia-tough-love

Phlox ‘Violet Pinwheels’

Bulletin 38

N/A

Phlox × procumbens ‘Pink Profusion’

Bulletin 37

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/phlox-pink-profusion

Phlox ‘Forever Pink’

Bulletin 36

N/A

Polygonatum ‘Prince Charming’

Bulletin 33

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/polygonatum-prince-charming

Echinacea Meadowbrite ‘Burgundy Fireworks’

Bulletin 32

N/A

Veronica ‘Tidal Pool’

Bulletin 31

N/A

Veronica ‘Whitewater’

Bulletin 29

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/veronica-whitewater

Stachys officinalis ‘Pink Cotton Candy’

Bulletin 27

N/A

Baptisia Prairieblues ‘Solar Flare’

Bulletin 26

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/baptisia-prairieblues-solar-flare

Baptisia Prairieblues ‘Midnight’

Bulletin 25

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/baptisia-prairie-blues-midnight

Schizachyrium scoparium ‘Carousel’

Bulletin 23

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/schizachyrium-carousel

Baptisia × bicolor Prairieblues ‘Starlite’

Bulletin 21

N/A

Baptisia × variicolor Prairieblues ‘Twilite’

Bulletin 20

N/A

Echinacea Pixie Meadowbrite ‘CBG Cone 2’

Bulletin 18

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/echinacea-pixie-meadowbrite

Echinacea Mango Meadowbrite ‘CBG Cone 3’

Bulletin 16

N/A

Echinacea Orange Meadowbrite ‘Art’s Pride’

Bulletin 15

N/A

Buxus Chicagoland Green® ‘Glencoe’

Bulletin 7

https://plantsnouveau.com/collections/chicagoland-grows/buxus-chicagoland-green