Move over Mums: New Wave of Cool-Season Plants Will Revamp Fall Gardens

WEST CHICAGO, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Once a festive fall staple for outdoor décor, mums will be moved to the back of the garden as new era of versatile cool-season foliage blooms this season. Cool Wave^™ pansies are making their debut in the Wave^™ Family of easy-spreading color this fall to provide gardeners with a fresh, modern way to infuse garden beds, hanging baskets and patio containers with vivid color during the cool season.

“This Halloween, make a pumpkin planter centerpiece by placing Cool Wave pansies in a hollowed-out pumpkin, or dress up a hanging basket of white pansies with sunglasses to make a ghoulish ghost. It’s all about creating something that will make your neighbors take notice.”

“Late summer and early fall have ideal weather for activities like gardening and spending time enjoying the outdoors,” said Claire Watson, product marketing manager for Wave. “Gardeners always are looking for ways to extend the gardening season with versatile plants that make a lasting impression. Cool Wave pansies are the perfect solution for those looking to revamp traditional seasonal decorations and create dramatic, living displays.”

Cool Wave pansies provide fun, bright and creative ways to decorate your outdoor space for fall. Paired with pumpkins and gourds grown in the garden, rustic corn stalks and hay bales fresh from the farm, or your favorite spooky Halloween décor, vibrant Cool Wave pansy blooms offer five long-lasting color options — frost, white, yellow, violet wing and a mixture.

“Traditionally, the autumn season is all about having fun and creating something unique — be it a costume or a scarecrow,” Watson said. “This Halloween, make a pumpkin planter centerpiece by placing Cool Wave pansies in a hollowed-out pumpkin, or dress up a hanging basket of white pansies with sunglasses to make a ghoulish ghost. It’s all about creating something that will make your neighbors take notice.”

Perfect for lush containers and garden beds, Cool Wave pansies spread and trail vigorously 24 to 30 inches. Gardeners also can add Cool Wave as the “spiller” variety to mixed baskets, as the blooms will flow over the side of containers, creating a stunning arrangement. Cool Wave provides gardeners with high-impact ground cover with fewer plants in garden beds and landscapes.

Cool Wave pansies also are an economical option for gardeners, as they provide up to three seasons of color in southern climates, blooming throughout winter months. In the north, Cool Wave demonstrates superior overwintering hardiness up to USDA Hardiness Zone 5, withstanding frost and returning in spring earlier than other pansies to complement bulb varieties such as tulips and daffodils.

For fall and spring, Cool Wave pansies are an excellent addition to ornamental and edible gardens. The mild mint-flavored blooms of Cool Wave can be planted alongside other cool-season crops such as lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and Swiss chard for a complete edible landscape.

“Incorporating pansies with vegetables is a trendy and functional way to dress up front walkways, back patios or even raised-bed vegetable gardens,” Watson said. “The blooms can add decorative flair to pastries, elegant accents to salads and provide a floral theme to fall or spring parties, weddings or showers. Guests always are surprised that the flowers plucked from right outside the kitchen door serve a dual purpose both indoors and out!”

Find more cool-season ideas and inspiration on the newly redesigned www.Wave-Rave.com, or m.Wave-Rave.com on your mobile device. There, you’ll find videos, photos and music to provide motivation, and a retail locator to find Cool Wave near you.

ABOUT WAVE™: The Wave^™ Family has provided gardeners with easy-spreading color since the introduction of Wave^™ petunias in 1995. The five series of petunias — Original Wave^™, Tidal Wave^™, Double Wave^™, Easy Wave^™ and Shock Wave^™ — offers dramatic color, exceptionally long bloom time, and fantastic mounding and trailing habits for garden beds and containers. Joining the Wave Family in 2012, Cool Wave pansies provide the same vigorous spreading and trailing habits with the addition of hardiness and vibrant color during the cool seasons. For more information, visit wave-rave.com.

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