Growing Heroes
Urban's Best.

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Growing Heroes - Urban’s Best

Growing Heroes® is the new brand from Boot & Dart Nurseries, developed for plants that are built to perform in urban environments.

 

 

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Driven by our belief that quality green spaces are essential to creating pleasant, safe, and sustainable living environments for communities, we develop resilient plant varieties that perform reliably.

 

Our "Growing Heroes" brand brings together a curated selection of proprietary and licensed varieties. These exclusive cultivars are meticulously chosen for their exceptional quality, vitality, climate resilience, biodiversity value, and long-term reliability. These robust plants are purposefully developed for public green spaces and demanding urban environments where high-performance standards are essential.

Complementing this selection is "Urban’s Best," representing the absolute premier standard in city greenery. This specialised collection delivers robust plant material built for intensive public use, challenging urban conditions, and the long-term demands of future climates.

 

 

 

Research & Development

The Research & Development department at Boot & Dart serves as the beating heart of innovation, within the amenity horticulture industry. As one of the very few commercial nurseries specializing in breeding plants specifically for public green spaces, we push the boundaries of urban landscaping.

Through carefully controlled hybridisation and rigorous field selection, we develop pioneering cultivars that are stronger and healthier than traditional varieties. Not only do these plants retain their aesthetic and ornamental appeal for significantly longer periods, but they also require minimal maintenance from municipal teams.

 

Our ongoing innovations result in robust, future-proof plants that actively promote local biodiversity, making a lasting and meaningful contribution to a greener, more sustainable projects.

 

Explore our latest cultivar introductions and learn how we are investing in the future of resilient public green spaces.

 

Exclusively available in our recognisable
GROWING HEROES® - pot

View our introductions

The breeding process 

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Step 1

Which plant characteristics does the market demand?

First, we identify the plant characteristics that the market needs. Our innovations produce strong, future-proof plants that promote biodiversity and make an even greater contribution to a sustainable and greener environment.

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Step 2

Selecting parent plants

We look for parents that already possess at least one of the required charachteristics.

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Step 3

Crossbreeding

Through cross-breeding, we aim to combine as many as desirable characteristics as possible in a single plant. We then harvest the seed and sow it. 

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Step 4

Selecting the best seedlings.

Using blue markers, we select the best individual seedlings in the field

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Step 5

Selecting the best clonal trial plots.

We select the best clonal plots, which we then test over several years and across different locations. 

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Step 6

Propagating seedlings (by cuttings)

We select plants with a uniform, compact growth habit, so that they require less frequent pruning.

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Step 7

Naming, protecting and introducing the best plants.

We license our best new introductions and bring them to market. 

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