NewGen Boxwood/Proven Winners ColorChoice Shrubs partnership | COMING JANUARY 2026

Saunders Genetics/NewGen boxwood and Proven Winners ColorChoice Shrubs are excited to announce a new partnership, with NewGen boxwood being the newest addition to the Proven Winners brand’s line of 330+ flowering shrubs and evergreens.This means that the three current NewGen boxwood varieties will enjoy the lift of the biggest, broadest marketing in the industry to both home gardeners and to the landscape trade.

NewGen Independence®

NewGen Freedom®

NewGen Liberty Bell®

Questions & Answers

What does the partnership entail?

NewGen boxwood will be sold and grown exclusively with Proven Winners ColorChoice branding. NewGen® becomes a series name under the brand; individual variety names remain the same: NewGen Freedom^®, NewGen Independence^®, and NewGen Liberty Belle^®. Proven Winners ColorChoice will take over all consumer, landscape, and IGC marketing. NewGen/Saunders Genetics will continue to play a major role in representing the program at tradeshows, as well as in supporting boxwood education and research and communicating that to the industry. 

When is the partnership effective? 

The partnership is effective immediately for growers. However, due to the long production cycle of boxwood, it will take a few years for completely Proven Winners ColorChoice-branded NewGen boxwood to be available at retail and for the landscape market. In 2025, all available plants will be entirely NewGen-branded. In 2026 and 2027, most plants will have NewGen containers but Proven Winners ColorChoice diamond hang tags. Finally, by 2028, all product on the market should be in Proven Winners ColorChoice branding.

NewGen/Saunders Genetics will continue to support growers and the NewGen brand in its present form - ads, website, trade shows, other marketing, program fee and inventory reporting - through the end of 2025 to help growers sell through NewGen-branded inventory. 

What differentiates NewGen boxwood from other varieties – including those in the Proven Winners ColorChoice line?

NewGen boxwood are extensively tested for boxwood blight and boxwood leaf miner resistance. They are actually grown in a spot with an active blight infestation, and are deliberately inoculated with blight spores to test their resistance. The three current varieties in the line reflect the strongest resistance to the North American strains of boxwood blight on the market, though of course, proper siting and care are required for optimum performance. And because good looks are equally important, all of them exhibit bright green foliage and tidy, dense habits.

What will happen with unused NewGen containers? 

Any unused NewGen containers will be exchanged for Proven Winners ColorChoice Deer Proof containers at no additional cost. NewGen containers will be ground and recycled.

What is changing with the tag?

Tags will switch to the folding diamond hang tag used by Proven Winners ColorChoice for all shrub varieties. The tag will include space to tell the unique story of NewGen boxwood and the Saunders family at the point of sale. Tags will ship in early 2026. The fall discount/early order program will continue; Spring Meadow will send order forms in August 2025.

Are NewGen boxwood still subject to quality standard pricing?

Yes, and it will be updated for 2026 to align with current Proven Winners ColorChoice QSP thresholds.

When will the new marketing begin?

Marketing to home gardeners will officially begin in 2026 and will position NewGen boxwood as part of our Deer Proof program. Marketing to the landscape trade will begin in late 2025 at fall shows.

Consumer, landscape, and IGC audiences will all be reached with robust marketing support.

What is the Deer Proof program?

Launched in 2022, Deer Proof from Proven Winners ColorChoice Shrubs makes it clear to garden center shoppers that plants in these specially branded containers can withstand the increasing challenge of deer browsing in residential landscapes. While the program is built around boxwood, it includes a variety of other carefully curated evergreens and flowering shrubs that have been proven to be rarely browsed by deer. Consumer marketing for the Deer Proof program in 2025 will exceed 85,000,000 impressions.

Will future introductions from Saunders Genetics be a part of Proven Winners ColorChoice NewGen boxwood?

Yes, this partnership includes distribution and marketing for any future boxwood varieties that have met Saunders Genetics criteria for introduction, which includes pest and disease resistance, as well as superior foliage color and form and container presentation.