Blooming Annuals
Annual flowers, which last for one season and are replaced each year, offer a rainbow of colors, making them well worth the investment. Planted in borders, beds or containers, annuals offer a variety of foliage and endless combinations. For mass plantings, most gardeners opt for instant color and choose small bedding plants in trays. Larger individual plants offer you a head start in landscape planting and work great when used in containers.
Try test-driving some plants and see how they look in your garden or yard. Good news: They're inexpensive. Alternatively, try some annuals in a container. If you like them, buy more and use them in your landscape.
Tips for Choosing Annuals
Here's what to look for when shopping for annuals:
- Compact size and lots of flower buds. More buds at the Lowe's Garden Center mean more blooms at your home.
- Green foliage without lots of spots or holes. Spots and holes mean they're being nibbled on by insects.
- Moist soil that's not dried out or too soggy. Don't worry about the little white beads in the soil. They're part of a quality potting mix.
Look at a color wheel before shopping or shop with one. It might reveal your preferred color combination. Choose either a complementary or contrasting pallet; you can't go wrong.
There's no guesswork. Our Garden Centers stock plants that are proven to succeed in your USDA growing zone. Pick plants suitable for your growing conditions. Pay attention to your varying degrees of sunlight, shade and water. Most blooming plants need sunlight to produce vivid color. Let the plant tag be your guide to the plant's growing needs and information on plants that work well together.
Native Plants
Not sure which plants to go with? It's always a good idea to look for plants that are native to your region. Native plants naturally perform better with local soil and climates and are less susceptible to local pests and diseases. They tend to be lower maintenance, requiring less fertilizer, less supplemental water and fewer chemical pesticides. As an added benefit, native plants also support local wildlife. You can also look for native plants that attract pollinators.
Annual Planting Ideas and Tips
- Plant at the same level of the plant container or tray.
- Prepare a spot for the plant by using your hands to shape a circular hole that's wide and deep enough for your plant to sit firmly.
- Remove the entire plant from the container or tray. If there are lots of roots wrapped around the soil, gently loosen the roots and spread them out a bit.
- Fill the rest of the hole with soil and water very well.
If you can't transfer the plant right away, keep the trays in a lightly shaded area. Water regularly until you can plant them in the ground. To get the best results from your planting bed, use a bagged premium garden soil with organic matter and fertilizer included in the mix. Plant annuals close together for massive color impact (spacing recommendations are on the plant tag). Deadhead (snip away) spent blossoms to promote regrowth and a healthier look. A layer of mulch can keep down weeds and conserve soil moisture.
You also have the option of mounding annual plants. By choosing mounding, you’re typically using plants like zinnias, impatiens or marigolds that tend to grow wider rather than taller. Mounding is visually appealing and the cascading effect when used in hanging baskets creates a beautiful display.
Vegetables and Herbs
Several garden vegetables are annuals. Many form their edible parts after blooming. Tomato plants are an example of a good bloom. Blooms on vegetables, such as lettuce, cabbage or spinach, aren't good. Their blooms mean that they have begun to put their energy into producing seed (bolting) and not producing foliage (the leafy part we eat). Bolting is most often caused by warm weather, so there's not much you can do to prevent it. The good news is that most of these crops (lettuce, spinach and other leafy greens) can be grown as both spring and fall crops while temperatures are cooler.
Leafy herbs can also go to seed and lose their flavor. These plants will continue to produce tender foliage if you keep the seed stems pinched back.
Take notice of your area's frost dates if you're planting early in the season because protection on a few cool nights might be needed. If you plant in warmer (or hot) weather, try to plant in the cooler part of the day if possible.
Annual Plants for Landscaping
When selecting annual plants for landscaping, choose the best annual plants for you based on your climate, growing zone, plants native to your area, and most of all, select annuals that you want to see blooming across your landscape for the growing season. Below are a few to get you started.
- Marigolds add a vibrant pop of yellow and orange to your landscape.
- Snapdragons help to balance out your landscape while bringing color and texture with tall spikes of flowers.
- Morning Glories help start your day off right as these trumpet-shaped flowers on fast-growing vines open every morning.
- Nasturtiums are easy to grow with vibrant flowers that add a splash of color, along with edible leaves.
- Sunflowers are tall flowers that are good to plant and grow for beginners. Their dramatic look makes a great focal point in any garden.
Some of the best annual flowering plants or annual flowers for flower beds include:
- Annual Phlox with its clusters of small fragrant flowers. These plants work great for borders or in container gardens.
- Impatiens which come in a variety of colors that continuously bloom throughout the summer. They’re perfect for shaded areas.
- Zinnias which are colorful and sturdy and last until the first hard frost of fall.
Starting Annuals From Seed
Starting seeds indoors is one way to get a jump on the season. Seedlings will be ready to transplant when the weather warms up. Some annuals (like nasturtiums, sunflowers and poppies) are such fast growers that they're planted directly into the ground when soil temperatures warm.