What's the point of annual flowers? An annual debate!
Annual flowers are like Rodney Dangerfield: They “don’t get no respect.” However, if you have no annuals in your garden at all, you are missing out on one of life’s joys and a whole lot of color. Let’s discover some of the best and easiest annual flowers—including beautiful pictures!
Annuals provide gardens with all-season color, but they have to be replanted every year, so they often get the cold shoulder. Perennials are the garden divas; they give one outstanding performance a year and retire to the background to bloom sometime next year. Annuals are the hardworking chorus line, kicking up their heels all summer long.
At our farmers’ market, I have seen shoppers fall in love with an interesting annual in bloom, all ready to take it home, until they hear that it is “only” an annual, and then they drop it like it was on fire. However, there are many reasons to have annual flowers.
The Benefits of Annual Flowers
So what’s the point of annual flowers? They have many advantages and complement perennials well. Here’s how I use annuals:
- Filling in bare spots
- Experimenting with new color combinations
- Adding color to containers
- Providing cut flowers for bouquets all season long.
- Changing the look of the garden every year by growing different annuals
Go from bold and bright to soft pastel or from cottage garden to tropical paradise by switching out your annual plants.
Favorite Annual Flowers
Tall Architectural Annuals
- Tall plants look great as centerpieces, against a wall, or to add a touch of drama to the landscape. Examples are Nicotiana sylvestris, sunflowers, and elephant head amaranth.
Edible Flowers
Expand your palate with some edible flowers like nasturtiums, bachelor buttons, and calendula. Read more posts about Flowers You Can Eat!
Annuals That Double-Duty as Beautiful Dried Flowers
- Grow some everlastings like celosia, globe amaranth, and statice to dry for winter arrangements (pictured below in order).
Annuals for Hot, Dry Soil
Most annuals do best in full sun with well-draining soil, but there are annuals for every situation.
- Hot, dry soil a problem? Try growing portulaca, tithonia (Mexican sunflower), or gomphrena. They are pictured in order below.
Annuals for Shade
- Shady sites can be brightened up with impatiens, begonias, lobelia, and browallia (shown in order below).
- For shady areas, also look to foliage plants like coleus, iresine, and Persian shield (shown in order below). See more varieties of coleus plants!
Annuals for Moist Soils
- Moist soil is no problem for cleome (spider flower), torenia (wishbone flower), or monkey flower.
One of my favorite gardens is Celia Thaxter’s on Appledore Island off the coast of New Hampshire. Based on the plan of her cutting garden found in her 1894 book An Island Garden, it is almost totally annuals.
Or, plant a mixed border—a mixture of plants including perennials, shrubs, bulbs, vines, and annuals. Don’t be afraid to mix it up!
Browse more annual (and perennial) flowers. See the Almanac’s library of Flower Growing Guides.
Getting Started with Flower Gardening
Building a Raised Flower Bed Garden
Choosing Flowers
Types of Flower Gardens
Flower Gardening for Pollinators
Growing Flowers in Containers
Spring and Fall Bulbs
Caring for Flowers
I call my garden Vitamin G - it is such a good place to be, very grounding (if you pardon the pun), and healthy for body, mind, and spirit. Especially important in these stressful times.
You are so lucky to live in an area with mild winters! Many of the plants that are considered annuals in the north are actually tender perennials that will overwinter in your zone.
Thanks for reading them Kelvin! and for your kind words. I'm glad they have been of help.
The greenhouses and nurseries in my state, along with the farm stands and farmers' markets have all been deemed essential services so they will be open for business. The direction that business will take is up to the individuals. They may limit how many people can be in the greenhouse at one time, utilize preordering, curbside pickups, or home delivery to lessen everyone's exposure to potential harm. Contact them ahead of time to see what they are doing to stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Unless you are in an area with a shelter in place or lockdown order, you should be able to obtain the supplies you need for your garden. Do it as safely as you can! Personally I think this will be a big year for gardens as people try to regain some semblance of control and normalcy in their lives. The seed racks in the stores are already looking like they have been hit hard!
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