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Hardy
annuals
can be direct-sown in the garden as early in the spring as
the soil can be worked. For an earlier start, sow them indoors in flats
8 to 10 weeks before the last spring frost date, and transplant them to
the garden about a month later, after hardening them off.
Some
hardy annuals can also be direct-seeded in the fall, and these plants will
flower much earlier than plants seeded in the spring. When fall seeding,
plant the seeds a bit deeper than you would in the spring, and spread some
mulch over the seedbed after the ground has frozen.
Examples
of hardy annuals include bachelor’s buttons, calendula, spider flower (Cleome ), pinks (Dianthus spp.), larkspur, linaria, Shirley poppies (Papaver rhoeas),
nigella (love-in-a-mist), scabiosa (pincushion flower), snapdragons, lavatera,
annual baby’s breath (Gypsophila elegans), heliotrope, stocks, and sweet
peas.
Half-hardy
annuals
can be direct-sown outdoors after the threat of hard
frost (temperatures below 25°F) is past. Indoors, start seeds in flats
6 to 8 weeks before the last spring frost date, and harden off the plants
before transplanting them to the garden. Once they have hardened off, half-hardy annuals can withstand a light frost.
Examples
include statice, nicotiana, painted-tongue (Salpiglossis sinuata), China
aster (Callistephus chinensis), and various types of salvias and chrysanthemums.
Tender annuals
can be sown directly in the garden only after all
danger of frost is past. For an earlier start, sow seed indoors 4 to 6
weeks before the last spring frost date for your area. Examples include
marigolds, morning glories, zinnias, sunflowers and tithonia (Mexican sunflower),
cosmos, amaranth, ageratum, celosia, and gomphrena (globe amaranth).
Some
annuals are so good at fulfilling their mission in life — flowering and
setting seeds — that they will self-sow readily under the right conditions
and produce brand new plants the following year. Common annuals that can
self-sow vigorously include ageratum, petunia, foxglove, annual larkspur,
forget-me-not, calendula, and wild or striped mallow (Malva sylvestris). |
