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Designing with Annual Flowers

By Bob Chapman

You can create some truly beautiful gardens using annuals. The wide array and availability of annuals in our nurseries year around can transform an otherwise ho-hum landscape into something that will be enjoyed all season-long

Getting started
First, make a little "map" of the yard or section to be planted. Use 1/4-inch graph paper, letting one square equal one foot of ground. Spot the perennials and shrubs on your map. Now you know the area size by counting the blank squares. Using the chart below choose low growing annuals for the border, a medium size for the middle section and taller plants for the back. This will give the flowerbed a pleasant look and you won't have tall flowers overshadowing the smaller ones.

Selecting colors
Now look at the colors and select a scheme or theme for your garden. For example, you can use blue ageratum for the border, white petunias for the middle and stunning, bold red salvia for the rear of the bed. You can do the same by using a little imagination.

Purchasing annual flowers
Annuals are sold in plastic cellpacks holding 6 plants to a pack. The cellpacks hold a small bit of soil and a seedling plant. They are sold in two sizes, the regular and jumbo size. Jumbo cellpacks are more commonly found and contain older and more developed plants. Because of their increased size, plants are able to grow without getting spindly and leggy. The cellpacks are held in trays called "flats". The flats contain 48 plants in the regular size and 36 plants in the jumbo cell size. You may be able to save money by buying plants by the flat instead of the individual cellpacks. When determining the number of plants needed for a given area keep in mind that you can only buy plants in increments of six.

SIZE OF SELECTED ANNUALS AT MATURITY, SPACING NEEDS AND COLORS

BLOSSOM COLOR KEY:

  • Y = yellow
  • P = pink
  • B = blue
  • O = orange
  • L = lavender
  • V = violet or purple
  • R = red
  • W = white
  • M = multicolored

(Note: The listings below are in alphabetical order)

LOW GROWING (Under 8 inches) SPACING COLORS

  • Alyssum 6-8 inches P,L,V,W
  • Ageratum, dwarf 6-10 inches P,L,B,W
  • Fibrous begonia 6-8 inches R,W,P,M
  • Dwarf calendula 8-10 inches Y,O,W,M
  • Dianthus (pinks, carnations) 6-8 inches R,P,L,V, W,M
  • Lobelia 6-8 inches R,B,V,M
  • Pansy 6-8 inches Y,O,R,P,L,B,W,M
  • Portulaca (Rose moss) 10-12 inches R,P,Y,O,W
  • Primrose, dwarf 6-8 inches Y,O,R,P,L,B,W,M
  • Primrose, all others 8-10 inches Y,O,R,P,L,B,W,M
  • Dwarf salvia 10-12 inches R,W,P
  • Dwarf snapdragons 6-8 inches Y,O,R,P,L,B,W,M
  • Dwarf stock 8-10 inches R,P,V,W
  • Viola 6-8 inches Y,O,R,L,V,B,W,M
  • Verbena 8-10 inches R,P,B,V,W,M

MEDIUM HEIGHT (8-18 inches)

  • Ageratum (not dwarf) 8-10 inches P,L,V,W
  • Calendula 12-14 inches Y,O,W,M
  • California poppy 12-14 inches R,P,Y,O
  • Cineraria 12-14 inches R,P,B,V,W,M
  • Coleus 10-12 inches L (grown for foliage)
  • Dianthus (carnations) 10-14 inches R,P,L,V,W,M
  • Iceland poppy 8-10 inches Y,O,P,W
  • Impatiens 8-10 inches O,P,R,W
  • Mimulus (Monkey flower) 8-10 inches R,Y,M
  • Myosotis (Forget-me-not) 8-10 inches B
  • Nasturtium 10-12 inches R,O,Y,W
  • Petunia 8-10 inches Y,O,R,P,L,V,B,W,M
  • Salvia 10-12 inches R,W,P
  • Snapdragon 8-10 inches Y,O,P,L,V,B,W,M
  • Stock 8-12 inches R,P,V,W
  • Zinnia 8-10 inches R,P,Y,O,V,W,M

TALL GROWING (Over 18 inches)

  • Cosmos 8-10 inches Y,O,R,P,L,V,W,M
  • Nicotiana 8-10 inches R,P,V,W
  • Nasturtium 10-12 inches R,Y,W,O
  • Nemesia 8-10 inches Y,O,R,P,L,V,B,W,M
  • Snapdragons 8-10 inches Y,O,R,P,L,V,B,W,M
  • Sweet peas 12-14 inches R,P,L,V,W,B

TIP: When using a color scheme make a list of all the annual flowers that have the desired colors. This will save a lot of time.

TIP: After you have designed the flowerbed, add to the soil generous amounts of organic matter (compost, redwood sawdust, and mushroom compost) and spade it in. The addition of organic matter will loosen hard soils, add body to sandy soils and help hold nutrients and water.

TIP: It is important to set a plant at its proper depth when transplanting. This prevents crown rot and ensures roots spreading into the native soil. Make certain that the top of the root ball is even with the surface of the soil. A little care here solves lots of problems later on. Be sure that the soil is settled around the roots and that there are no air pockets. Water well after transplanting to firm the soil and eliminate air pockets.

TIP: When planting young snaps, marigolds, zinnias, petunias, or coleus pinch (cut off) the central stem to force branching, resulting in more compact plants and greater numbers of flowers.

By following the suggestions above you will have a bright, cheerful and colorful flower garden that is sure to please your eye and be the envy of all that see it.

 

Bob Chapman is a well-known professional gardener and landscape contractor. Currently retired, Bob now spends his time contributing many free-lance garden articles and columns, and is a much sought after lecturer and horticultural consultant.

Since 1987, Bob has appeared as a regular columnist for the San Jose Mercury News. Besides the Mercury, his writings have appeared in the San Diego Tribune, Sacramento Bee, Fresno Bee and the Times Newspaper Group. He is the 1991 winner of the Quill and Trowel Award of the Garden Writers Association of America for the best newspaper gardening article in North America.

Bob majored in Ornamental Horticulture at Cal-Poly, San Luis Obispo. He also served as a member of the Professional Gardeners Association.