Now is the perfect time to plant warm season annuals

Published 8:00 am Wednesday, April 28, 2010

This is a great time to plant your warm season annuals. To get the best results you will want the roots well established before it gets too warm. Always be sure that your annual planting beds are raised and that your have amended the existing soil with a quality soil mix. If you want to create unique planting beds, consider selecting plants that are not as commonly used. They will bring more interest to the planting beds.

Here are a few examples of some unusual annual plants to use. Euphorbia Silver Fog has small white flowers similar to Baby’s Breathe. They are great for accents and pots. Bacopa is a great plant for lower plantings and pots. It has a trailing growth habit and smaller white flowers. Lobelia is also a low growing plant that trails and has a beautiful Iris-like blue flower. It is great for pots and lower plantings. Plumbago is a great accent plant for beds and pots. They have a blue bloom that lasts the entire growing season and will grow to three feet.

Consider adding a little green color to add definition to your plantings. Use Foxtail Fern because the foliage is different from most plants. Dracaena Spikes have thin blade-like foliage that can grow to eighteen inches or more. Both of these green plants will accent the color in your planting beds and pots. Athena is a great to use because of its foliage color; it comes in bright yellow, burgundy and shades of red. They stay low and can be a showstopper. Heliotrope is a taller upright grower that may reach 36 inches. It has blue blooms and looks great as an accent or background plant. Pentas are becoming popular because of their larger blooms and are available in several colors. These are just a few examples of different types of annuals available to add variety to your landscape. Come by the garden center and check out the large variety of annuals available.

Happy Gardening.