Season-Enduring Annuals Delivering Year-Round Vibrant Blossoms
In the heart of summer, gardens come alive with a riot of colours, and for those who wish to extend this spectacle well into fall, there are several annuals and perennials that excel in providing long-lasting blooms.
One such annual is the False Heather (Cuphea hyssopifolia), a charming plant with tiny, lavender-pink flowers that bloom profusely from summer until frost. It thrives in full sun and moist, well-drained soil, tolerating drought, salt, and many soil types, making it a versatile choice for any garden.
Another standout annual is the Garden Coreopsis (Coreopsis tinctoria), boasting unique, fiery flowers with golden petals that bleed into a reddish base and a reddish-purple center. This hardy plant prefers light, sandy, well-drained soil and full sun, and tolerates heat, drought, and poor soil.
Creeping Zinnia (Sanvitalia procumbens), also known as dwarf sunflower, is a cheerful addition with cheery yellow blossoms and a growth habit that reaches six inches tall but spreads up to 18 inches wide. Native to dry, rocky hills of Mexico and Guatemala, it is well-adapted to drought and dry soils.
Spider flower (Cleome houtteana) adds a touch of drama with its tall, spiky, fragile-looking flowers that bloom from late spring to early fall in shades of pink, white, and purple. It grows best in full sun and well-drained soil.
For those seeking annuals with continuous or extended summer-to-fall flowering, Cockscomb, Cornflower, and Cosmos are excellent choices. Cockscomb produces large, velvety blooms in rich red, orange, and yellow shades, thriving in full sun with moist, neutral soil. Cornflower offers pompom-style flowers in colours like blue (classic), white, pink, and pale blue, growing up to 2 feet in full sun. Cosmos, with its daisy-like blooms in white, yellow, burgundy, and more, needs full sun and moist soil and encourages more blooms throughout the season with deadheading.
In the realm of perennials, Daylilies and Coneflowers are among the top recommendations for their long blooming times. Daylilies, though each bloom lasts only one day, produce prolific buds ensuring continuous colour from early summer to fall. Coneflowers bloom well into fall with bold petals, making them good for steady colour and attracting pollinators.
Blanket Flower and Stella D’Oro Daylily are also worth mentioning for their fiery tones and repeat blooms even under dry conditions, contributing to long colour periods in the garden.
Floss flower (Ageratum houstonianum) blooms from mid-spring until frost, with shades of white, pink, or blue. It forms clumping mounds six inches to a foot tall, and grows well in containers and beds.
Annuals, while needing replanting yearly, offer diverse colours and long-lasting blooms. They are great for achieving a colour blend in your garden and experimenting with different combinations. Annual Phlox (Phlox drummondii) produces showy clusters of white to red flowers and can reseed itself for yearly blooms.
Sweet alyssum produces masses of tiny, white to lavender flowers in spring and fall, and is excellent for edging, filling in between taller plants, or growing between stepping stones.
Angelonia is an upright, somewhat bushy, sprawling tropical plant with spikes of small, snapdragon-like blooms in shades of white, pink, and blue. It has good tolerance to drought, heat, and humidity.
Globe amaranth blooms from spring into fall and retains its colour when dried. Different varieties offer shades of pink, purple, or white and grow from one to two feet tall.
By incorporating a mix of these long-blooming annuals and perennials, gardeners can ensure a vibrant display from summer into fall, making their gardens a delight to behold throughout the seasons.
- The False Heather, an annual plant, has tiny, lavender-pink flowers that bloom from summer to frost and thrives in full sun and moist, well-drained soil.
- Another annual, Garden Coreopsis, boasts unique, fiery flowers that bleed from golden to reddish base and a reddish-purpurle center, and it prefers light, sandy, well-drained soil and full sun.
- Creeping Zinnia, or dwarf sunflower, with its cheerful yellow blossoms, is well-adapted to dry, rocky soils due to its native habitat in Mexico and Guatemala.
- Spider flower adds drama to gardens with its tall, spiky, fragile-looking flowers that bloom in shades of pink, white, and purple, growing best in full sun and well-drained soil.
- For those seeking long-lasting blooms in their gardens, Cockscomb, Cornflower, and Cosmos are excellent choices, as they continue to bloom from summer to fall and thrive in full sun and moist soil.
