Annuals - any recommendations?

My dad came for lunch today and he had bought me a present. YAY!!! :yho:

He bought me a four tiered mini greenhouse. I know that may sound unexciting but kids come first on my budget, so I'm very excited and can't wait to sew some seeds and relieve the congestion on my windowsills!

Now that I have more room, does anyone have any suggestions of things that I can grow for this year. I'm guessing only annuals will make enough of a show for this year.

I have perennial beds and will need to fill out my bare patches. The bare patches may be quite sizeable this year as I am clearing through and moving out what I don't want to other locations in the garden.

I am not a huge fan of bizzy lizzies or geraniums, but would love to hear anyones recommendations of the beautiful, delicate or striking.

Yours excitedly... :D

 

The two I find easiest to grow are Nasturtiums and Morning Glory, both which climb and scramble everywhere, although both can be sown outside in situ and won't really need your new mini greenhouse.

How about trying sweetpeas? They won't fill gaps but will give you so much pleasure. I also love the simple French Marigold.

Can I borrow your greenhouse? I made a list of seeds I want/need to sow shortly and as I don't have one, will have to utilise windowsills or wait until Spring arrives properly.

 

I could rent out shelves!

 

Dahlias are good fun from seed, i like the dark leaved forms like bishops children. Cosmos bipinnatus is good for giving some height, colius for some nice foliage interest.

 

Well, good luck if you try Gazanias. I find that they close up at the slight hint of a cloud and then sulk for the rest of the day.:(

 

If you can find mini-sunflower seeds, they are dead easy to grow from seed and look lovely planted en masse. A friend of mine plants them in rows all around her veg patches and they look really spectacular, about 30-40cm high.

 

If you intend to plant them out in a spot with full sun I would go for Mesembryanthemum (livingstone daisy) they are carpet bedding and will very quickly fill spaces in a border but they must have full sun or the flowers will not open.

 

Bedding dahlias are easy from seed and will flower from July until the first frost.
I love poppies. They come in many varieties but the little red and black ones - Ladybird - make a lovely splash of colour in amongst other things.
Cosmos are also easy and will will you height and plenty of colour in your borders.
And lavatera are great too.
Enjoy your new greenhouse Victoria but make sure you anchor it down. They can be quite unstable in the wind..I would tie it to a fence or downpipe or something.

 

If I grow sweet peas will I have to keep dead heading them to keep them flowering? I tried to grow them over a horrid chain link fence last year to cover it but dead heading was a nightmare because of the position.

 

Thanks for the tip!!! I will be sure to secure it.

I have seen some mexican daisies which look really pretty. I also love cosmos so will give that a try. I would like to try sweet peas but perhaps in a pot with canes rather than over the fence I tried last year!

I absolutely adore penstemon flowers. Is there something with a delicate flower that I could grow from seed?

 

Have you a space you could grow them up a wigwam (three bamboo canes tied together), so you can access them to keep cutting the flowers. They also do better in the ground than in a pot.

 

... for that ugly fence... try Morning glory (Ipomoea), Cup and saucer ( Cobaea) and, or Black eyed susan (Thunbergia alata)

 

Just looked them all up and will definitely try the Morning Glory. Thank you so much for the tip!!! Are there loads of different annual varieties to choose from? I read that there are many types, just womdering which seeds to get. I will check out a seed company. :gnthb:

 

I think I suggested Morning Glory earlier I grow them every year, collect the seeds in autumn and save money that way. They don't need dead heading and with enough sun will go wild, covering the fence. Maybe mix them with nasturtiums to see which get most rampant! However both seeds are best sown in situ.

Edited to add, Morning Glory doesn't need an early start, wait until late April/early May and they'll be blooming by summer.