After I’m not studying and writing about gardening for work, I’m normally poring over the vegetation in my yard. In the summertime, plenty of that focus is directed in the direction of the annuals in my window bins and porch pots. After over a decade of gardening, there are a couple of annuals for containers that stand above the others.
I’m a lazy gardener. I don’t need to work too laborious to coax blooms out of my vegetation or child them simply to maintain them alive. I wish to plant my summer time pots, then watch them develop as I sit in a garden chair with a chilly glass of iced tea. I believe it was simply the way in which I used to be raised as a result of a number of of the vegetation on my listing are ones my mother has additionally grown each summer time for many years.
For me, one of the best vegetation for containers are ones which can be straightforward to develop, don’t want a lot repairs, and bloom all summer time lengthy. All my must-have annual vegetation hit these marks. Plus, they fill in quick and look lush till fall. Let’s check out the annuals for containers that prime my listing.
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My Should-Have Annuals for Containers
My favourite annuals for containers embody each annual flowers that bloom all summer time in addition to beautiful foliage vegetation that add texture and curiosity to pots for a shocking show that lasts all season.
1. Impatiens
(Picture credit score: Laura Walters / Future)
Impatiens are the quintessential annual flowers for containers. They’re really easy to develop, bloom all summer time lengthy, and fill pots and window bins so quick. These are an absolute should in case you’re searching for low-maintenance patio vegetation.
Impatiens, in contrast to petunias—one other old style flower your grandma most likely grew—don’t want deadheading to maintain blooming. Simply give them a pair doses of all-purpose flower fertilizer blended into water over the course of the summer time and they’ll reward you with easy blooms all season.
I like the double bloom varieties and trays of multicolor impatiens like these ones from Lowe’s. However you actually can’t go flawed with any kind of those shade-loving annuals. There’s a shade obtainable for nearly each backyard.
2. Geraniums
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Geraniums are one other basic annual flower for containers—and for good motive! These tall, elegant sun-lovers have an understated magnificence that permits them to slot in simply with a big selection of different vegetation. Like impatiens, they arrive in a ton of colours from true pink to scorching pink to coral to bubblegum to white and all the pieces in between. The ‘Maverick Combine’ of geranium seeds from the Gardening Know How Store provides you a stunning mixture of colours.
To maintain geraniums blooming all summer time, some minimal pruning is required. However deadheading geraniums is extra of a enjoyable exercise than a chore. Merely pinch the pale flower head and stem the place it meets the primary trunk and pop the entire thing off the plant. Geranium blooms final pretty lengthy, so that you gained’t must deadhead that usually.
3. Coleus
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Coleus are primarily grown for his or her foliage, although they do produce a spike of blooms later in the summertime that resembles a salvia flower. My absolute favourite forms of coleus are the recent pink and inexperienced varieties, however planting a multicolor tray of coleus like this one from Lowe’s is a good way so as to add selection to your shade containers.
Simply place coleus in a shady spot and allow them to develop. They’re so easy-care that I truly had one coleus reseed itself between the cracks within the pavers on my porch. It grew so properly it produced a flower with out me watering or caring for it in any respect. Now that’s low-maintenance!
4. Dragon Wing Begonias
(Picture credit score: Laura Walters / Future)
There are such a lot of lovely forms of begonias, together with tons of indoor begonia varieties. However my favourite one for spectacular summer time containers is the dramatic dragon wing begonia, generally often known as angel wing begonias.
These show-stopping tropical flowers could be a bit troublesome to seek out generally, although it looks like they’ve been getting extra well-liked and simpler to seek out over the previous few years. When you can’t discover dragon wing begonias in shops, they’re straightforward to develop seeds, which you will discover on-line like this ravishing pink cultivar from Burpee.
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