Learn how to plant annuals with me this spring.Gardening 101 is a series where I share tips and techniques that I have learned from my green thumb Mother and Grandmother. My thumb tends to be a little black so I happily accept any help that I can get! Be sure to check out the Bee Friendly Planter that I just potted or the DIY Plastic Bucket Planter we made. Today I am going to share how to easily plant annuals to brighten up your garden space.
How to plant annuals:
I just finished filling my planters with a bunch of annuals. I chose most of these flowers because my pots get a lot of sun exposure and sometimes my watering can be a little tardy. So these annuals are all drought tolerant and perfect for areas with high sun exposure.
Every year I plant a selection of annuals, flowers that don’t generally come back year after year, in large terra cotta pots on our front steps. I usually budget $75 for my 5 pots. I returned to Costco again this year and got 36 basket stuffers (annual flowers meant for hanging baskets) for only $10.99! Woohoo! I bought 108 annual plants and 3 dracnea (plants in the grass family) for $45. I had enough plants to fill the 5 pots on my front steps, 4 pots in the backyard and add to an existing arrangement.
It’s important to wait until there is no threat of frost before planting outside. Otherwise the plants may die and we would lose the investment in time and money. Here in the Okanagan we are usually safe to plant after the May long weekend (mid to late May for most).
- Start by emptying all of your pots.
- Next fill the pots with a layer of rocks at the bottom (about 1″) and potting soil.
- Purchase a selection of annuals to fill the pots.
Drought tolerant annuals:
We tossed the old plants from last year and filled our pots with a layer of small rocks (for drainage) and potting soil (also bought at Costco). Here’s my selection of heat (and neglectful owner) tolerant plants…
Salvia looked like a fun option. One that I haven’t added to my pots before so we will see how it goes.
Dusty Miller is a lovely addition to flower groupings with its silver leaves. Very hardy and draught tolerant.
Lobelia is another hardy flower that can tolerate large amounts of exposure to sun. Interestingly lobelia has many medicinal properties.
Verbena is the perfect flower for potting. It is draught tolerant and requires little care.
Petunias are a flower pot staple. They have a wide variety of gorgeous colors and flower all summer long.
Tips for roots:
This is what you want your root bundle to look like. Healthy white roots have lots of room to grow.
This plant is root bound. It has been growing in its little pot too long and may have trouble once transplanted. You can gently massage the roots to loosen them up a bit.
- Now take all of the flowers out of their containers and place them in each pot, making sure you have an assortment of varieties in each one.
- Then plant them at least 1 inch from the top of the pot, gently pressing in the potting soil around each plant.
- Finally give all of the flowers a good watering.
I had so many plants this year that I had to get creative with my containers! It’s going to be fun to watch all of these planters fill out and grow this spring.
I have planted a vegetable garden again this year as well and will share how I tried to use crop rotation and companion planting soon. Check out my other Gardening 101 posts for more pretties from around the yard.
Great planters. I didn’t know you are in BC; I’m in the lowermainland.