Low Maintenance Annuals
Low
maintenance annuals are a popular option for the do-it-yourself gardener. Most
varieties have brief germination periods and produce prolonged blooms. With
little effort, you can generate a seasons worth of blooms with little effort
depending on the varieties you choose.
Selecting
plants that are pest-resistant and don’t require an excessive amount of watering is important when you are creating an easy annual garden. Also, make sure your choices
fast growing so that they suppress weeds while quickly creating blooms of color.
Included here is a list of low maintenance annuals that produce brightly
colored gardens without too much work.
- Ageratum
(Ageratum houstonianum)
- Bachelor’s
Button (Centaurea cyanus)
- Blanket
Flower (Gaillardia amblyodon, Gaillardia
puchella)
- Blue
Lace Flower (Trachymene coerulea)
- California
Poppy (Eschscholzia californica)
- Cleome (Cleome hasslerana)
- Cockscomb
(Celosia argentea)
- Coleus
(Coleus blumei)
- Cosmos
(Cosmos bipinnatus)
- Cup-and-saucer
Vine (Cobea scandens)
- Dianthus
(Dianthus barbutus)
- Flowering
Maple (Abutilon hybridum)
- Gazania
(Gazania longiscapa)
- Gypsophila
(Gypsophila elegans)
- Heliotrope
(Heliotropium arborescens)
- Hyacinth
Bean Vine (Dolichos lablab)
- Impatiens
(Impatiens balsamina, Impatiens
wallerana)
- Larkspur (Consolida)
- Linaria
(Linaria moroccana)
- Marigold
(Tagetes)
- Mexican
Sunflower (Tithonia rotundifolia)
- Mimulus
(Mimulus x hybridus grandiflorus)
- Moonflower
(Ipomoea alba)
- Morning
Glory Vine (Ipomoea purpurea)
- Nasturtium
(Tropaeolum majus)
- Nicotiana
(Nicotiana alata)
- Pansy
(Viola x wittrockiana)
- Petunia
(Petunia x hybrida)
- Phlox
(Phlox drummondii)
- Portulaca
(Portulaca grandiflora)
- Salvia
(Salvia horminum)
- Scabiosa
(Scabiosa astropupurea)
- Snapdragon
(Antirrhinum majus)
- Statice
(Limonium sinuata)
- Stock
(Matthiola)
- Sunflower
(Helianthus annuus)
- Sweet
Alyssum (Lobularia maritima)
- Tahoka
Daisy (Aster tanacetifolius)
- Torenia
(Torenia fournieri)
- Verbana
(Verbana hortensis)
- Wax
Begonia (Begonia x semperflorens-cultorum)
- Zinnia
(Zinnia elegans)
After
you have selected your plants, there are a few things that you can do to ensure
a healthy garden:
- Fish
emulsion and other natural fertilizers will help your new transplants to adapt to
your garden.
- You
can also use a light mulch to keep weeds away from seedlings.
- To
prevent overcrowding and reduce competition for air, light, and water, be sure
to prune your young plants.
- Also, deep watering is generally more effective than lightly sprinkling your plants
often.
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